Toney Rahman: why a TKO was the right call

[The Promoter]

It was a complete miscall. I think people should examine what happened on the same night on ESPN2 and get a bit of a reality check.

If the first priority of every commission is fighter safety, then the California Commission failed in a very big way. Rahman did not say "I can't continue", he said "I can't see". NONE of us know if this is true or not. What we do know is that the cut was caused by headbutt.

Assume this is true, because if you are going to value fighter safety as number one priority, you have to. Then OF COURSE he has to stop the fight. It's a matter of fighter safety, you can't have a fight with a guy competing with sight in only one eye.

What do we want? Rahman to say he is perfectly fine and risk his health in doing so? The California Commission just penalized Rahman for telling the doctor he can't see. If it was true, which you have to assume it is, then they should all be ashamed of themselves. So what happens next time a fighter genuinely can't see?

"No doc, I'm fine"

Ridiculous. Toney was well on his way to winning the fight but that is no justification. That's my take on it anyways.

Your argument is ridiculous and it gives any fighter an "out" when getting beaten up...The fact is a medical expert examined the cut and ruled there was no physical danger due to the cut to Hasim Rahman...Hasim Rahman decided he did not want to fight any longer so he quit, pretty simple...

No, you're wrong. The medical expert was told by Rahman that he couldn't see, and that was the fight. There was NO examination of the cut. The doctor was on the post fight broadcast and clearly stated that. He did not rule that there was no physical danger because he didn't rule anything at all. He heard that and stopped it before ever examining the cut.

It doesn't matter if Rahman was using it as an "out" or not. Either way he wasn't fighting. Anyone who saw the fight knows who was winning and who was going to win, but it doesn't make this right. Commissions are supposed to have fighter safety first, unless they want to call Rahman an outright liar, this was a terrible ruling.

Your making my point, maybe Rahman couldn't see because of being knocked silly as he was during the round, didn't you see him staggered toward the end of the round? It was determined that the cut was not severe enough to stop the fight, hell the blood flow didn't even warrant the ref to stop the action. Hasim maintained that "blood flow" was the reason he could not see, watch the post fight interview...the Doctor determined that the cut did not present a danger to the fighter but it was Rahman that said he "couldn't see" for whatever reason maybe a detached retina, brain damage, or whatever, all valid reasons to quit....but the cut was not reason enough to stop the fight.

Fact is, that Rahman got a cut from an unintentional head but, the cut itself was not reason enough to stop the fight...much in the same manner if a fighter hurts their hand, shoulder, knee, etc...they cannot expect the fight to go to the scorecards because they want it that way...