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For two weeks running, high profile British fights ended controversially. Firstly, Danny Hunt won a much-disputed decision over Salford’s Lee Meager after a torrid battle for the English title. Then it was Jamie Moore, who incidentally is also a Salford fighter, that was on the receiving end of a contentious decision that cost him his British title to Michael Jones. Both fights ended very differently but have one thing in common: very |
debatable decisions from the referee. The Meager-Hunt fight ended with the referee awarding the decision to Hunt, much to the surprise of the crowd packed into the York hall as well as commentators Ian Darke and Jim Watt. Then it was referee Dave Parris’s turn to end a contest on a particularly sour note. Jamie Moore was disqualified for hitting his opponent Michael Jones after Parris shouted “stop boxing.” Jones went down, he was very shaken and got up slowly on drunken legs. Jones said he could not continue because of a blurring in his left eye. Parris waved off the contest and handed Jamie Moore another loss for his record. Jamie Moore was kind enough to speak to saddoboxing.com about the events of the fight and his intentions regarding an appeal.
Jamie Moore: “He didn’t want to continue. As far as I’m concerned in the ring that night he didn’t want to carry on, the referee told him to fight on and he refused, so as far as I was concerned I’d won the fight. Obviously I got disqualified for what is called an illegal punch. So really, if he was in any other country they would have said, right, it’s a no contest and you’ve got to fight again because it’s inconclusive. He’s won a title by quitting, so I’m just not happy at all. I can’t really see any way that they can not give us an immediate rematch. I think it’s pretty obvious that we’ve got to fight again.”
SaddoBoxing: It was only after ten minutes of arguing between the two corners and the referee that it became apparent that Moore had been disqualified. Michael Jones claimed to have blurred vision in his left eye that prevented him from carrying on with the fight. Quite uncommon behavior for a boxer when we think about the likes of Arturo Gatti and Jesus Chavez fighting ten rounds with a broken hand, or Ricky Hatton fighting through cuts under his eyebrows bleeding into his eyes. Moore was as amazed as I was.
JM: “I would never be in that position because I would never quit. You see fighters half dead complaining to the referee because the referee’s stopped it and they want to continue fighting yet he says he had a blur in his eye and he could carry on. What’s all that about!? course your gonna have a blur your in a boxing match, so as far as I’m concerned he doesn’t want to fight.”
SB: What can a fighter do when he is on the receiving end of such a decision?
JM: We’ve put an official complaint in and there’s going to be a meeting some time in the near future, it should be fairly quick. I’m hoping that they’ll change the verdict to a no contest which, in any other country, I’m under the impression it would have been declared at very worst a no contest, with me keeping the title and an immediate rematch declared.
SB: Was it frustrating for you watching the post fight interview with Jones and how he seemed very reluctant to get in the ring with you again?
JM:Exactly, he doesn’t want to know. He doesn’t want to fight. How can he stand there in the ring with a British title round his waist posing for photos, it’san absolute joke. For him to say that I made him wait eighteen months, I didn’t make him wait eighteen months he had to wait eighteen months because the result was that conclusive the first time, there was no call for a rematch, so it wasn’t that I made him wait, he had to make his way back.
SB: That was the argument he put forward in the post fight that he had to wait eighteen months…..
JM: But he’s been shouting his mouth off for ages saying I should never have beaten him the first time, he’s by far the better boxer, blah blah, blah. And as far as I was concerned I was bossing the fight and it was just a matter of time before I got to him and I think he realized that, and saw it as a way out. If he was so concerned about beating me he should have been sat on that ring apron saying this is an inconclusive fight, I’ve still not beaten Jamie Moore and I won’t be happy “till I have and I’m demanding a rematch straight away so we can settle the score. Yet he was saying I’m not going to fight him for eighteen months because he made me wait. He’s just making excuses, he doesn’t want to fight.
From the point of view of this writer, it was a very bizarre decision. We have seen fighters hit on the break before. Danny Williams was docked a point in his sensational fight with Mike Tyson for hitting on the break, at the time that was deemed a very harsh decision by the ref. In the second round of the Moore-Jones fight it was Jones that hit Moore low and then after the call of stop boxing. Jones wasn’t docked a point or even warned. So why was Moore disqualified? Was it just because Jones could not have carried on? Surely then the sensible thing to do would be to declare the fight a no contest or a technical draw. Such controversy is not good for British boxing, especially when it is currently under scrutiny for the way contests are scored by the referee instead of by three judges.
“I don’t want to make out that I’m slagging people off. The last thing I want to do is upset the boxing board of control,” stated Moore.
Surely, a fighter should not have to worry about speaking his mind in regard to an event that has drastically impacted his own career. Fighters like Jamie Moore only want to do their talking in the ring, but when events such as those that have transpired over the last few weeks in high profile British boxing matches leave an unnecessary blight upon their professional records, it is wholly unreasonable to expect a fighter to accept it easily. The decision made to disqualify Jamie Moore against Michael Jones appears to be an aberration of common sense but one that has inflicted serious consequences upon Moore only through the loss of his title and a damaging blemish on his career. His search for answers is justified, but if they remain elusive to him then the very least in compensation should be the knowledge that he will immediately be able to try and avenge this loss in the ring. Saddoboxing.com would like to thank Jamie Moore for his time and as always, we will continue to offer the latest news and a voice for the fighters and the fans of boxing around the world.
Editor’s note: As this article was about to be published, saddoboxing.com received word from Jamie Moore that he has been installed as the mandatory contender for Michael Jones’ British title. However, this means that Moore will be able to be kept at bay regarding a third fight with Jones for approximately another year. With this in mind, Jamie will likely seek other options to pursue in furthering his career as one of England’s finest light middleweight fighters. With no time to waste, Moore may seek out a chance at the European light middleweight title. We wish him the best of luck.
Ben Lynch can be reached at benjlynch@hotmail.com
