Dirty Fighting and Bad Referee Spoil Super Boxer Debut

The long awaited debut of the new ‘Super Boxer’ program, which is the first free to air boxing show in Australia since ‘TV Ringside’ in the 1970s, left a sour taste in the mouths of hardcore boxing fans as illegal tactics and bad refereeing spoilt the main event and one of the co features. World title challenger Billy Dib’s antics in his fight could single-handedly have put the entire programin jeapordy of continuing. In saying that, the other two bouts on the card were top notch and exactly the kind of thing I was hoping to see.

Billy Dib TKO1 Kenichi Yamaguchi
What a complete pile of horse shit the ending of this fight was. Yamaguchi was handing Billy Dib his arse for the entire first round, including knocking him down, and then what was the second worse refereeing decision of the night took place. Dib threw a combo that was mostly blocked by Kenichi but caught him off balance and he slipped. Dib then hit him with a flush left hook from behind him that nailed him on the button and dazed him. Kenichi rose, took an 8 count, which was completely unwarranted, then after he had seemingly regained his composure (I’ve seen plenty of more hurt fighters then that continue before), referee Les Fear stopped the fight and awarded Dib a first round knockout.

This is where the real fun begins. Yamaguchi complained to the referee briefly before Billy Dib shoved Yamaguchi for no reason other then he’s a twat and then also shoved his trainer which started a minor melee in the ring. No punches were thrown and it didn’t escalate to the heights of Elomar-Kicket last year, but it very easily could have if Kenichi or his trainers didn’t do the right thing and leave the ring. Once again Billy Hussein was the only member of the entourage that started the brawl who tried to calm things down quickly. To shove someone who you just stopped in a fight is both dangerous and classless. The little opinion I had of Billy Dib as a person before this just plummetted and I really wish nothing but the worst for him in the future. To be given the opportunity he was in that he could build himself into a household name and help build boxing back up in this country and then do that, I’m sorry but you’re just a piece of shit and I have zero interest in ever watching you compete ever again.

Dominic Vea TKO7 Anthony McCracken
Excellent fight. You couldn’t have asked for a better show from these two. McCracken was outgunned, but he hung in there and tried to battle back when he could and the times Vea took a breather he took the fight to him. Vea looked a little rusty, I’ve seen him look quicker then that in previous fights but he’s been out of the ring for a few months so it was to be expected. His punching power is awesome and the way he picks his shots on the inside is superb. McCracken is a tough son of a bitch; one of the toughest in this country. It was clear from the 3rd-4th round that he wasn’t going to win but he kept in there and kept battling away. In the end Vea’s body work paid dividends and he dropped McCracken three times in the 7th with body shots which forced the ref to stop the fight. I’d be happy to watch either man fight again anytime soon.

Daniel Ammann technical draw 1st round Jamie Withers
If that doesn’t warrant an immediate disqualification, then what does? The rules state that if a delibirate illegal blow renders the opponent unable to continue, then it’s an automatic disqualification whether there’s been a warning before or not. If you can show me a clearer example of a fight that should end in an automatic disqualification, then please send it to me. The elbow Withers threw was more intentional then 99% of elbows thrown in Muay Thai. I really don’t think Withers wanted to be in there. He looked scared and nervous (and even admitted to being ‘petrified’ in the post fight interview), he didn’t want any part of looking Ammann in the eyes during the final instructions and he had a bit adrenaline dump just before the opening bell. Ammann on the other hand looked like a boxer intent on erasing a loss on his record. The fight itself was fairly even for the minute or so that it lasted, but I think Withers wanted a way out and took it. The referee again was Les Fear and he should, in my opinion, be demoted to refereeing amateur club fights rather then main card fights on television. Hopefully Ammann makes a speedy recovery (it was a big cut) and these two can do battle again.

Michael Bolling W6 Toga Letoa
Another excellent fight and credit to the matchmaker for finding such a tough opponent for Bolling. This fight will surely help him out long term as he’s battled a tough fighter who can punch and gone the distance with him. Letoa rocked Bolling in the 2nd round but Bolling showed exellent composure and came back to pound out a unanimous decision.

Hopefully next Thursdays card first of all actually stays on TV and then goes off like the Bolling and Vea fights did without any of the other shit.