The boxers are advised to protect themselves at all times. The seconds' main job is to protect their fighter if he's getting too badly beaten. The job of the ref is to protect the fighters if they or their seconds are failing to do it for themselves. I would rather see fights stopped early than fighters killed or seriously injured.

And the Lacy fight should have been stopped by his corner. He was utterly ineffectual for the entire fight and getting more and more badly beaten up all the while. He was never going to win by dramatic late stoppage and he was never going to quite. He kept fighting hoever so the referee wasn't really within his rights to stop the fight, but his corner must have seen what a mess Calzaghe was making.