Did WBO shoot itself in foot?

The WBO’s decision to review the recent Manny Pacquiao-Timothy Bradley Jr. fight with five independent judges proved only one thing – that the so-called governing body is as inane as Duane Ford and Cynthia J. Ross who scored it 115-113 for the challenger to hand the belt to the clear loser.

Why did WBO president Paco Valcarcel of Puerto Rico order the review in the first place? Right off the bat, Valcarcel said no matter what the independent review found, the outcome wouldn’t be changed because of the assumption that no corruption was involved. If he wanted to clear his conscience or gain peace of mind, Valcarcel’s decision made his situation worse. Now that the five independent judges announced they scored it for Pacquiao without a single exception, Valcarcel couldn’t look more like a lameduck.  

Bradley didn’t deserve to win and the WBO only showed it is powerless to correct an injustice. The WBO was in a no-win situation from the start and Valcarcel only shot himself in the foot.

For the record, the WBO was created as a protest group of disgruntled Hispanics fed up by the despotism of the Mendozas in the WBA. Puerto Rican and Dominican Republic officials bolted the WBA during its 1988 convention to add to the growing number of alphabet soup boxing bodies. In 1996, Valcarcel assumed the WBO presidency and has held on to the position just like the Mendozas in the WBA and the Sulaimans in the WBC. The WBO is based in Puerto Rico where Valcarcel is from.

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Fortunately for the Philippines, there is a WBO vice president of Filipino descent Leon Panoncillo who is chairman of the Asia Pacific region and the newly created WBO international regional championships. Panoncillo has played a key role in providing WBO title opportunities for Filipino fighters. At the moment, there are three reigning Filipino WBO champions – superbantamweight Nonito Donaire Jr., flyweight Brian Viloria and lightflyweight Donnie Nietes. As of the latest WBO ratings, 16 Filipinos were rated in the top 10 of nine weight divisions.  

But despite Panoncillo’s influence and the independent review, Bradley remains the WBO welterweight champion. The only way the WBO can declare the title vacant is if there is proof that corruption tainted the scorecards of Ford and Ross. What the WBO can do is to suspend Ford and Ross. It’s a positive step in light of the review. Even if corruption is proved, the title cannot be returned to Pacquiao.

Filipino WBO judge Danrex Tapdasan said from what he knows, the WBO gave a list of 20 officials for the Nevada State Athletic Commission (NSAC) to choose three for the Pacquiao-Bradley fight. The NSAC picked three Las Vegas judges – Jerry Roth, Ross and Ford. For the independent review, the WBO picked judges from New Jersey, Connecticut, Florida, Pennsylvania and Puerto Rico. The five judges turned in a unanimous decision for Pacquiao on scores of 117-111 twice, 118-110, 116-112 and 115-113.

Ford, 74, was clearly the odd man out in the panel. He was the only one who scored the first and ninth rounds for Bradley when the five independent judges and even Ross saw both for Pacquiao. The only round that all five independent judges gave to Bradley was the 10th. The independent judges were agreed in scoring six of the 12 rounds the same way and five went to Pacquiao.

Valcarcel said the review will be used as basis to convince US athletic commissions to appoint judges from out of state. NSAC executive director Keith Kizer said he’s not closing the door on appointing out of state judges but questioned the WBO’s motives in arranging the review.

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“So you’re telling me after all this outcry over the decision, you’re going to assign judges to re-score the fight while saying you want more judges to be brought to Las Vegas for a fight weekend?” wondered Kizer. “How many of these guys do you think will score the fight for Bradley?”

Stinking decisions are nothing new in boxing. The WBO has no exclusive rights to bum verdicts. But there is an alarming frequency of stinkers in the WBO. In 2007, Z Gorres was robbed of the WBO superflyweight title when defending champion Fernando Montiel of Mexico got away with a win by split decision before stunned Filipinos in Cebu. Three Americans were on the judges panel – Dennis Nelson of Minnesota saw it 115-111 for Gorres but Raul Caiz Sr., a Californian of Mexican descent, had it 115-111 for Montiel and Chuck Giampa of Las Vegas, 114-112, also for Montiel. Only last February, Donaire made mincemeat of Wilfredo Vazquez, Jr. and won the WBO superbantamweight crown by split decision as Dr. Ruben Garcia of Texas had it 115-112 for Vazquez in a shocker while Don Trella of Connecticut and Levi Martinez of New Mexico scored it a convincing 117-110 for Donaire.

It’s possible that Pacquiao has lost his trust in the WBO. He may not be bothered trying to regain the WBO title and might just go for recognition from another body like the WBC, WBA or IBF.  

Bradley must feel like a heel. The WBO’s review has cast serious doubt on his worth as champion. He shouldn’t be blamed for the robbery that took away Pacquiao’s championship – that wasn’t his doing. But Bradley can do something that will make fans all over the world admire him for his sincerity. To preserve the integrity of the fight game and to re-establish his credibility as a fighter, Bradley should voluntarily give up the title. He’ll never admit to losing to Pacquiao but in the wake of the WBO review, Bradley should rise above personal interests and show the WBO what it takes to be honest.