Something was woefully rotten in Quebec, Canada last night in terms of the officiating, but it wasn't a referee this time and it certainly did not take place in the Bute vs. Andrade rematch. Waiting to hear the announcement that Ali Funeka would be declared the winner by unanimous decision, and new IBF lightweight champion of the world, two of the judges found some way to score his lopsided beating of Joan Guzman an even fight. As a result, the bout was inexplicably ruled a majority draw. Funeka vs. Guzman was being contested for the vacant IBF lightweight championship.
Guzman started off on the right track in the first two rounds, smothering the taller man and digging body shots at close range on the ropes. Showing his crafty defense, Guzman was initially able to duck beneath Funeka's long jab. Funeka began to find his range in the third round as kept his distance and his right hand started finding its target on Guzman. An unintentional headbutt opened a cut over Guzman's right eye, but it was Funeka's punches that did the damage to Guzman's bloodied nose. Funeka outboxed Guzman in the center of the ring, landing jabs and straight right hands. In the eighth round, Guzman was hurt when he got caught coming in with a straight right hand by Funeka.
From rounds nine to eleven, Funeka became increasingly dominant as he was teeing off combinations on a bloodied and battered Guzman. Guzman, looking like a beaten man, was practically in retreat and could not find a way to avoid taking the right hand punishment that Funeka was dishing out. Guzman showed more life, perhaps out of desperation, in the 12th and final round when he went on attack and once again began firing shots to Funeka's long body. Too little and too late for Guzman, I thought to myself, until I heard the official scores, which took a while to tabulate, from the ringside judges.
Joe Pasquale scored the fight correctly, 116-112 for Funeka, which was identical to that of Boxingchronicles.com. HBO's unofficial ringside judge Harold Lederman scored the fight even wider at 117-111 for Funeka, disagreeing with yours truly on the final round. Judges Alan Davis and Benoit Russell, however, both managed to score such a one-sided fight 114-114. Such a result almost leads one to believe that the scores were penciled in ahead of time prior to the fight.
Guzman, whose face and red-colored trunks at the end of the night really told the tale of a beating, gets a draw and remains undefeated. The IBF lightweight title remains vacant. Unbelievable.
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