CONTROVERSY IN BELFAST & NEW YORK?

CONTROVERSY IN BELFAST & NEW YORK?

On Sat, March 1, 2025, in Belfast, Lewis Crocker faced Paddy Donovan in a welterweight bout. The fight had a controversial ending when Donovan was disqualified for delivering a punch after the bell in the eighth round. Before the disqualification, Donovan had also been penalised with point deductions in the sixth and eighth rounds for use of the head and elbows. The disqualification has been met with criticism as Donovan was well up on the cards and his style naturally means he leans in. Andy Lee, called the referee's performance "a disgrace," stating Donovan was leading the fight and should be considered the winner. Donovan's management have appealed with the International Boxing Federation claiming the disqualification should not have happened.

We can see both sides of the story, as Crocker was clearly hit after the bell - but the ref could have given him 5 mins to recover. Also, his eye was closed up from head and elbow clashes earlier in the fight. Let us know your thoughts, but here at Hy-Lyfe we feel the simple solution would be to run it back with a different referee and clear standards before they get in the ring this time.…

Other results on the card:

Craig Richards v Pody McCrory - Richards by stoppage in the eighth

Kurt Walker v Leon Woodstock - Walker by MD 95-95, 97-93, 96-94

Tommy McCarthy v Steven Ward - Ward by stoppage in the sixth

Shauna Browne v Elif Turhan - Turhan by stoppage in the first

Gervonta "Tank" Davis faced Lamont Roach Jr.

In the early hours of Sunday morning, we crossed the pond to the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York. When Gervonta "Tank" Davis faced Lamont Roach Jr., and had yet another controversial fight ending in a majority draw! The judges scored the fight 115-113 in favor of Davis and 114-114 on the other two cards, allowing Davis to retain his WBA lightweight and retain his undefeated record...

There was huge controversy in the ninth round when Davis took a knee after a jab from Roach. The referee Steve Willis did not rule it a knockdown and that would have impacted the final scores. Davis stated he took a knee due to his hair grease entering his eye. After watching it back here at Hy-Lyfe, we believe it should have been ruled a knockdown, as a punch landed and he took a knee after! The CompuBox stats show the fight's competitiveness, with Roach landing 112 total punches, Vs Davis's 103. Roach also connected more jabs 25 Vs Davis's 10, while Davis had a slight edge in power punches 93 Vs Roach's 87.

The knockdown and a 10-8 round would have given Roach the victory and we think it should be run back NEXT, let us know your thoughts...

Sources: The Sun IE, Matchroom, NY Post & Talksport.