COMMISSIONER’S CORNER Nothing To Fix Here By Randy Gordon
better today than it ever has been. That’s because of all the training and seminars they go through. Plus, there is so much scrutiny put on these guys by social media, the print media, announcers, the fans and their own commissions. There will always be close decisions and even controversial ones, but you won’t see judges giving close rounds to the hometown [fighter] just because he’s the hometown favorite.” Larry Goldberg , president, Boxing Insider Promotions: “Nobody means for it to happen. Cheering for the local fighter definitely can affect a judge’s perception.” Larry Hazzard , commissioner, New Jersey State Athletic Control Board: “The notion that the hometown fighter should win should not exist in the mind of the judges. Yet that concept is ingrained in the minds of many. It’s up to us, as regulators, to change that. The judges, who are certainly affected by the crowd, need to have the courage to score every close round the correct way and with the correct boxing criteria, and not lean towards the hometown fighter.” Melvina Lathan , former world- class judge and former chairperson of the New York State Athletic Commission: “I never allowed where the fighter is from to come into my mind. I pay attention to the round, score it and move on. In my years as head of the New York State Athletic Commission, I expected the same from my judges. I believe they performed in that very manner.” Don Majeski , booking agent, matchmaker, historian: “Many fights are celebrity-driven. Face it: The tie in any round goes to the attraction. Because judges are human, they can and have been swayed by a cheering hometown crowd. A very close fight between a hometown guy and his out-of-state opponent will usually go to the hometown guy. If
that same fight took place on neutral grounds, either guy could win. But in front of the hometown crowd, the hometown wins. Nothing shady. No incompetence. Just a very close fight in front of a hometown crowd.” John McKaie , New York-based judge: “When I judge, I see two fighters. I don’t care who they are. I score each round on who won, not on where they are from or what their reputation is.” J. Russell Peltz , promoter and IBHOF inductee: “Decades ago, Philadelphia and Massachusetts were two [places] which were known for hometown decisions. Oh, there are some bad decisions rendered, but not so much of the hometown variety. I think because of all the scrutiny, social media and strength of today’s commissions, there are fewer hometown decisions than there were years ago.” Marc Ratner , former longtime executive director of the Nevada State Athletic Commission and current vice president of regulatory affairs for the UFC: “Living in Las Vegas, where there are so many major fights which have huge ramifications on the sport, I differentiate between ‘bad decisions’ and ‘hometown decisions.’ Most of the big fights, with the exceptions of those including Floyd Mayweather, are fought between non-Nevadans. Many times, favored fighters get beat, and the judges may be one Nevadan and the other two judges from around the country or even from outside the U.S. There are a lot of decisions that are controversial, and some I disagree with, but very few I view as being ‘hometown decisions.’” Jack Reiss , recently retired top referee, still a licensed judge with the California State Athletic Commission. He has judged over 500 bouts: “Our job is to closely watch each round and then score it. I have no – and show no – favoritism to either competitor.”
Tom Taylor , California-based, A-list referee: “I believe we would be naive to think ‘hometown decisions’ don’t happen. Speaking for myself, I view every fight as the blue corner against the red corner. That’s it! Nobody gets any kind of favoritism.” Bruce Trampler , matchmaker and IBHOF inductee: “Hometown decisions are common, but they don’t necessarily imply crookedness. It’s just natural for fans to loudly root for the hometown guy. Their cheering can influence the judges, especially in very close rounds.” Steve Weisfeld , judge, regarded by many as the best in the boxing business: “Before we can even be an apprentice amateur boxing judge, we are taught not to listen to the crowd or be influenced by any number of extraneous factors. Sometimes hometown boxers win, and sometimes they don’t. Both occur due to the action inside the ring, not outside of it.” After you read this, keep a close watch on the decisions rendered on boxing shows you attend or view on TV. You’ll see decisions of every variety. You’ll see ’em all. Rarely will you see a “hometown decision.”
R ecently, I went out to dinner with my wife and three other couples, all neighbors of ours. The four women sat together, talking about who-knows-what, while the group of men discussed some of their favorite things – all of them sports-related (new golf clubs; upcoming skiing trips; would the Los Angeles Dodgers repeat; the collapse of the New York Jets and New York Giants; and what my opinion was of the Jake Paul-Mike Tyson fight). Naturally, I was asked, “Was the outcome fixed?” I told them, “I didn’t know it was broken!” The three guys I was with are all casual fans but truly enjoy talking about boxing, watching boxing and reading about it. They enjoy it so much that I can see each becoming a more ardent, knowledgeable and interested fan. The Paul-Tyson discussion opened up a whole new topic: “Does the hometown (local) fighter always win the decision if there isn’t a knockout ending?” BOOM! That’s the reputation boxing has, even to many IN the business. I explained this to my friends: When I was a young, fledgling fan of boxing more than six decades ago, I believed that hometown fighters would automatically win the decision if the final bell sounded. It’s what I learned from a few uncles and older cousins who watched the sport in the 1940s and ’50s on Friday Night Fights and Gillette Cavalcade of Sports . Also, a boxing judge who was already a 32-year veteran when I became chairman of the NYSAC in 1988 told me, “I always give
close rounds to the hometown fighter when he is facing an out-of- towner.” When I told him he was to immediately change his feeling on that – and he is to score each and every round for the fighter who won the round – he told me my “absurd theory” will get me laughed out of boxing. He told me none of my veteran judges would score it that way. “A tie in any round goes to the hometown fighter,” he insisted. After I spoke to each of those veterans one by one, telling them my “absurd theory,” a few said they would comply with my wishes – and did so going forward. Several didn’t. Their judging licenses weren’t renewed. With all I’ve seen and learned over the decades, the term “hometown decision” still bothers – and concerns – me. Coming from New York, I have seen plenty of close decisions, even a few questionable decisions within New York’s vast boundaries.
Roy Jones Jr. is robbed in the Seoul 1988 Olympic final.
However, in my years as New York’s boxing commissioner, I can honestly say I never witnessed a blatant hometown decision in my state. Not one! Very close? Yes. Controversial? Perhaps, but mainly to the losing fighter and their camp. But blatantly hometown? As I said three paragraphs ago: “Never.” I became curious as to what many of today’s boxing insiders thought of the term “hometown decision.” I called one dozen of the most experienced, qualified names in the
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By the time you read this column, the best boxing card in recent memory – February 22 in Riyadh – will have taken place. Don’t be surprised if, by the end of 2025, many year-end awards come from this absolutely- phenomenal fistic smorgasbord.
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Want to be a part of this column? You can, simply by sending your questions, thoughts, rants… whatever…to my email, which is TheCommishRandyG@gmail.com. I will print several of the best in next month’s “Commissioner’s Corner.”
sport to get their thoughts. Here are their responses:
Henry Hascup , president of the New Jersey Boxing Hall of Fame, regarded by many as the leading historian in the sport: “I think the judging is
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