Many Fans Believe That Deontay Wilder Was Robbed in His WBC Heavyweight Title Defence Against Britain’s Tyson Fury After The Referee Failed to Stop the Fight…
Tyson Fury and Deontay Wilder fought out a classic at the weekend in the Staples Center in Los Angeles, California. Both men were unbeaten coming into this fight, and the narrative surrounding this one was that one of these two behemoth heavyweights would lose that zero in the loss column.
In the end, the result was a draw. Most fans and analysts believe that Fury did enough to win the fight on points after dominating Wilder and demonstrating his incredible fight IQ. Fans were especially critical about Mexican judge Alejandro Rochin. Paulie Malignaggi, who was commentating for Showtime, was furious and said he should never judge again.
While they’ve all got a point – on balance Fury should have got the decision based on points – there’s another argument to be made. Wilder was also the victim of a very controversial call that’s oddly going under the radar after Fury appeared to be given twenty seconds instead of ten to recover and prove that he was fit to fight.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d8PBRTlzzZ0
Missed Count
As you can see from the footage above, not only does the referee delay starting the count, Fury is still on one knee when he reaches ten. If you’re following the rules of the sport, then Wilder should have won the fight. Of course, that would have been very harsh on Fury, and it would have punctured all those comparisons to The Undertaker, but that’s the way it is.
Wilder can definitely feel a little bit hard done by after that. His knockout power is absolutely insane, with 39 finishes in 41 fights. Fury is only the second man to go the distance with ‘The Bronze Bomber’ which is a testament to both men’s ability.
Who Won?
However, if you’re judging the fight based on the fact that it went the full twelve rounds, then Wilder’s missed KO win has to be discounted. In that case, as you can see from the statistics above, Fury dominated almost every round in the fight. He punched more and controlled the ring in an incredibly effective display.
Wilder can punch frighteningly hard, but he’s very one-dimensional. If this fight goes to a rematch, he’s got a lot of work to do. Many people believed that Fury should have got another fight under his belt before taking this one. Imagine what he could be like in six months if he stays motivated?
Floyd Mayweather Sr's reaction to #WilderFury being announced as a draw is the same as millions all around the World:
🗣"That's garbage. That's GARBAGE! 🤷♂️"
How long are we willing to wait for the @bronzebomber & @Tyson_Fury to run back this fade? 🤔#RingsideRave⚫🔴⚪ pic.twitter.com/G9lJmyBkZd
— Ringside Rave (@Ringside_Rave) December 4, 2018
Fair Decision?
On balance it seems like a draw might actually be the correct decision because of the fact that both men have justifiable reasons to say they won. Fury was knocked out, but he also dominated almost every round – except the ones he was dropped in.
However, that does not justify Rochin’s decision to give Wilder the first four rounds on his scorecard. That was an absolutely appalling decision. You’d know that he has done a lot of work with Goldenboy Promotions. After the fight, Fury’s trainer Ben Davison said:
“They just took away the best comeback in sports history. You’ve got to be a sick, sick man to do that. I’m sick and gutted. You have got to be a sick person to do that to a man like Tyson.”
