Abraham-Smith: Robert Byrd Named As Referee

By Jake Donovan

Veteran referee Robert Byrd has been named third man for the super middleweight title fight between Arthur Abraham and Paul Smith, the World Boxing Organization (WBO) announced Tuesday morning.

The bout takes place this Saturday in Kiel, Germany. Abraham attempts the second defense of his second tour as a super middleweight titlist; Smith contends for a major title for the first time in his career. 

Along with the appointment of Byrd, neutral officials have also been selected to score the bout from ringside. The three judges assigned to Saturday’s title fight are: Waleska Roldan from the United States; Fernando Lugana, from Spain; and Zoltan Enyedi, from Hungary.

Byrd’s lone experience with either fighter came in 2006, when he officiated Abraham in a middleweight title defense versus Kofi Jantuah.

Enyedi has worked three previous bouts ringside with Abraham in the ring. The most recent came in Dec. ’12, serving as one of the three judges for Abraham’s 8 ^th round knockout of Medhi Bouadaia in the first defense of the same title he has since lost and regained. 

Roldan and Laguna are working their first fight that involves Abraham. None of the four appointed officials have ever been assigned to any of Smith’s previous fights. 

Abraham (40-4, 28KOs) remains a handicapper’s nightmare. A three-time champ in two weight classes, the 34-year old regained the super middleweight title in a split decision win over Robert Stieglitz in their rubber match this past March. Abraham’s first super middleweight title reign also began with a win over Stieglitz, claiming the belt in a unanimous decision in their Aug. ’12 bout. Stieglitz took back the belt with a 4 ^th round injury stoppage in their rematch last March. 

Four wins have since followed for Abraham, including a 12-round decision over Nikola Sjekloca in his most recent title defense this past March. He has been extended the 12-round distance in all four bouts amassing his current win streak.

Smith (35-3, 20KOs) has also won four straight heading into his first title fight, albeit on a much smaller scale. The bout marks his first trip outside of Great Britain. 

Among his three losses are knockouts against James DeGale and George Groves, facing both when they were unbeaten prospects prior to their own clash in May ’12. Smith was stopped in nine rounds versus DeGale in Dec. ’10 and then in two rounds by Smith the following November, the stoppage coming after a competitive first round before being overwhelmed and twice dropped in round two.

The title fight on Saturday will mark Abraham’s 10 ^th ring appearance since his run in the Super Six super middleweight tournament. He entered the dragged out round-robin as an undefeated middleweight titlist moving up in weight, kicking off the series with a bang in stopping Jermain Taylor in the closing seconds of the 12 ^th and final round of their Oct. ’09 affair. 

Bad news followed, suffering three losses in the stretch of four fights. His lone win over that span came in a tune-up fight outside the parameters of the tournament. 

Overall, Abraham has won eight of his last nine post-Super Six starts.  

Jake Donovan is the Managing Editor of BoxingScene.com, as well as the Records Keeper for the Transnational Boxing Ratings Board and a member of Boxing Writers Association of America . Twitter: @JakeNDaBox