Notebook: After controversy, Arum eyes Navarrete-Suarez 2 in Manila
Alalshikh addresses Garcia-Haney II; MVP signs 2 more elite women; Martinez keeps title in 2nd blazer vs. Ioka; Cissokho survives 2 knockdowns, wins WBC 147 eliminator; Quick hits; Show & tell double
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Junior lightweight contender Charly Suarez filed an appeal with the California State Athletic Commission on Monday seeking to overturn the result of his extremely controversial technical decision loss to WBO titlist Emanuel Navarrete on Saturday night.
Andy Foster, the executive director of the commission, told Fight Freaks Unite that Suarez is on the agenda to have his case heard at the commission meeting scheduled for June 2.
Regardless of how that goes, Top Rank chairman Bob Arum, who promotes both fighters, told Fight Freaks Unite on Monday that he hopes to put on an immediate rematch in October in Suarez’s hometown of Manila, Philippines.
The Navarrete-Suarez world title bout headlined a Top Rank Boxing on ESPN card at Pechanga Arena in San Diego, where three-division titlist Navarrete made his fourth 130-pound defense and Suarez was in his first world title match.
With Navarrete severely cut over his left eye and bleeding heavily, referee Edward Collantes stopped the bout one second into the eighth round after the wound was examined by Dr. Robert Ruelaz, the ringside physician, and he recommended the fight bout be halted. The matter was sent to the scorecards for a technical decision and Navarrete won the action-packed slugfest 78-75, 77-76 and 77-76 to retain the title, at least for now.
At issue is what caused Navarrete’s gash. Collantes ruled it was from an accidental head butt that occurred early in the sixth round. Commission replay official Jack Reiss, the recently retired referee, could find no definitive evidence to the contrary in any of the replays provided to him by ESPN’s production truck. The replays Reiss viewed — the same ones shown to the viewers and broadcasters — showed Suarez’s left hand landing on the spot of the cut followed by their heads coming together but nothing conclusive as to what specifically caused the cut. That meant the original ruling would stand.
After the decision was rendered, the post-fight interviews were conducted and the ESPN broadcast ended, the ESPN production team continued to go through various angles and footage from its 15 cameras while the ESPN+ post-fight show was still streaming.
They came up with an angle, which they zoomed in on and enhanced, and it showed definitively Suarez’s left hand connecting with Navarrete’s eye and blood immediately appearing before their heads came together.
Had the cut been ruled to have been caused by the punch, Suarez would have been declared the winner by knockout and claimed the WBO title.
“It was clear that that after they reviewed, albeit late, the tape, it showed it was caused by a punch and not by a head butt,” Arum said.
Arum added that regardless of what happens with Suarez’s appeal, or whether or not the WBO orders a rematch, he wants to do one and stage it in Manila.
“Absolutely,” Arum said when asked if he was inclined to arrange a second fight. “What I’m working on, and I don’t know if I can pull it off, is October is the 50th anniversary of the ‘Thrilla in Manila’ and I’d love to go back to the same building, the Araneta Coliseum, which has now been remodeled, and do this fight in Manila as a celebration of the Ali-Frazier fight.”
Arum promoted the iconic Muhammad Ali-Joe Frazier trilogy fight for the heavyweight championship at the arena just outside of Manila on Oct. 1, 1975.