LOS ANGELES – Consider it a preemptive strike rooted in an abundance of supportive evidence.
To close Thursday’s news conference with favored, three-division world champion Terence Crawford, new World Boxing Association (WBA) junior-middleweight champion Israil Madrimov of Uzbekistan said, “My dream is to create something that nobody expects and win the fight I’m not supposed to win. I believe I can do that Saturday night.”
The point of emphasis for Madrimov (10-0-1, 7 KOs) and his team Thursday was to make it clear to the three judges, referee and California commission that an upset is indeed possible, urging them to look for it.
Much of this campaigning has to do with some recently criticized scoring in boxing – Robson Conceicao’s junior-lightweight title victory over O’Shaquie Foster, Sean McComb’s split-decision loss to unbeaten 140-pounder Arnold Barboza Jr. and Marlon Tapales’ split-decision triumph last year over Madrimov’s stablemate and former junior-featherweight champion Murodjon “M.J.” Akhmadaliev.
While translating for Madrimov, the fighter’s manager, Vadim Kornilov, went off script and said this in English:
“I know that I’m fighting the best in Terence Crawford and his team, but I’m also fighting his fans and the rest … and I’m hoping that everything will be fair and neutral.
“I’m expecting that this event is big enough – the whole world is going to watch this event – and I hope everything will be fair and square on fight night.”
The astute Crawford (40-0, 31 KOs) cracked, “That wasn’t the translation … .”
Kornilov admitted he was taking a liberty, but insisted he was speaking the truth.
“I don’t want anyone to take it the wrong way. There’s more to it. Everyone understood what I meant,” he said.
His stance is partially connected to a fresh wound.
Wednesday night on the Santa Monica (Calif.) Pier, another Madrimov stablemate and countryman, welterweight Shakhram Giyasov (16-0, 9 KOs) barely remained unbeaten when he defeated Mexico’s Miguel Parra by split-decision, 95-94, 96-93, 94-95, when Giyasov had a point deducted for a low blow by referee David Solivan.
Both Giyasov and Kornilov objected to the ruling and wanted a replay, but the replay system was not available.
California State Athletic Commission Executive Officer Andy Foster told BoxingScene that Nevada referee Jay Nady will preside over the ringside replay system at BMO Stadium in Los Angeles Saturday night.
In addition to staffing respected veteran referee Jack Reiss to Crawford-Madrimov, the California commission has assigned judges Steve Weisfeld of New Jersey, Canada’s Benoit Roussel and Fernando Villarreal of California to score the bout.
One member of Madrimov’s team recommended Roussel for the bout following his 98-92 score favoring McComb over Barboza on April 20 in New York.
Crawford’s team didn’t request a specific judge, asking for the placement of the highest-qualified judges possible, according to a California official.
“(Fans) are coming from all over the world because they want the best to win,” Kornilov said on the news-conference dais for the first U.S. card sponsored by Saudi Arabia’s Riyadh Season, an effort headed by Turki Alalshikh.
Boxing experts have speculated Saturday’s stacked card is a $70 million show.
“They’re investing millions because what’s happening in the business has got to change,” Kornilov said. “There’s too much B.S. The best man in the ring has got to win, and I think everybody agrees with that. I don’t think anyone here wants to get a decision they don’t deserve.”
Kornilov said he spoke up not because he thinks there’s any funny business going on. He said he’s certain that while boxing fan Alalshikh has designated Crawford a Riyadh Season ambassador and has struck up a friendship with the veteran champion, he wants the rightful winner to emerge.
“(Alalshikh) doesn’t take favors. He doesn’t want an undeserving winner on his shows. I know that for a fact. He’s said that,” Kornilov said. “The whole world should know that.”
While Crawford’s pedigree and fame is more substantial than Madrimov, the new champion is also a two-handed power puncher who’s dedicated his life to the craft of the sport, piling up more than 300 amateur fights and becoming a champion in his 11th pro bout.
Crawford has not been a constant “A” side fighter. He was the “B” side in his most recent bout, his signature ninth-round TKO of three-belt welterweight champion Errol Spence one year ago this week.
Kornilov thinks so highly of Crawford’s integrity he said he’d doubt that Crawford would celebrate a triumph claimed by flawed judging.
But Kornilov watched two years ago in Las Vegas as all three judges – including Weisfeld – scored the first four rounds for the more-popular Canelo Alvarez over Madrimov’s close friend, Russia’s WBA light-heavyweight champion Dmitrii Bivol.
Bivol seemed to comfortably win the fight and ultimately emerged victorious, but only by three 115-113 scores.
Kornilov was aghast when judge Javier Alvarez delivered his then-champion Akhmadaliev a wide 118-110 score in April 2023, only to watch defeat arrive when judges Sergio Caiz and Jose Roberto Torres each scored the bout 115-113 for Tapales – who then landed a lucrative unification against Japan’s Naoya Inoue while that bout has evaded Akhmadaliev.
Madrimov “knows all that’s happened,” Kornilov said, but he doesn’t expect the flawed-scoring horror stories to force the fighter to chase a knockout as if it’s his only route to victory.
“He worries about this. He’s seen his comrades not get these decisions … I’m saying this to make sure everybody feels the responsibility to get it right,” Kornilov said.
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