wrestler_nl
27-10-2009, 23:57
No 10. Evander Holyfield v Nikolay Valuev (December 20, 2008)
FALLEN giant Holyfield fought WBA heavyweight champ Valuev at the Hallenstadion in Zurich for a reported $600,000 — the lowest amount he has ever received for a championship fight.
Valuev eventually defeated the American by a majority decision after a relatively uneventful bout but many analysts were outraged at the call, thinking Holyfield had beaten the 7ft 2in Russian by a landslide.
No 9. Michael Bisping v Matt Hamill (September 8, 2007)
MAKE no mistake about it — Britain's top UFC fighter got lucky in this one.
Going into the fight with an unblemished record, The Count was favourite to extend his winning run by stopping the unfancied American.
But The Hammer shocked onlookers by pushing the pace of the fight — consistently taking Bisping down in the first two rounds.
Most observers had Hamill ahead on points but the judges awarded a split decision victory to Bisping (29-28, 27-30, 29-28) and the ruling was roundly jeered by sections of the London crowd.
No 8. Ricco Rodriguez v Antonio Nogueira (August 10, 2003)
FORMER UFC heavyweight champion Ricco Rodriguez battered Big Nog with several flying knees and took him to the mat on several occasions during their three-round fight.
But Nogueira's multiple submission attempts and active ground work were deemed to hold superior weight on the judges' scorecards.
The Brazilian was awarded a unanimous victory but fans upset with the decision swamped internet message boards. That led to Matt Hume — one of Pride's top judges — taking the unprecedented step of issuing a statement outlining why the fight was scored as it was.
Pride's rules continued to be refined by experts in the industry up until the organisation's collapse in October 2007.
No 7. Jack Dempsey v Gene Tunney (September 27, 1927)
DEMPSEY'S rematch with Tunney was going badly for the Manassa Mauler until he dropped Tunney with a left hook in the seventh round.
A new rule at the time stated that when a fighter knocks down an opponent, he must go straight to a neutral corner. But Dempsey had to be escorted there by the referee, which bought Tunney at least an extra five seconds to recover.
Tunney eventually got up at the count of nine, dropped Dempsey in round eight, easily won the final two rounds and retained the title on a unanimous decision.
But because of the controversial nature of the clash, it remains known in history as the fight of 'The Long Count'.
No 6. Quinton Jackson v Maurilio Rua (February 20, 2005)
THE most controversial decision in Japan's glorious mixed martial arts history occurred at Pride 29.
Ninja was the more aggressive fighter, scoring takedowns and inflicting plenty of damage on Jackson.
So everyone in attendance at the Saitama Super Arena was shocked when the ring announcer declared a split decision victory in favour of Rampage.
The American was embarrassed with the result and said "I didn't win that" before showing his class by attempting to hand his winner's trophy to the tearful Brazilian.
No 5. Sugar Ray Leonard v Marvin Hagler (April 6, 1987)
HAGLER, the overwhelming favourite, fell behind on the cards early on at Caesar's Palace, Las Vegas but the bout came alive in round nine.
'Marvellous' Marvin surged forward in search of the knockout punch but Leonard, ever the showman, impressed the judges with the flashier flurries and was rewarded with a controversial points victory.
Hagler fumed: "Leonard fought like a girl. His punches meant nothing. I fought my heart out. I kept my belt. I can't believe they took it away from me."
No 4. Lyoto Machida v Mauricio Rua (October 24, 2009)
MACHIDA faced his fellow Brazilian for the light-heavyweight crown despite many observers claiming Rua was past his best.
But injury-plagued 'Shogun' shocked the world by dominating the champ in their five-round battle, blitzing Machida with a barrage of strikes — mainly brutal leg and body kicks — that numbered 82-42 in his favour.
Incredibly, Machida scored a unanimous 48-47 victory with the judges and UFC president Dana White said: "Assuming that Shogun won the first, fourth and fifth, he wins the fight."
No 3. Manny Pacquiao v Juan Manuel Marquez (May 8, 2004)
MARQUEZ'S first clash with Filipino fighter Pacquiao ended in a controversial draw at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas.
In the first round, Marquez was knocked down three times but recovered well.
The final scores were 115-110 for Marquez, 115-110 for Pacquiao and 113-113. One of the judges, who scored the bout 113-113, later admitted he had wrongly scored the first round 10-7 in favour of Pacquiao instead of the standard 10-6 for a three-knockdown round.
No 2. Roy Jones Jnr v Park Si-Hun (1988 Olympics)
AMERICAN Jones Jnr was an extremely promising 19-year-old in Seoul and did not lose a single round en route to the final.
Once there, he slaughtered South Korea's Park — landing 86 punches to his opponent's 32 — but lost a 3-2 decision.
The incident, along with another decision against American Michael Carbajal at the same games, led Olympic organisers to establish a new scoring system.
No 1. Evander Holyfield v Lennox Lewis (March 13, 1999)
BRITAIN'S Lennox Lewis said he was "robbed" after this fight to determine the undisputed heavyweight champion of the world ended in a draw at New York's Madison Square Garden.
Heavyweight legend Henry Cooper reckoned Lewis had "boxed Holyfield's ears off" but American judge Eugenia Williams scored 115-113 for Holyfield, the neutral South African scored 116-113 for Lewis and British judge Larry O'Connell called it a draw at 115-115.
