Now that Steve Smoger doesn’t work as often and Arthur Mercante Jr. seems to have seen the light of mercy, overly extended beat downs and needless punishment are not as prevalent as they once were. Tony Perez’s signature sadistic touch in the Cooney vs. Norton and Mercer vs. Morrison slaughters also is over thanks to Tony being retired. I could list many other such examples of where a referee allowed too many free shots but one in particular comes to mind—one that I caught on TV.
Garcia vs. Benton (1990)
“The fight was televised live nationally on USA Cable, and La Mancha employees said their switchboard was deluged with telephone calls in protest of [Referee] Yanez’s handling of the fight.”—From Times Wire Services dated November 7, 1990.
“Referee Roger Yanez, apparently on a lunch break, didn’t intervene and it looked like Benton had been killed. He slumped face first into the canvas and that prompted Yanez to react. He began counting. The fight was over and Garcia had a devastating knockout that got a lot of play because of the horrible officiating and the overall brutality of it.”—Geno McGahee (Ringside Report)
Highly touted Mexican-American Alex “The San Fernando Hammer” García was an amateur star in the super heavyweight division. He won the National Championships in 1986 and lost to legendary Teofilo Stevenson in the final at the 1986 World Amateur Boxing Championships Garcia started fast in the pro ranks and was 32-1 (his only loss coming to spoiler Dee Collier on cuts) when he was iced by limited Mike Dixon in a shocking upset. The free swinging Garcia would avenge this loss a year late, but the Dixon loss put his career in a cul de sac. After three wins against limited opposition he retired, but after a six-year—yes.. six year-- layoff made an ill-advised comeback against Wallace McDaniel and was KO’d in three. His final mark in the pros was a respectable 40-6. As one wag put it, “The ‘San Fernando Hammer’ …was a comet, burning bright for a period of time but then burning out.”
In 1990, Garcia fought Bernard “Bull” Benton in Phoenix; Benton was 18-5-1 at the time. Garcia was 17-1. The referee was Roger Yanez. Though he was coming off a one-round blowout at the hands of Pierre Coetzer in South Africa, The Bull, a former WBA cruiserweight champion, was a tough cookie, He had beaten Coetzer three years earlier and also held wins over Monte Masters (29-1), Ricky Parkey (13-2), and Alfonzo Ratliff (for the WBC cruiserweight title in 1985). He lost razor thin decisions to Carlos De Leon (39-4) and Boone Pultz (10-0) and was considered anything but a pushover against the heavy-handed and menacing looking Garcia. Benton’s career would be relatively short, but he was competitive at the highest level;
The Fight
In the second round, Garcia used his sharp jab to keep an incoming Bull at bay. After two nice body shots, the Hammer stunned the Bull with a left hook and then a right cross and the extended mugging was on. An onslaught of between 35 and 40 unanswered shots was launched. Many landed while Benton was out on his feet but pinned in a corner unable to fall. Some of the shots landed with full force, some landed low; the protracted volley included left hooks, right crosses, uppercuts, hard stuff to the body and groin. Garcia threw everything but the stool at the poor Bull. Announcers Al Albert and Sean O’Grady were shouting for the fight to be stopped as Benton’s head was snapping back violently. Then, as Benton fell face down on the canvas totally unconscious, Yanez began the count before realizing he could have counted to 1,000 as the crowd unloaded on him with boos. It was terrifying to witness.
Later, the spin was that the referee was out of position to make a make a timely decision; the reality was that the referee was on Mars.
According to a November 7 report in the LA Times titled “Arizona Criticized Referee,” referee Yanez was not allowed to work anymore bouts the rest of 1990—a whole two months. Buzz Alston, commissioner of the Arizona State Boxing Commission, said the decision was made after a review of Yanez’s performance during the Garcia-Benton fight October 9 at the La Mancha Athletic Club in Phoenix. Yanez last worked in 2005.
Here is the YouTube and be forewarned, this is not for those with a weak stomach or those under the age of 21: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0wcuwbw71pw
Can you name some others?
Garcia vs. Benton (1990)
“The fight was televised live nationally on USA Cable, and La Mancha employees said their switchboard was deluged with telephone calls in protest of [Referee] Yanez’s handling of the fight.”—From Times Wire Services dated November 7, 1990.
“Referee Roger Yanez, apparently on a lunch break, didn’t intervene and it looked like Benton had been killed. He slumped face first into the canvas and that prompted Yanez to react. He began counting. The fight was over and Garcia had a devastating knockout that got a lot of play because of the horrible officiating and the overall brutality of it.”—Geno McGahee (Ringside Report)
Highly touted Mexican-American Alex “The San Fernando Hammer” García was an amateur star in the super heavyweight division. He won the National Championships in 1986 and lost to legendary Teofilo Stevenson in the final at the 1986 World Amateur Boxing Championships Garcia started fast in the pro ranks and was 32-1 (his only loss coming to spoiler Dee Collier on cuts) when he was iced by limited Mike Dixon in a shocking upset. The free swinging Garcia would avenge this loss a year late, but the Dixon loss put his career in a cul de sac. After three wins against limited opposition he retired, but after a six-year—yes.. six year-- layoff made an ill-advised comeback against Wallace McDaniel and was KO’d in three. His final mark in the pros was a respectable 40-6. As one wag put it, “The ‘San Fernando Hammer’ …was a comet, burning bright for a period of time but then burning out.”
In 1990, Garcia fought Bernard “Bull” Benton in Phoenix; Benton was 18-5-1 at the time. Garcia was 17-1. The referee was Roger Yanez. Though he was coming off a one-round blowout at the hands of Pierre Coetzer in South Africa, The Bull, a former WBA cruiserweight champion, was a tough cookie, He had beaten Coetzer three years earlier and also held wins over Monte Masters (29-1), Ricky Parkey (13-2), and Alfonzo Ratliff (for the WBC cruiserweight title in 1985). He lost razor thin decisions to Carlos De Leon (39-4) and Boone Pultz (10-0) and was considered anything but a pushover against the heavy-handed and menacing looking Garcia. Benton’s career would be relatively short, but he was competitive at the highest level;
The Fight
In the second round, Garcia used his sharp jab to keep an incoming Bull at bay. After two nice body shots, the Hammer stunned the Bull with a left hook and then a right cross and the extended mugging was on. An onslaught of between 35 and 40 unanswered shots was launched. Many landed while Benton was out on his feet but pinned in a corner unable to fall. Some of the shots landed with full force, some landed low; the protracted volley included left hooks, right crosses, uppercuts, hard stuff to the body and groin. Garcia threw everything but the stool at the poor Bull. Announcers Al Albert and Sean O’Grady were shouting for the fight to be stopped as Benton’s head was snapping back violently. Then, as Benton fell face down on the canvas totally unconscious, Yanez began the count before realizing he could have counted to 1,000 as the crowd unloaded on him with boos. It was terrifying to witness.
Later, the spin was that the referee was out of position to make a make a timely decision; the reality was that the referee was on Mars.
According to a November 7 report in the LA Times titled “Arizona Criticized Referee,” referee Yanez was not allowed to work anymore bouts the rest of 1990—a whole two months. Buzz Alston, commissioner of the Arizona State Boxing Commission, said the decision was made after a review of Yanez’s performance during the Garcia-Benton fight October 9 at the La Mancha Athletic Club in Phoenix. Yanez last worked in 2005.
Here is the YouTube and be forewarned, this is not for those with a weak stomach or those under the age of 21: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0wcuwbw71pw
Can you name some others?
When the Hammer Came Down on the Bull:
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