Boxing referee Tony Weeks has spoken out following his controversial role in stopping the Rolando Romero–Ismael Barroso fight.
Weeks’ intervention was heavily criticized, as he stopped the fight when Barroso was on the ropes. While that may have been the case, Barroso was still firing back at the time.
The decision gave Romero the WBA 140 lb title at a time when many felt that Barroso had been unfairly deprived. After all, prior to the stoppage, Barroso was ahead on all three scorecards: 76-75, 77-74 and 78-73.
And in doing so, he did drop Romero earlier in the fight. But now that the dust has settled somewhat, Weeks has given the reasoning behind his decision.
He pointed to Barraso’s age, that being 40, as a reason for his intervention.
“What was in my mind was, a 40 year old fighter, in a young man’s game. Any official will tell you, you get a fight, and a fighter is at an advanced age, you’re going to look at him a little harder than the other fighter.
“When I look at a fighter who’s up there in age, there’s two things I look at: his reaction when he takes his first hit, and his stamina in the later rounds.
“Up until the stoppage, Romero didn’t really land flush, he landed flush in that last round. When he landed flush, Barroso went down. It told me right then and there, I don’t know if he can take it,” Weeks
Hindsight invariably changes the perspective, and it was worth noting that boxing has seen fighters suffer as a result.
Weeks was refereeing a bout involving Leavander Johnson and Jesus Chavez in 2005, as the former passed away in the aftermath with extensive injuries.
But that did not stop the boxing community from calling out what they perceived to be a bad stoppage in the Rolly fight.
Social Media Reaction
Not an excuse, if he sign that contract, he’s a prize fighter and age shouldn’t be an issue, the ref basically said he cheated the fans
— Tru Eye Media (@PedatruCuzzTT) June 7, 2023
Barroso Robbed
— Omz (@omz8910) June 7, 2023
Age also plays a factor on why you shouldn’t be a ref anymore
— Eliu 🇩🇴 (@EliuTalksMMA) June 6, 2023