Frank Maloney, Lewis' promoter, fumed: "It's an absolute con. If I was Tony Blair, I'd cut off all diplomatic relations with America."
http://www.thesun.co.uk/sol/homepage/sport/top10s/2701747/Top-10-fight-controversies.html?offset=0
FALLEN giant Holyfield fought WBA heavyweight champ Valuev at the Hallenstadion in Zurich for a reported $600,000 — the lowest amount he has ever received for a championship fight.
Valuev eventually defeated the American by a majority decision after a relatively uneventful bout but many analysts were outraged at the call, thinking Holyfield had beaten the 7ft 2in Russian by a landslide.
No 9. Michael Bisping v Matt Hamill (September 8, 2007)
MAKE no mistake about it — Britain's top UFC fighter got lucky in this one.
Going into the fight with an unblemished record, The Count was favourite to extend his winning run by stopping the unfancied American.
But The Hammer shocked onlookers by pushing the pace of the fight — consistently taking Bisping down in the first two rounds.
Most observers had Hamill ahead on points but the judges awarded a split decision victory to Bisping (29-28, 27-30, 29-28) and the ruling was roundly jeered by sections of the London crowd.
No 8. Ricco Rodriguez v Antonio Nogueira (August 10, 2003)
FORMER UFC heavyweight champion Ricco Rodriguez battered Big Nog with several flying knees and took him to the mat on several occasions during their three-round fight.
But Nogueira's multiple submission attempts and active ground work were deemed to hold superior weight on the judges' scorecards.
The Brazilian was awarded a unanimous victory but fans upset with the decision swamped internet message boards. That led to Matt Hume — one of Pride's top judges — taking the unprecedented step of issuing a statement outlining why the fight was scored as it was.
Pride's rules continued to be refined by experts in the industry up until the organisation's collapse in October 2007.
No 7. Jack Dempsey v Gene Tunney (September 27, 1927)
DEMPSEY'S rematch with Tunney was going badly for the Manassa Mauler until he dropped Tunney with a left hook in the seventh round.
A new rule at the time stated that when a fighter knocks down an opponent, he must go straight to a neutral corner. But Dempsey had to be escorted there by the referee, which bought Tunney at least an extra five seconds to recover.
Tunney eventually got up at the count of nine, dropped Dempsey in round eight, easily won the final two rounds and retained the title on a unanimous decision.
But because of the controversial nature of the clash, it remains known in history as the fight of 'The Long Count'.
No 6. Quinton Jackson v Maurilio Rua (February 20, 2005)
THE most controversial decision in Japan's glorious mixed martial arts history occurred at Pride 29.
Ninja was the more aggressive fighter, scoring takedowns and inflicting plenty of damage on Jackson.
So everyone in attendance at the Saitama Super Arena was shocked when the ring announcer declared a split decision victory in favour of Rampage.
The American was embarrassed with the result and said "I didn't win that" before showing his class by attempting to hand his winner's trophy to the tearful Brazilian.
No 5. Sugar Ray Leonard v Marvin Hagler (April 6, 1987)
HAGLER, the overwhelming favourite, fell behind on the cards early on at Caesar's Palace, Las Vegas but the bout came alive in round nine.
'Marvellous' Marvin surged forward in search of the knockout punch but Leonard, ever the showman, impressed the judges with the flashier flurries and was rewarded with a controversial points victory.
Hagler fumed: "Leonard fought like a girl. His punches meant nothing. I fought my heart out. I kept my belt. I can't believe they took it away from me."
No 4. Lyoto Machida v Mauricio Rua (October 24, 2009)
MACHIDA faced his fellow Brazilian for the light-heavyweight crown despite many observers claiming Rua was past his best.
But injury-plagued 'Shogun' shocked the world by dominating the champ in their five-round battle, blitzing Machida with a barrage of strikes — mainly brutal leg and body kicks — that numbered 82-42 in his favour.
Incredibly, Machida scored a unanimous 48-47 victory with the judges and UFC president Dana White said: "Assuming that Shogun won the first, fourth and fifth, he wins the fight."
No 3. Manny Pacquiao v Juan Manuel Marquez (May 8, 2004)
MARQUEZ'S first clash with Filipino fighter Pacquiao ended in a controversial draw at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas.
In the first round, Marquez was knocked down three times but recovered well.
The final scores were 115-110 for Marquez, 115-110 for Pacquiao and 113-113. One of the judges, who scored the bout 113-113, later admitted he had wrongly scored the first round 10-7 in favour of Pacquiao instead of the standard 10-6 for a three-knockdown round.
No 2. Roy Jones Jnr v Park Si-Hun (1988 Olympics)
AMERICAN Jones Jnr was an extremely promising 19-year-old in Seoul and did not lose a single round en route to the final.
Once there, he slaughtered South Korea's Park — landing 86 punches to his opponent's 32 — but lost a 3-2 decision.
The incident, along with another decision against American Michael Carbajal at the same games, led Olympic organisers to establish a new scoring system.
No 1. Evander Holyfield v Lennox Lewis (March 13, 1999)
BRITAIN'S Lennox Lewis said he was "robbed" after this fight to determine the undisputed heavyweight champion of the world ended in a draw at New York's Madison Square Garden.
Heavyweight legend Henry Cooper reckoned Lewis had "boxed Holyfield's ears off" but American judge Eugenia Williams scored 115-113 for Holyfield, the neutral South African scored 116-113 for Lewis and British judge Larry O'Connell called it a draw at 115-115.
Frank Maloney, Lewis' promoter, fumed: "It's an absolute con. If I was Tony Blair, I'd cut off all diplomatic relations with America."
http://www.thesun.co.uk/sol/homepage/sport/top10s/2701747/Top-10-fight-controversies.html?offset=0