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 © Levon Biss |
English lightweight Champion Lee Meager has hit out in no uncertain terms at the decision awarded against him last Friday when he dominated Southend’s Danny Hunt over ten rounds on a Sports Network promotion. “In my opinion that decision was a total joke; an absolute disgrace to British Boxing,” began the twenty-six-year-old. “I clearly won seven out of the ten rounds. “Not only did I beat him on all |
the punch stats as well, I gave him a one sided hammering. At one point in round nine he practically turned his back on me and could have been given a count. I think he was even looking to the referee to get him out of there. And as for the cut he suffered early on, well I genuinely believe I would have been stopped if it had happened to me.”
Meager continued: “The only person I blame for this situation is the referee Mark Green. He should hang his head in shame. I expect Frank Warren and Frank Maloney to welcome the decision and even to gloat afterwards as I know Maloney did. I just wonder why he didn’t gloat to my face. I even expect Danny Hunt to try and justify the result. But what I don’t expect is a so called ‘Class A’ referee to allow them the chance to do that by giving a ridiculous decision against me in the first place. I don’t think he had the balls to give it to me. I think he was appeasing Frank Warren and Frank Maloney. I say that because I met Mark Green out in Thailand recently at the WBC convention and we got on well. Before the fight, however, he came into my dressing room and couldn’t look me in the eye. I feel he didn’t have the guts to score it fairly. But without doubt I won that fight, I am the better fighter by a mile. That’s why from now on I am going to be calling myself English lightweight champion.”
“That is also why Hunt and Maloney tried to talk themselves out of a rematch. Hunt appeared petrified at the prospect in the post fight interview. How they could do that though in the face of all the boos in the arena is beyond me. I have never heard the likes of it; it was continuous. You have to bear in mind as well that I was a Hennessy Sports fighter on a Sports Network show attended by hundreds of Hunt fans. If the crowd had turned against me like that I would want to set the record straight. I have lost a lot of respect for Hunt because he doesn’t. I can tell you one thing: if there is a rematch scorecards definitely wont be needed. I wont be leaving it to chance again. Everyone thought I won this time as it is.”
“An article in The Times on Tuesday by journalist Ron Lewis described the decision awarded against me as a ‘miscarriage of justice’. All of his fellow ringside journalists on the night agreed; most had me in front by three or four rounds, some many more. Even people associated with Sports Network believe I won,” Lee explained. “After the fight their matchmaker Dean Powell told my uncle I should have got the decision. Their cuts man Mick Williamson told me I should have got the decision. Eugene Maloney, Frank’s brother, told me I should have got the decision. The journalist on Frank Warren’s own website said I should have got the decision.The commentators believe I won as well. Ed Robinson and Jim Watt – who had a row over the result with Frank Maloney – said I should have got the decision. They were a credit to Sky TV’s objectivity despite their long-term relationship with Sports Network.”
“It was that clear cut, so how can Mark Green have got it so wrong? He must not have any idea what fighters put into their life to do this, what it takes to step in the ring. I just hope that lessons can be learned from this to stop other fighters winning, but losing.” He added: “As I see it there are two possible scenarios under which this can happen. Either the referee is incompetent or he is swayed – for any number of possible reasons – towards the ‘house’ fighter.
Neither situation is desirable and something needs to be done about it because what I see as appalling decisions are happening more and more frequently. Just take Bobby Vanzie’s two fights with Graham Earl and Jimmy Vincent’s fight with David Barnes as further examples. The sport is already being ruined by bogus titles, fighters with padded records and mismatches. These occurrences are just making things worse.”
Meager continued: “Something must be done. It may be that we just need to have three judges for all domestic titles contested. At least that way there is in-built protection against an incompetent scorer.It would also require two scorers to be swayed unjustifiably towards the house fighter for a ‘home’ decision to happen. I also believe there should be more in depth enquiries as to why these bad decisions take place. Through my promoters Hennessy Sports I will be certainly asking the British Boxing Board of Control to look at my fight with Danny Hunt in great detail.”
