Juarez Wins a Fight the Judges Wouldn't Let Him Lose

The most disturbing thing about the Jorge Barrios-Rocky Juarez fight a€" apart from the gruesome tearing of Barrios' lip a€" was the performance of referee Rafael Ramos, as well as the ringside officiating of judges Ruben Garcia, Rocky Burke, and Ruben Carrion. Through his horrendous handling of the fight, Ramos showed why he has not been the man in the middle for any major fights until last night. In the Diaz-Katsidis main event, referee Lawrence Cole a€" himself criticized in the past for dubious refereeing a€" showed how to handle multiple infractions from one fighter without interfering with the course of the fight. And where Katsidis' blatant shoulder-charging and head-butting of Diaz perhaps warranted point deductions, Cole administered warnings and let the action flow. Ramos deducted a point from Barrios as early as the third round for one of many legal belt-line punches Barrios landed throughout the fight.