Sunday, August 2, 2009

Bradley Retains Belt Amidst Controversy; Alexander Wins Maiden World Title!

A pair of controversial stoppages ruled the night at the Agua Caliente Casino in Rancho Mirage,
California, proving the dominion of youth and power over an eternally underrated boxing virtue - experience.

Tim Bradley was given a TKO over Nate Campbell following an erroneous call by referee David Mendoza pertaining to the clash of heads that occurred in Round 3. Bradley's forehead appeared to make contact with Campbell's left eyebrow; this was followed by a short flurry from "Desert Storm" and a subsequent pause by a distracted Campbell, who was complaining of a headbutt. Mendoza, however, let the fight proceed, and Bradley remained on the offensive for the rest of the round. Once in his corner, Campbell said he couldn't see and the bout was stopped.

Chaos reigned.

The hometown favorite began to celebrate his successful defense of the WBO title, while "Galaxy Warrior" was howling about the unfairness of it all to anybody who would listen. Bradley's TKO victory was announced and the protests intensified. A subsequent interview with ref Mendoza did nothing to alleviate the situation: the third man said that there was an unintentional headbutt, but that the cut was opened by a subsequent punch and therefore, he claimed, Bradley was the true victor. The problem with his explanation? Well, replays show that Campbell covered the affected area with his glove as soon as their heads came apart. And no punch even came close to grazing the left side of his head.

The 37-year-old was taken to hospital after admitting that he was seeing spots in his eye, but not before declaring that he wanted a rematch and a reversal of the TKO loss - to a No Decision. He deserves both of these.

Bradley, too, deserves more than this: he was ahead on the cards and his performance was excellent while it lasted. He deserves a clear-cut decision, or a proper KO over a seasoned vet like Campbell, and not a gifted victory.

"Desert Storm" found a way to nullify Campbell's infighting advantage, and was using his speed and conditioning to outhustle the former unified lightweight champ before controversy struck.

Did I mention controversy?

The undercard, too, was riddled with it. Junior Witter was being comprehensively beaten by a sharp-looking Devon Alexander. Then, after eight fairly one-sided rounds, he gets up, goes over to Alexander's corner, nearly gives his trainer a heart attack, and congratulates the 22-year-old on his first title.

After the fight, he admitted to having reinjured his hand, which had just recovered from a hairline fracture. The pain, which began in the fourth round, according to Witter, prevented him from executing his gameplan and left him vulnerable.

Now, despite having witnessed a mere eleven rounds, out of a scheduled twenty-four, we can safely assume that the best men won both of the fights.

Yes, Campbell deserves another shot at Bradley. But the end result, barring some major miracle, will be the same because the champ fought like an elite pugilist tonight, and Campbell showed nothing but his age inside the ring.

Yes, Witter may have been slowed down by an injury and a cut. But he needs a lot more than a healthy body in order to compete with Alexander's boxing acumen.

If there is any justice in the world, the California State Athletic Commission will overturn tonight's decision, and erase Campbell's loss from the record books. It will not matter, though, because Bradley is too young, too fast and simply too good to be opposed by an aged warrior like Campbell.

UPDATE:
Nate Campbell's team has already begun the appeal process and are intent on filing with the Cali State Athletic Commission soon.
Furthermore, information has emerged that the fight was actually stopped after the ringside physician decided that Campbell had blood behind his left eye - hence the cause for all the spots he was seeing. This is generally indicative of retinal damage, so let's all keep our fingers crossed in the hope that the injury is not permanent.

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