CHICAGO—The eyes of Z Gorres were moist and heavy, like clouds on a rain-soaked July. He was sitting on a dressing room stool when he shared his pain with reporters. It was tearful as a James Yap confession.
Moments earlier on this Saturday night, before an estimated crowd of 20,000 at the Cebu City Sports Center, Gorres lost his bid for the WBO super flyweight title against a tough hombre, Fernando Montiel.
The verdict was a very tight split decision, and it hurt Gorres more than any of the punches Montiel landed in the later rounds. But Gorres, tears flowing freely down his cheeks, took his fate the ALA way, with class and dignity.
“I accept the decision. Maybe the title wasn’t for me,” the despondent Mandauehanon told Erwin Lirazan of Superbalita.
No Z, the title was yours. Although you may have wilted some in the final three rounds, you did more than enough to earn the judges’ nod.
Yes Z, “The Dream” had been fulfilled. But a referee named Samuel Viruet turned it into a nightmare when he slapped you with a one-point deduction in Rounds 10 and 12.
Point deductions are necessary in boxing. They are designed to make fights clean and safe for the combatants. But when a bout, a world championship at that, is extremely close, deductions should only be meted on egregious offenses such as rabbit punching and dangerous low blows.
“Gorres’ deductions stemmed from too much holding and clinching,” lawyer Jingo Quijano, who was at ringside, told me over the phone last night. A fellow Sun.Star Cebu columnist, Jingo explained that “Z clinched only to protect himself, to buy time, to gather his composure.”
“Weren’t fighters supposed ‘to protect themselves at all times?'”, argued Quijano, whose Last Round column appear in these pages every Tuesdays and Saturdays.
Exactly. No fighter should be rewarded for clinching, but none should be penalized for clinching for safety, either. Gorres’ attempt to stay on his feet may have stalled Montiel, but it didn’t disadvantage the Mexican. Really, all Montiel had to do was distance himself and throw punches as though Armageddon is coming.
Referee Viruet apparently lacks the intellectual capacity to distinguish gamesmanship from dirty tactics. He obviously lacks a sense of awareness, and he probably wouldn’t know fair play, even if it hit him in the face with a two-by-four.
Gorres is a polite kid who is fiercely obedient to rules and authority. He has no history of unsportsmanlike conduct in his 29 pro fights. If Viruet knew this, he would have treated Z justly.
In the NBA, especially when the game is on the line, the referees likely won’t call any incidental contact involving the final play. The wisdom is to let the players decide the outcome. But if the foul is hard enough to alter the shot, only then is a whistle blown.
Since Gorres’ clinching and holding did not impair Montiel, Viruet should have done the right thing, which was to not deduct points on Gorres and put the onus on the judges. Sadly, Viruet chose to abuse his discretion.
“It must be the Hispanic connection,” said disgruntled fans who pointed out that Montiel is Mexican and Viruet is Puerto Rican.
I don’t think so. The flak falls squarely on the shoulders of Viruet. He is an ignorant arbiter who didn’t belong in the ring last Saturday night.
Z feels awful, I know. The injustice he got was terrible. Hell without the flames.
But he’s only 24. And unlike a devastating knockout or a thorough beating, this loss did not diminish Z. It made him wiser, and mentally stronger.
Keep punching, Z. The Dream’s fulfillment wasn’t cancelled permanently. It was only postponed by a cruel twist of refereeing fate.
POSTSCRIPT. Among the famous faces in last Saturday night’s mammoth crowd was Hon. Judge Charina Navarro, the youngest MTC judge in the history of Philippine justice system. Charina who can knock out men with her awesome good looks, is also the beautiful wife of Jingo Quijano. If she had judged this fight, I’m sure Gorres would have deservedly won.
Congrats to Noel Adlawan and Briccio Boholst for winning the IBP elections. The young legal eagles promised to enhance sporting activities among lawyers. Just so you know, I’m here to support any sporting cause.
