Do you believe that referee Richard Steele should have stopped the fight between Taylor and Chavez with 2 seconds remaining in the last round?
keep in mind taylor was up at 6...
2006-08-05 05:16:44 · 10 answers · asked by Dorothy 2 in Sports ➔ Boxing
Dorothy, Hindsight is 20/20. I believe Steele did the right thing in stopping the fight. Taylor received a brutal beating and the referee's paramount job is to protect the welfare of the fighter.
2006-08-05 06:32:18 · answer #1 · answered by Brent 5 · 1⤊ 1⤋
I don't think the time has anything to do with it. Meldrick Taylor could have been saved by the bell in the final round but not a few seconds before. Whether a fighter is standing or not doesn't matter if he's out; the referee has no other option but to stop the fight. And as best I could tell from Taylor's lack of reaction to referee Richard Steele and how afterwards Taylor couldn't even remember Steele saying anything to him during that time, it seems that he really was out on his feet.
2006-08-06 00:48:37 · answer #2 · answered by Flif 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I remember watching this fight at a sports bar in San Luis, Mexico. Myself and 2 other Marines in a bar full of Mexican guys and we three were pulling for Meldric. My view at the time of the stoppage was utter disbelief. However, when you look at some of the fatalities that have occurred in the ring I now feel Richard did the right thing. He isn't a time keeper, his job is the overall flow of the fight, the well-being of the fighters and to see that the rules are adhered to. He did all of that. Saddest part of all was seeing Meldric's career go into a tailspin, he never could shake that "shell shock". Then to watch his partner from the LA Olympics, Pernell Whitaker fight Chavez and beat him only to get a Draw from the judges. That's the game. If you go to the site I listed you can see Larry Merchant's interview with Richard Steele after the fight, enlightening to say the least.
2006-08-06 05:19:24 · answer #3 · answered by DRAGON'S RETURN 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I agree with Brent on this one. Although Taylor appeared to be winning, Steele did the right thing in stopping the contest because Taylor was obviously badly hurt and the referees main job is to protect the fighters safety.
2006-08-05 14:51:14 · answer #4 · answered by toughguy2 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Ordinarily I would say two seconds to go Taylor should have been given the benefit of the doubt. Unfortunately in boxing big punchers like Chavez with only two seconds to go, that's a twelve punch combination. Those extra punches could have made the difference between life and death. Just look at the Benny Kid Paret vs Emile Griffith III fight. I think it was seven unanswered punches that killed him even though the previous fight he fought the big tough middleweight Gene Fulmer and there of course was animosity between those two fighters. It could have ended in disaster.
2006-08-06 02:46:28 · answer #5 · answered by Bru 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I think any good referee is like any good fighter and he should have know that there was only 2 seconds left in the fight. I am for boxers safety but I just don't think anything bad could happen in 2 seconds.
Also when you look at fatalities in boxing there only a few a fighters that were world ranked suffered injuries. A lot of injuries occurred in mismatches and previous fights.
2006-08-05 16:36:42 · answer #6 · answered by smitty 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Referee's job is to protect the welfare of the fighters. he did the right thing by stopping the fight. he could have been hurt really bad.
2006-08-05 15:05:43 · answer #7 · answered by tyrone b 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Taylor was definitely in real trouble but I think given his performance in that fight he had earned the right to go back into the fray one more time.
2006-08-05 14:51:15 · answer #8 · answered by jimel71898 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
yes i believe so...one has to trust the decision of a referree if not why bother having one?
2006-08-06 09:43:55 · answer #9 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
Chavez with a hook.
2006-08-05 12:25:33 · answer #10 · answered by SOLIDROQ 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