Bob Arum has voiced his opposition to the proposal of using six judges in the upcoming heavyweight title fight between Oleksandr Usyk and Tyson Fury set for May 18 in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. This match, dubbed the "Ring of Fire" fight, carries the significant weight of the undisputed heavyweight title. Mauricio Sulaiman, WBC president, proposed this unprecedented judging change last month in an effort to avoid a judging catastrophe.
According to Mauricio Sulaiman, he issued an emergency petition advocating for six judges – an increase from the traditional three – citing concerns over fair adjudication. This petition targeted major boxing bodies including WBO, WBA, and IBF, as well as both fighters' camps and their promoters. The proposal aims to introduce a broader panel in hopes of enhancing judgment accuracy and transparency in such a high-profile bout.
Bob Arum sharply criticized the idea. He firmly stated his belief that a crucial fight of this caliber is not suitable for testing new measures on such a grand scale. “You don't put in something like that for the first time dealing with a major fight from the standpoint of visibility and importance,” said Arum. He suggested instead that any experimentation with additional judges should happen in lesser-profile matches to assess its potential impact without risking significant contention.
On another front related to this title fight, Sulaiman disclosed that he recently had Pope Francis bless and sign a WBC commemorative belt. This special belt is set to be awarded to the winner of May's match-up between Usyk and Fury. Evidently, aside from deciding on the logistics of eyeing up candidates inside the ring, there's no lack of symbolism outside it either.
Frank Warren, co-promoter of Tyson Fury along with Arum’s Top Rank through Queensberry Promotions, also dismissed Sulaiman’s suggestion outright. Their collective stance poses considerable resistance against changing conventional judging protocols for what could well be one of the year's biggest fights.
The main event participants are Ukrainian boxer Oleksandr Usyk and British gladiator Tyson Fury. While both fighters gear up for their clash at Saudi capital's colossal stage; speculations hint at a potential rematch possibly as early as October during Riyadh Season's opening events if May 18 results call for one.
