By Sean Crose
A lot’s been made about C.J. Ross’ judging these past two years. After a long and quite successful career as a Nevada boxing official, Ross suddenly became notorious after deciding Timothy Bradley had bested Manny Pacquaio in 2012 and that Saul Canelo Alvarez was Floyd Mayweather’s equal in 2013. Both decisions brought about a firestorm of bad press for Ross and for the sport of boxing, in general. Charges of corruption and incompetence ran rampant. Ross herself ended up, fairly or unfairly, becoming the poster child for all that is wrong with the sport of boxing.
All of this leads to one very obvious question: what’s the deal with C.J. Ross? Well, let’s try to find out. First, lets deal with the most damning accusation against the woman, that she’s corrupt or somehow “on the take.” While it’s true boxing has a dark history of corruption, there’s no solid evidence that Ross herself has contributed to that dark history – at least none that’s been made public. Therefore, we should leave this one alone. No matter what one’s suspicions may be, publicly charging someone with a crime without evidence to back that charge up is not only legally dangerous – it’s just plain wrong.
Let’s move on, then, to the charge of incompetence. This one might look like it will stick, until we realize Ross has judged one hundred, count them, one hundred, fights since November of 2008. Until the Pacquaio-Bradley bout, none of them generated much controversy. What’s more, Larry Merchant himself spoke well of Ross back in 2011.
“The fights that she works, she does a very good job.” Those were the words of the esteemed Mr. Merchant at the time.
A look at Ross’ record over the past five years or so indicates a rather solid job performance. In the one hundred matches Ross has worked since November of 2008, thirty-eight ended with split judging of some form or other. Of those thirty-eight, Ross ruled differently from her fellow judges on about eighteen occasions. Not exactly the record of some wily renegade.
In fact, a quick background check on Ms. Ross appears to present one irrefutable fact: that overall, the woman has been, at the very least, adequate, and perhaps even quite good, at her job. So what’s the deal? Why did Ross judge like she did in the two biggest bouts of her career? A peek into some of the judge’s previous work may well provide the answer. Then again…
On August 13, 2011, Abner Mares battled Joseph Agbeko in Las Vegas. While Agbeko moved forward for much of the bout, the number of Mares’ low blows reached into the double digits. One low blow actually dropped Agbeko. Referee Russell Mora, who had refused to take a point away from Mares, actually went ahead and ruled it a knockdown. In the end Adalaide Byrd and Oren Shellenberger had it 115-111 for Mares. Ross, on the other hand, scored it a draw.
On November 12, 2011, Juan Carlos Burgos fought Luis Cruz in Las Vegas. After being on the defensive earlier on, Cruz turned aggressor later in the fight. Ross had the fight a 95-95 draw while Duane Ford and Richard Ocasio had it 98-92 and 97-93, giving Burgos a majority decision.
On December 16, 2011, Laura Serrano met Ela Nunez in Las Vegas. This exciting brawl ended in a majority draw. Seranno was more aggressive, while Nunez landed the more powerful shots. Herb Santos and Lisa Giampa scored it 57-57. Ms. Ross, however, scored it in favor of the aggressive Serrano by a score of 59-55.
What do these fights suggest? After viewing them, I thought it could be argued that Ms. Ross holds fighters who move forward in higher regard than those who box defensively. For, in each of the aforementioned bouts, Ross gave a fighter who moved forward at least a draw. Then I asked myself if Bradley was really moving forward that much against Pacquaio and couldn’t come up with a satisfactory answer.
Trying to figure Ms. Ross out is a frustrating endeavor.
Perhaps Chris Mannix of Sports Illustrated is right when he argues that punch activity has a lot to do with judging in Vegas. Perhaps Ross simply wasn’t ready to judge the big fights. Perhaps time will ultimately prove her judging right and the rest of the world wrong. One really never knows.
There’s one thing, however, that remains certain: Ms. Ross remains boxing’s biggest enigma. And I, for one, feel kind of bad for her. Deserved or not, the woman’s taking a whole lot of heat after a long time spent in the trenches.
Kennethmek
11/13/2024 at 3:31 am
buy rybelsus online usa: rybpharm canada – rybpharm
DennisBlast
11/14/2024 at 10:51 am
cheapest Kamagra Kam Pharm: kampharm.shop – kampharm.shop
RobertdUs
11/14/2024 at 6:30 pm
https://gabapharm.com/# buy gabapentin
Glennson
11/15/2024 at 10:55 am
indian pharmacies safe [url=http://indianpharmacyeasy.com/#]indian pharmacy[/url] buy prescription drugs from india
Jamiewrats
11/15/2024 at 11:01 am
http://mexicanpharmgate.com/# mexico drug stores pharmacies
Bradleyboack
11/15/2024 at 5:41 pm
https://mexicanpharmgate.com/# mexico drug stores pharmacies
Jamiewrats
11/16/2024 at 3:31 am
