Last night on ATG Radio, former cruiserweight champion Steve Cunningham stopped by fresh off his controversial loss to Tomasz Adamek this past Saturday on NBC. During the interview NBA Legend & avid boxing fan Gary Payton stopped by to discuss boxing and had some kind words for "USS" Cunningham.
I had my fourth fight of the year. The fight with Steve Cunningham in Bethlehem went down in history. I won, but not to my or my fans satisfaction. My fans were not happy. The reporters mainly showed the negative side of the fight. I read articles where there was negativity but also a lot of praise based on my performance. The judges verdict was like a huge snowball, which rolled from the U.S. to Poland and got more comments on the internet. There was the opportunity to stick it to Adamek. And it doesn't matter here that that was my 50th fight in the ring. I won 48 and lost only 2. Only a few reporters wrote something about the fight that was worth reading.
BETHLEHEM, Pa. -- HBO's unofficial scorer Harold Lederman was at the Sands on Saturday for the Tomasz Adamek-Steve Cunningham rematch on NBC. The fight was originally announced as a split draw before Michael Buffer corrected it to a split decision verdict in favor of Adamek. The boxing world has been up in arms over the decision, calling it a robbery, with most pundits and fans believing Cunningham deserved the nod. BoxingScene.com caught up with Lederman, who scored the fight 115-113 for Adamek from his seat.
The outcome of Saturday’s rematch between Tomasz Adamek and Steve Cunningham has dominated the headlines for the past 24 hours. Their bout will now dominate the airwaves for the rest of the year. Adamek’s highly controversial split decision nod over Cunningham served as NBC’s first pro boxing broadcast in nearly a decade. Affiliate network NBC Sports will air the exclusive replay of their 12-round bout from Sands Resort Casino in Bethlehem, PA.
For boxing, it was a successful return to network television on NBC. Then the scores were read. Two-time former Cruiserweight titlist Steve Cunningham appeared to have done enough to secure revenge in his long awaited rematch with former Light Heavyweight titlist and Cruiserweight champion Tomasz Adamek. Two of the three judges disagreed. Where they disagreed is as worth scrutiny as that they disagreed at all. While much was made of the mis-read scores at the bouts conclusion, that was much ado about nothing. Michael Buffer isn’t perfect. He had a moment when he announced a draw. That the final score read aloud, ultimately 115-113 from Debra Barnes for Adamek, became the focus meant what seems the worst score of the night got a little off the hook.
by David P. Greisman - He thanked every fan and reporter who approached him, each saying that they thought he had won the fight. He spent the next morning and afternoon reposting and replying to others’ sentiments on Twitter, all in support of a boxer they believed had deserved the victory. It all served as cold comfort to Steve Cunningham. Every voice, every message only added to the outrage. Rather than soothe him, they only underlined the painful reality of what he, and they, could only see as a robbery. “What more can I do, other than knock a dude out?” Cunningham said afterward. “What more can I do?” He had done all he could for 12 rounds against Tomasz Adamek. He had not been knocked down, as had happened three times four years ago, when they had first fought. He had not been badly hurt, had not been drawn into a war he could not win, had not strayed too far from a strategy of discipline, of using speed and movement to offset his stronger but slower pursuer. He had not been awarded the decision. One judge gave Adamek seven rounds to Cunningham’s five. Another judge scored it even wider for the Polish heavyweight, at eight rounds to four. Only one official observer had Cunningham ahead, seeing it seven to five. That single dissenting vote joined a larger chorus. Yet it was just those other two sets of numbers that truly counted. This is the heartbreak of being a boxer, of being involved in a sport where the scores are not accumulated via baskets, goals, runs or touchdowns, but instead are decided by a trio of people seated feet away from the action. There is the cliché of a fighter taking his fate into his own hands, of taking his opponent out and making certain that the result is not left to those three observers positioned along the ring apron. That is not always possible. Sometimes a fighter can only hope to do his job as well as he desires, and then he can only hope that the judges do their jobs as well as the boxers deserve for them to do. This is the heartbreak of Steve Cunningham. He deserved better than this.
BETHLEHEM, Pa. — Bryant Jennings had just about as good a ringside seat as the three judges Saturday. From right near the ring apron, seated beside promoter Kathy Duva, Jennings saw something completely different than two of them. Jennings left Sands Casino Resort’s Events Center confused as to how fellow Philadelphia heavyweight Steve Cunningham (25-5, 12 KOs) didn’t receive credit for out-boxing Tomasz Adamek (48-2, 29 KOs) in their nationally televised rematch.
The last time Tomasz Adamek and Steve Cunningham fought, they waged war for 12 rounds, with Adamek scoring three knockdowns en route to a split decision and the lineal cruiserweight crown. The bout landed deep in discussion for 2008 Fight of the Year contenders and was well-celebrated by the fans and media. Saturday’s rematch at Sands Resort Casino in Bethlehem, Penn. proved entertaining, though in the end memorable for far different reasons.
Steve Cunningham (25-5, 12 KOs), who feels robbed of a victory, thanked the army of Polish boxing fans who reached out with their full support. Even many Polish boxing fans believe Cunningham had did enough to win a twelve round decision over the biggest Polish attraction, Tomasz Adamek (48-2, 29 KOs). Adamek was awarded a twelve round split decision victory.
Cunningham dominated with the jab, landing an avg. of 11 of 25 per round- nearly double the hvt. avg. Adamek had a 40-punch edge in landed power shots, however, Cunningham landed the cleaner punches throughout the fight.