Quote Originally Posted by Gandalf View Post
I'd say closer to 15%. I want to see a man stopped and if he isn't going down then it is because he isn't ready to go down. Pascal was the same as that in the 3rd or 4th and he weathered it like a warrior. You have to give the benefit of the doubt to a man that doesn't know what it means to be stopped. Boxing would be lame if you stopped it every time someone got hurt.

I just watched the fight again... and I'm sorry but you're wrong. Only you and VD (no surprise there) thought the stoppage was bad. Consider this:

Other refs would've stopped it at the end of the 3rd or the beginning of the 4th.
Pascal's knees were buckled by a jab at the end of the previous round. He never looked recovered.
Just before Kovalev fell, he was strafing Pascal along the ropes, where only the ropes kept Pascal on his feet.
As Pabon turned his attention to Kovalev getting back up and rightfully calling the fall a non-knockdown, Pascal was drunkenly stumbling out of camera view across the ring and toward the other corner. Pretty much done and out on his feet.
Pascal proceeded to take two more thunderous shots from Kovalev before Pabon rightly stepped in.

Perfect stoppage.