https://indianpharmacyeasy.com/# best online pharmacy india
Glennson
11/16/2024 at 5:20 am
mexican rx online [url=http://mexicanpharmgate.com/#]mexico pharmacy[/url] medication from mexico pharmacy
Bradleyboack
11/16/2024 at 5:31 am
https://canadiandrugsgate.com/# ed pills online
JefferyBep
11/16/2024 at 5:59 am
cheapest online pharmacy india: Indian pharmacy international shipping – buy medicines online in india
Jamiewrats
11/16/2024 at 8:11 pm
https://mexicanpharmgate.com/# best online pharmacies in mexico
Glennson
11/16/2024 at 8:36 pm
india pharmacy [url=http://indianpharmacyeasy.com/#]Indian online pharmacy ship to usa[/url] india pharmacy mail order
Bradleyboack
11/17/2024 at 2:09 am
https://canadiandrugsgate.com/# best ed medicine
Glennson
11/17/2024 at 11:31 am
india pharmacy [url=http://indianpharmacyeasy.com/#]Indian online pharmacy ship to usa[/url] best india pharmacy
StevenDuamb
11/18/2024 at 5:40 am
online order prednisone: order Prednisone – prednisone 2 mg daily
Danielbal
11/18/2024 at 8:00 am
amoxicillin online without prescription https://clomidrexpharm.com/# how to get generic clomid price
Bradleyboack
11/18/2024 at 8:05 am
get clomid online [url=http://clomidrexpharm.com/#]cost of clomid for sale[/url] how to get generic clomid without dr prescription
DerekAquag
11/18/2024 at 4:25 pm
get clomid: cheap clomid – can i order cheap clomid for sale
Danielbal
11/18/2024 at 4:39 pm
where to buy amoxicillin http://priligymaxpharm.com/# priligy maxpharm
Bradleyboack
11/18/2024 at 7:23 pm
prednisone 10mg buy online [url=http://prednisoneraypharm.com/#]buy prednisone[/url] prednisone tablets india
StevenDuamb
11/19/2024 at 3:56 am
prednisone for sale without a prescription: generic Prednisone – prednisone 20mg price in india
Bradleyboack
11/19/2024 at 6:38 am
canada buy prednisone online [url=http://prednisoneraypharm.com/#]order Prednisone[/url] prednisone tablets india
DerekAquag
11/19/2024 at 9:13 am
priligy max pharm: buy priligy max pharm – cheap priligy
StevenDuamb
11/19/2024 at 2:48 pm
can you buy cheap clomid without insurance: rex pharm – can i purchase generic clomid
Bradleyboack
11/19/2024 at 5:31 pm
can you buy prednisone over the counter in canada [url=http://prednisoneraypharm.com/#]cheap prednisone[/url] prednisone 2.5 mg daily
StevenDuamb
11/20/2024 at 12:58 am
how to get cheap clomid without a prescription: clomid online – where buy cheap clomid now
DerekAquag
11/20/2024 at 3:53 pm
max pharm: priligy maxpharm – max pharm
StevenDuamb
11/20/2024 at 7:57 pm
amoxicillin generic: Amoxicillin buy online – amoxicillin 1000 mg capsule
Davidabono
11/21/2024 at 3:04 pm
mexican pharmaceuticals online http://mexicanpharmgate.com/ mexican border pharmacies shipping to usa
Albertjoibe
11/22/2024 at 12:22 am
minocycline 50mg without doctor: iver fast – order minocycline 50 mg online
Bernardbex
11/22/2024 at 3:58 am
п»їplavix generic [url=http://plavixclo.com/#]buy Plavix Clo[/url] buy clopidogrel online
Bernardbex
11/22/2024 at 10:48 pm
ivermectin 0.1 uk [url=https://iverfast.com/#]iver fast[/url] stromectol coronavirus
Albertjoibe
11/23/2024 at 2:57 am
buy cytotec online fast delivery: buy cytotec online – buy cytotec online fast delivery
DarrenSpeek
11/23/2024 at 6:58 am
https://plavixclo.com/# Cost of Plavix on Medicare
Albertjoibe
11/23/2024 at 4:06 pm
buy cytotec over the counter: cytpremium – buy cytotec online
Bernardbex
11/23/2024 at 5:56 pm
Lisinopril 1st [url=https://lisinopril1st.com/#]cheapest Lisinopril[/url] lisinopril1st
DarrenSpeek
11/24/2024 at 12:07 am
http://plavixclo.com/# Plavix 75 mg price
Albertjoibe
11/24/2024 at 6:49 am
minocycline 50: Ivermectin iver fast – ivermectin eye drops
Bernardbex
11/24/2024 at 3:32 pm
Lisinopril 1st [url=http://lisinopril1st.com/#]lisinopril1st[/url] buy Lisinopril online
DarrenSpeek
11/24/2024 at 4:33 pm
https://lisinopril1st.com/# prinivil brand name
Josephrib
11/25/2024 at 8:17 am
https://pinup-kazi.kz/# пинап казино
CurtisReard
11/25/2024 at 10:12 am
пин ап казино: pinup-kazi.ru – пин ап зеркало
DarioFut
11/25/2024 at 4:09 pm
вавада казино онлайн: vavada-kazi.ru – вавада
Jamesshush
11/25/2024 at 4:10 pm
пин ап казино онлайн: pin up казино – pin up казино
Henrynaw
11/25/2024 at 9:34 pm
vavada-kazi.ru [url=https://vavada-kazi.ru/#]vavada[/url] вавада
CurtisReard
11/26/2024 at 1:58 am
казино вавада: вавада казино онлайн – казино вавада
DarioFut
11/26/2024 at 3:33 am
пин ап кз: pin up казино – pinup kazi
CurtisReard
11/26/2024 at 1:05 pm
pinup: пин ап казино – пин ап казино
Henrynaw
11/26/2024 at 3:45 pm
pinup kazi [url=http://pinup-kazi.ru/#]pinup[/url] пин ап казино
Jamesshush
11/26/2024 at 7:12 pm
пин ап кз: пин ап казино – pinup kazi
DarioFut
11/26/2024 at 9:21 pm
вавада онлайн казино: казино вавада – vavada
Josephrib
11/27/2024 at 1:13 am
http://vavada-kazi.ru/# казино вавада
CurtisReard
11/27/2024 at 4:23 am
казино вавада: вавада казино зеркало – вавада казино
Henrynaw
11/27/2024 at 10:19 am
пинап казино [url=http://pinup-kazi.kz/#]pinup kazi[/url] pinup-kazi.kz
CurtisReard
11/27/2024 at 12:49 pm
вавада казино: казино вавада – казино вавада