The boxing world was left furious after the scorecards for Josh Padley vs Reece Bellotti were announced.
Padley and Bellotti were meeting in a huge clash on the undercard of the battle of the giants between Dave Allen and Arslanbek Makhmudov in Sheffield.
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Padley beat Bellotti – but fans were far from convinced by the judges’ scorecardsCredit: Getty
The former was a 3/1 favourite to pick up a second consecutive victory, as he looked to continue his bounce back from his first career defeat to elite operator Shakur Stevenson in February.
But he struggled against a resurgent Bellotti who was gunning to prove he was still capable at this level after defeat to Ryan Garner last time out.
It was a razor close bout which could barely be separated with Bellotti in the eyes of most doing enough to taste a shock victory.
But it was Padley who secured the win, albeit by a surprisingly seismic margin.
They read unanimously at 99-92, 97-93 and 97-93 in his favour, and it was a huge surprise to not see Bellotti’s hard work rewarded.
The scorecards suggested it was a dominant victory for Padley, and the boxing world were not on board.
talkSPORT’s Adam Catterall reacted: “99-92, what was that?”
And Gareth A Davies who sat alongside him added: “It was much closer than that.”
But the outrage spread like wildfire online as boxing fans came out in their droves to criticise the officiating from the judges.
“What was that judging, that was an absolute disgrace,” one wrote.
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Padley was left joyous after getting the job done but it was Bellotti dejected after such a bright startCredit: Getty
Another added: “This is genuinely disgusting. How on earth have they suggested Padley won that many rounds clearly?”
A fan continued: “Were they even watching? That is abysmal.”
And a final viewer concluded: “Disgusting scorecard, 99-92 that judge needs investigating.”
What happened during Padley vs Bellotti?
Padley was looking to cement his name at British level with a victory over Bellotti, who many believed was now in his twilight period.
But it was the experienced ‘Bomber’ who took to the big stage like a duck to water, with Padley showing little in return.
Bellotti was able to take the sting out of Padley early on, ripping some huge shots to the body which slowed down the eventual victor.
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Bellotti was in the ascendency until the midway point but Padley clawed his way back into the boutCredit: Getty
Although after the midway point, Padley finally got his hands and feet going but to many, the Doncaster native was massively down on the scorecards.
He came into the second half of the fight with a second wind, and was just doing enough to edge the rounds, wrestling back momentum of the contest.
As the final bell sounded and the bout went to the distance, it was expected the margins would be tight.
But it was Padley who took a wide decision, with Bellotti forced to do nothing but shake his head in anguish.
Decisions like this shape a fighters’ career and the Watford veteran will feel very aggrieved, but he will hope he has done enough to earn further opportunities in the division.