Judge Adalaide Byrd stood down from major fights after her scoring in GGG draw with Canelo sparks fury
The judge who sparked controversy with her scoring in Gennady Golovkin’s thrilling draw with Canelo Alvarez on Saturday night is being temporarily stood down from major fights.
Adalaide Byrd, who has developed a reputation for debatable scoring, had the Mexican winning 118-110, a score which perplexed most observers and put her at odds with her fellow judges.
Judge Dave Moretti scored the bout 115-113 in favour of the still unbeaten Golovkin, while Don Trella scored it 114-114 to create the split decision draw. Yet across the five rounds that Moretti and Trella scored for Golovkin, Byrd awarded each round to Alvarez.
There was also peculiar scoring from Trella in the seventh round, which was won decisively by Golovkin. His scoring of that round ultimately made the contest a draw overall, yet it was Byrd’s performance which attracted most criticism from within the fighting fraternity.
Golovkin, who retained his three middleweight belts, branded Byrd’s scorecard “terrible, unbelievable” after landing 218 punches to Canelo’s 169. “This is not good for the sport of boxing,” he added.
Bob Bennett, the executive director of the Nevada Athletic Commission, defended his officials after the bout but said that judge Byrd will be asked to take “a small break” from major fights.
“I’m not going to put her right back in,” Bennett said. “She’ll still be in the business, but she needs to catch her breath.”
Bennett said Byrd would be asked to explain her scoring at an inquiry and that NSAC would go through the rounds on replay with the judge and would be asked to explain her thinking. “Like in any profession, you have a bad night,” Bennett said. “Unfortunately, she didn’t do well. I can tell you she conducts training for us, takes judges under her wing, but her score was too wide.”
The skewed set of judges’ scores overshadowed the brilliance displayed by both men in boxing’s biggest showdown of the year, and cast a pall over the sport. The thrilling encounter - a brutal chess match involving heart, chins, stamina and desire - saw Golovkin and Alvarez deliver. Yet the judges clearly did not, and the announcement of their scores was greeted with howls of derision both inside the arena and on social media, with one Twitter user branding Byrd’s scorecard “a federal offence”.
Golovkin’s team were highly critical of the scoring, insisting that it had brought boxing into disrepute. “I think she (Adalaide Byrd) turned in her scorecard before the fight started,” said Abel Sanchez, Golovkin’s trainer. “I had suspicions when they gave us the list of judges. I think she needs to go back to school and learn how to judge a fight. But something has to be done about the judging.”
Tom Loeffler, Golovkin’s promoter, added: “Scoring it that way for Canelo takes away from the greatness of the performance in the ring. Frankly, it is not good for the sport of boxing. You can make an argument there were close rounds, but HBO had Gennady winning by four rounds.”
Even Oscar De La Hoya, Alvarez’s promoter, said: “What was that? People are scratching their heads. They’re confused. I’ve been a fighter and as a promoter you want the best for the sport. I’m shocked by that score. I can assure you there is no influence whatsoever (on which judges are selected).”
The last time a Nevada boxing judge returned to a major fight after producing a heavily critiqued scorecard, they were struck off.
In 2013, CJ Ross turned in a heavily-disputed card that allowed Timothy Bradley to defeat Manny Pacquiao, and the same year scored the Alvarez-Floyd Mayweather fight a draw. It was clearly won by Mayweather, and Ross’ career was over.
This contest itself, nonetheless, will go down as a classic. Golovkin stalked his prey, Alvarez moved brilliantly, and the exchanges and high-level boxing lived up to the billing. Significantly, the Mexican, eight years younger, took all that Golovkin could throw at him and was wary in the middle rounds before having a second wind, to finish the fight the stronger. We now know that he can weather the ‘GGG’ storm.
It was the Kazakh, eight years older, who was exhausted as the bout’s denouement unfolded.
Indeed, Canelo, asked why he had circled left for most of the contest, using the reaches of the ring, explained: “It was the plan in the fight: use the ring; fight in the centre; use the ropes. I had no doubt at the end that I won the fight. He has power, different to other fighters I have faced. But he is not the monster they have talked about. This is my era, the era of Canelo.”
When they meet again, almost certain to be May 5 next year, one of the traditionally big pay-per-view nights due to the Mexican holiday, Canelo will be wiser, and Golovkin, now 35, just older. It simply plays into the younger fighter’s hands.
