I never want to be “That coach”. You know the guy. No matter how his guy loses, there is always an excuse. They never just lose because the other guy is better. Over the years my guys have won and lost. I am OK with it when it is straight up. But some nights, like last night, my guys get screwed by judges. You can argue that we screw ourselves by leaving in the judges hands. That is a nice idea but knockouts are not an easy thing to come by and don’t happen in the majority of fights. Trust me, we are working for the KO. We hate judges.
Now it is my turn in some eyes to be “That coach” or in others view, an honest coach who is sick of fighters getting screwed. This isn’t about me, my club, or my reputation. This is about judges that take the hearts from young guys because they are biased and dishonest. I have been putting guys on shows in NYC since the 90’s. I honestly don’t know why we keep coming back. The close calls always go to the NY fighters.
Justin Blair puts on a great show, Friday Night Fights, NYC. He is a promoter and not the sanctioning body, so I can’t fault him for the judging. It is the WKA that continues to hire biased judges. It is the WKA that doesn’t police its own. I almost want to say we are from NYC just to get a shot at a fair call.
Last night, the only people who think the other guy won are from his gym, related, or a friends of his. Alex beat his opponent up. He took some low kicks but out boxed, out clinched, and out gassed his opponent. I will give his opponent the 1st round but Alex clearly won the 2nd and 3rd. 1 judge saw it our way but the other 2 didn’t think so. 1 gave 2 rounds to our opponent but one blind and biased jerk off gave all 3 away?!
I have heard every excuse in the world as to why these judges won’t score us. We don’t do Muay Thai technique. Really? We kick the legs, clinch, knee, punch, etc…. We are not doing olympic TKD, we are fighting Muay Thai. We are doing more damage and pushing the pace. What more do you want from us? This isn’t a popularity contest, its a fight. The guy who beats the other guy up wins the round.
Fighting can be the most beautiful sport on the planet and it can be a biased, dirty business. Too many judges take care of their friends and screw young guys who just want a fair shot at making it in this sport. Luckily, Alex is strong and will keep fighting. Others have not been able to handle the ups and downs. How many times do these kids have to go home and explain to their friends and family that they lost but really won? Bad judges make us all look bad.
Judges need to be more accountable and states like NY need more oversight. People are putting their bodies on the line for this sport that lines promoters, judges, and commissions pockets. Give these amateurs a fair playing field. If you are going to make a living off their effort you should at least do a fair and unbiased job.
Today I am a little cranky and just want to say “Fuck You” to the judges that took a great performance and ruined it over some territorial BS. Yes, we are from Jersey. Deal with it.
Brian Wright
Real Elite
March 7, 2013 @ 6:37 pm
Wow…this sounds exactly like a Muay Thai fight I saw a few weeks ago, sanctioned by the WKA, in Queens, NY. Our fighters took home wins that night. But there was a female title fight and the defending champ clearly won the fight knocking her opponent down several times and getting the more effective shots off. And for some reason they awarded the challenger the belt, although she spent most the fight on the canvas. I don’t know if its cuz the challenger came from a well-known school or cuz the judges were unqualified. It was the oddest call I ever saw. Even the ref seemed baffled.