Madrimov, Soro and Salva: Uzbekistan Hosts Worst Fight and Worst Referee of Month
By Robert Brizel, Head Real Combat Media Boxing Correspondent
It is rare when a fighter gets knocked out illegally after the bell. It happened twice at the heavyweight level, with Joe Louis versus Max Baer on September 24, 1935, ending at 3:09 of round 4, when the bell should have saved Baer but never sounded. It happened again in the World Boxing Association World Heavyweight title bout won by Page, who knocked out Coetzee past the four minutes mark (not the 3:03 claimed) on December 1, 1984, at Superbowl, Sun City, North-West, South Africa.
On December 17, 2021, the claim remains Israil Madrimov, 8-0 with six knockouts, Indio, California by way of Khiva, Uzbekistan, stopped Michel Soro, now 35-3-1 with 24 knockouts, Villeurbanne, Rhone, France, at 3:00 of the ninth round, at Hotel Renaissance, Tashkent, Uzbekistan, in a scheduled 12 round World Boxing Association eliminator bout.
That Soro was behind on two scorecards and was even on the third scorecard was no surprise, given one would not expect Soro to win on the scorecards in enemy territory, even if he was deservedly ahead. Obviously, Soro knew he needed a KO to win in Uzbekistan.
Here is what happened. The bell sounded ending round nine. Soro was hurt, and his back was against the ropes, but the round had ended. The round was over. Referee Salvador Salva Rodriguez then stood by and did nothing as Israil Madrimov continued the action after the bell had sounded and the round had ended. Madrimov continued unloading punches until the referee awarded Madrimov the win by TKO, despite the fact the round was long over before Madrimov began his supposed final flurry of punches.
Fairly and neutrally put, the bout should be declared a no contest. It’s a clear cheat in favor of hometown boy Madrimov. Not that this reporter believes such a disgusting, despicable win will help Madrimov at the championship level. The fault, in actuality, does not lie with Madrimov. It rests with the promoters and organizers of the event, who either had the referee, the timekeeper, or both, in their hip pocket, in a venue far from where neutrality and fairness would be assured. It’s absolutely disgusting an outcome like this would be tolerated by the boxing establishment, even during the COVID-19 Novel Coronavirus Pandemic time period. There needs to be an international commission overseeing boxing outcomes to prevent cheating like this. When it comes to cheating, it would be hard to find an outcome that was less obvious than this one, all factors considered. Both Soro and Madrimov are fine fighters, and outcomes like this one are not necessary. Both the referee and the timekeeper should be ashamed of themselves to allow this outcome, in an era where neutral and fair judging and refereeing are mandated.
The outcome cannot be allowed. Why would the Uzbekistan authorities allow such an appeal when they have already given the fight illegally to a hometown son? This is why a higher worldwide commission to oversee such improprieties is necessary. There has been a lot of upsets recently during this time period. However, Eastern Europe is an area that is not conducive to fairness for major boxing bouts, and Madrimov versus Soro proves it.
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