LONDON – The referee Mark Bates’ performance in his split-decision win over Derek Chisora led to Deontay Wilder fearing for his health.
Wilder, of Tuskaloosa, Alabama, was – at London’s O2 Arena – fighting in the United Kingdom for the first time in his 50th professional contest. Wilder, a former WBC heavyweight titlist and 40 years old, had looked in decline. Losses to both Joseph Parker and Zhilei Zhang had meant few gave him a chance against Chisora. However, he ultimately had more left than his 42-year-old opponent from London and was able to edge victory via split decision.
Their fight was indeed a close one, with both having success, but it should have been over in round three. Wilder hurt Chisora, who was pinned in the corner, and just as he was about to throw one of his right hands, Chisora complained to Bates that he could not see. Bates then halted the action to check if the home favorite was okay, and then ushered Wilder on, but the bell sounded, saving Chisora.
That was also not the only rule infringement. In the opening session one of Chisora’s cornermen entered the ring to help separate the two fighters when they became tangled together on the ropes. The fight was a scrappy one involving both men roughing each other up when they came together. Chisora consistently hit the back of Wilder’s head when they came together, and often landed shots after the bell.
Wilder had Chisora down on two counted occasions, but it should have been more. Chisora fell through the ropes following Wilder’s hard shots on multiple occasions, and was even helped to his feet by his corner and Bates. Wilder was also deducted a point for putting Chisora through the ropes, but it remains unclear what the perceived infringement was.
“It’s crazy – I mean, you're looking at, if the ref was fair, you're looking at a third-round stoppage,” said Wilder. “So many things went on. I got hit in the back of the head at least 10 to 12 different times, and then when I finally want to retaliate and hit back, you're pointing fingers at me, ‘Deontay don’t do that’. I'm like, ‘This man keeps hitting me in the back of the head. I'm getting dizzy at times, but I'm bouncing back’.”
The shots to the back of the head were a cause for concern to Wilder who said that he took it easy on Chisora in the later rounds because he was scared for his foe’s health. He was also worried about the effect Chisora’s rabbit punches would have on his brain.
“You know how many fighters got hit on the back of the head and don’t wake up tomorrow?” said Wilder. “That’s why I might not even go to sleep because of the awareness of getting hit on the back of the head and you not waking up tomorrow, or something happening or something forming. I feel good externally, but internally, something may be developing inside of me that I can’t see right now because a referee decided to allow something to happen that shouldn’t have happened.
“That was one of the things the referee asked, ‘Do we have questions?’, and Shelly [Finkel, my manager] brought it to his attention. That was one of the things we warned him to not do is allow him to hit me in the back of the head. And then it’s supposed to have been a disqualification because his team ran up in the ring. I mean, damn, I’m fighting Dereck and the referee. I’m like, it’s crazy, you know?”
The veteran boxing manager Shelly Finkel, who has long been part of Wilder’s team, was also unhappy with the officiating and feared the worst when the bout headed to the scorecards.
“If any or all of you want to look up the rules,” said Finkel, “one, if your corner enters the ring it’s an automatic disqualification. Number two, if you’re pushed, knocked out of the ring, you have 20 seconds to get in, you are not allowed to be helped by your corner. Three, if you get hit and you’ve fallen and you grab the rope, it’s an automatic eight count. Four, if you get hit after it’s stopped, it’s up to the discretionary ref to take a point off.
“He takes it off him, but he doesn’t treat fair. Number five, when Derrick went back and touched his eye to the ref, that’s not allowed. You either stop the fight or you don’t interfere. These are rules of the game and they can be checked, and I’m glad my guy won because I was afraid he was going to get robbed.”
Many overseas fighters fear coming to the UK because of the treatment from British judges and referees. With the majority of the big names in the heavyweight division residing in Britain or signed to promoters Frank Warren and Eddie Hearn, another trip to the UK is likely for Wilder.
“One bad apple won't spoil the show for me,” he said. “I love coming over here where some of the best fans in the world live. This is the second sport here, which I call the business. Everyone else calls it a sport because I know the truth behind the closed doors of what goes on. They love boxing. In America, it's like the seventh or eighth sport. So why not be able to come somewhere where boxing is loved? I would love to come here. When you get certain referees, it’s a scary thing.
“That’s why a lot of these fighters get on certain drugs to put in their body, to do things that their body isn’t supposed to do. Because they’re afraid not only of getting robbed by referees, but they’re thinking the other fighters are cheating as well. They’re getting away with a lot of things, especially having home advantage. But I don’t let those things get in my mind. I really love this sport. Being in this sport, I saw a lot of evil in the amateurs. It opened my eyes to a lot of things. I understand things are going to happen. I just hope and pray that the boxing commission, the people, do something about these things.
“That referee shouldn't be able to ref again. That’s just my honest opinion.”
