Judges could tilt balance

There’s no assurance that Manny Pacquiao will get a fair shake from the judges in his scheduled 12-round fight against Hector Velazquez of Mexico for the vacant World Boxing Council (WBC) International superfeatherweight title at the Staples Center in Los Angeles tonight (tomorrow morning, Manila).

The judges assigned to score the bout are septuagenarian Marty Sammon, Pat Russell and Velazquez’ countryman Alejandro Rochin.

If the judges are unreliable, Pacquiao’s only option to seal his Jan. 21 rematch with Erik Morales is to put Velazquez to sleep or turn the fight into a one-sided affair.

Sammon, 71, has figured in 33 world championship matches as a judge or referee since becoming a boxing official in 1984. He was the third man in the ring when Filipino Rolando Pascua wrested the WBC lightflyweight crown from Mexico’s Humberto Gonzalez in Los Angeles in 1990 and when Mexican Jorge Arce outpointed Filipino Juanito Rubillar for the vacant WBC lightflyweight title in Tijuana in 2001.

Controversy has tainted Sammon’s long history in boxing.

In 1988, he was the only judge to score it for Mexican Mario Martinez as Azumah Nelson claimed the vacant WBC superfeatherweight championship via a split decision in Los Angeles. The next year, he was again the dissenting voter in Daniel Zaragoza’s split decision win over Chan Yong Park in a WBC superbantamweight title fight in Inhcon, South Korea. In 1991, he saw it a draw but Muangchai Kittikasem retained his WBC flyweight crown on a majority verdict over Alberto Jimenez. And in 2000, Sammon again scored a questionable draw in Jose Antonio Aguirre’s win over Wandee Chareon on a majority decision for the vacant WBC minimumweight title in Samutsakorn, Thailand.

Sammon’s worst showing came when he was the only judge who scored it 115-113 for Oscar de la Hoya in Sugar Shane Mosley’s victory by split decision for the WBC welterweight crown in Los Angeles in 2000. Russell was also a judge in the fight and scored it 115-113 for Mosley. The third judge Lou Filippo had it 116-112 for Mosley. The referee was Moret.

Sammon has been assigned fights in Thailand, Australia, Korea, Mexico, England, Japan and Ireland. The well-traveled official was a judge when Gerry Peñalosa stopped Young Joo Cho in a WBC superflyweight title fight in Korea in 1997.

Sammon, Russell and Moret will be reunited for the Pacquiao-Velazquez bout.

Unlike Sammon, Russell and Rochin have experienced no controversy in their careers as boxing officials.

Russell, 57, has worked 27 world title fights, including 14 as a referee. His most recent assignment was as a referee in International Boxing Federation bantamweight champion Rafael Marquez’ decision over Ricardo Vargas in Los Angeles last March.

Russell was a judge and Moret the referee when Winky Wright won the vacant IBF junior middleweight title on a unanimous decision over Robert Frazier in 2001.

Rochin, 43, is the only Mexican in the panel. Sammon and Russell are from California. Whether Rochin’s nationality will color his scoring is a question mark.