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CALIFORNIA TO EXAMINE NEW METHODS FOR CONTROVERY-PREVENTION

Refree Pat Russell told RingTV.com on Friday that the California State Athletic Commision will begin probing new ways to address controversial endings to bouts like Bernard HopkinsChad Dawson, which Russell initially ruled a second-round TKO for Dawson before it was declared a “no decision” on Tuesday by the CSAC.

Click here for an official report on Russell’s full testimony before the CSAC.

“There was a motion to the commission, and it was approved, that we are going to go forth and we are going to try to find a better way to deal with this exact situation when it comes up. So they’re going to reach out  to our California Boxing Officials Association, and to the chairman and to the committee on that association and we’re going to try to find something else that is better,” said Russell.



“We’re going to look at every possibility. Everything is on the table — instant replay, consulting with the ringside judges, consulting with chief inspector at ringside. Whatever we are going to come up with will be after we sit down at a table and try and craft something that will address this very issue. To the credit of the athletic commission, they want to do the right thing.”

Hopkins, THE RING light heavyweight champion as well as the WBC beltholder, still is recovering from a left shoulder separation following his controversial fight with Dawson on Oct. 15, which was initially ruled to be a TKO for Dawson after Hopkins was shoved to the canvas and deemed unfit to continue by Russell.

On Tuesday, however, Russell’s testimony helped to influence the CSAC to change Hopkins-Dawson to a no-decision. This followed the actions of the WBC, which soon after the fight had restored Hopkins as titleholder following a majority vote of board members who disagreed with Russell’s call and ruled the fight a “technical draw.”

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Goossen, whose company is based in California, shared his thoughts on the CSAC’s recent activities.

“I don’t agree with changing outcomes of bouts days later, weeks later or months later … what boxing needs to do is to do what the other major sports implement, especially football,” said Goossen.

“They have instant replay on anything that could result in controvery. So if it was a knockdown, for instance, and the replay shows that it wasn’t, then it should be rectified immediately. If you’ve got a low blow and the recipient of it is squirming on the groud looking to get a DQ on the person that caused the low blow, and the replays show that it wasn’t, then there’s no low blow. But to come back long after an event, that makes no sense.”

 

Photos: (this page) Tom Casino, Showtime, (previous page) Naoki Fukuda

Lem Satterfield can be reached at [email protected]

 

 

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