By Giancarlo Malinconico: Boxing fans are very aware that sometimes the judges get it wrong. There was Lennox Lewis-Holyfield 1, Mayweather-Castillo 1 and many more. There is no worse of a feeling for a boxing fan than watching the judges rob a fighter of a rightfully deserving decision. And even worse is when this robbery occurs in the hometown of one of the combatants.
Paulie “Magic Man” Malignaggi” and the “Baby Bull” Juan Diaz were a part of an entertaining bout in Houston on Saturday night. The fight turned out to be what most expected. Diaz came forward attempting to turn the fight into a brawl, while Paulie used is jab in an attempt to box from a distance. Both Diaz and Paulie had their moments, but Paulie essentially gave Diaz the proverbial boxing lesson during several rounds. Although Diaz was not dominated by any means, he was out landed and out boxed. Paulie seemed to turn back the clock, and obviously faired no worse than 115-113.
Before the clash, Malignaggi told everyone he could about the alleged corrupt judging in Texas. He was telling everyone who was willing to pay attention about two judges in particular, Gale Van Hoy and Raul Caiz. Malignaggi accuses these judges of giving undeserving decisions to hometown boxers in Texas. We have to look no further than the Rocky Juarez/Chris John bout to see a clear example of the incompetence of these two judges. In a bout that saw Chris John clearly outbox Rocky Juarez, both scored the fight a draw. Gale Van Hoy, moreover, scored the Malignaggi/Diaz a laughable 118-110.
And to his credit, Oscar De La Hoya was not happy with the scoring. De La Hoya stated, “Paulie Malignaggi was right…. You have to give up to Paulie Malignaggi because he came to fight. He was in tremendous shape and put on one hell of a performance.” De La Hoya ought to be commended for speaking out against the decision even while promoting the fighter who gained most from the decision.
Whether to say the judges are bias as Malignaggi alleges, or whether they are just incompetent because they are accustomed to scoring the fight for the “come forward fighter” whether that fighter is effective or not, I believe that an independent governing body is necessary in the sport in order to ensure that when fighters fight another competitor in their hometown or home country, neutral judges and referees are always selected.
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