What fight was stopped to early and was the worst stoppage

[Jeff Da Maori]

Taylor was never known for his defense and had plenty of wars in the gym and took plenty of punches leading up to the Chavez fight. You can watch his fight with Howard Davis alone to see that he wasn't exactly hard to hit. Obviously the Chavez fight was the most punishment he had taken in a professional fight at that point. But I don't believe that one fight is solely responsible for his condition today or his career after the Chavez fight.

Thanks bro. Good points made, and duly noted. Green K sent.

I agree that the Chavez fight is a contributory factor in his current condition, rather than the sole cause, but I think his career was definitely shortened by it. His skill set seemed to drop off quickly and to be honest, I always thought the win over Aaron Davis for the WW title was more a case of a great fighter pulling out that one last performance than him still being at the peak of his powers.

[Scott9945]

Was Tyson-Carl Williams ko a bad stoppage? I remember reading somewhere that Williams was ok and beat the count.

That was a terrible stoppage. It was never discussed because nobody gave Williams any chance to win. But he certainly deserved a chance to fight back after a one punch knockdown in the very first round. Randy Neumann is one of the worst refs in the US.

[Scott9945]

All I'll say is...

Referees aren't supposed to be timekeepers.

A good referee is aware of every aspect of a fight. It's not like calling balls and strikes. An experienced ref like Steele definitely saw the 10 second warning lights.

[MRBOOMER]

They shoulda stopped gatti vs mayweather before it happened lol sorry to bring him up but it was so there for the taking

[Anthony342]

I will also say Chavez/Taylor 1. Chavez ended up winning a rematch with Taylor anyway pretty easily. I and a lot of fans at the time, while liking Chavez and his warrior spirit in the ring, felt Chavez at the time seemed to get the advantage in certain close fights to protect his then unbeaten record. I thought Taylor deserved the right to continue. There was about 5 seconds left and 2 when the stoppage happened so most likely no more punches would have been thrown if the fight had continued. If it hadn't been the last round, then I would say stop it.

Also, about getting the benefit of the doubt with calls and close decisions, fans further felt this way when Chavez fought to a draw 19 fights later against Pernell Whitaker that many fans felt Whitaker clearly won on the scorecards. I still don't doubt Chavez' greatness though, I will never be a "hater", as the kids today call it.

I'd also agree on Tyson/Ruddock 1, although he seemed to be turning the tide by then and was on his way to either stopping Ruddock in that round or a unanimous decision. Oh well, they got another huge pay per view fight as a result with the rematch, which Tyson DID win by UD, the last fight of his career to go the distance.

Speaking of Richard Steele, he was also the ref for Chavez' first loss, to Frankie Randall and the 2 points he took away from Chavez for low blows ended up costing him a split decision. So I guess Steele giveth and taketh away.

I've heard some say Leonard/Benitez, but I never thought that one was that bad and heard Bert Sugar say on Ringside there was a death in the ring about a week before that so maybe Carlos Padilla might have had that in the back of his mind. Some have also said The Thrilla in Manila, although again IMO, not that bad as both fighters seemed exhausted and battered pretty badly. Is it true Ali wasn't sure if he wanted to go out for the 15th round before finding out Frazier's corner was stopping the fight? Was Dundee considering stopping it for Ali as well? They seemed to indicate this, at least Ali being unsure whether to continue, in that Thrilla in Manila HBO documentary.

[jabsRstiff]

Anthony....

I found the Leonard-Benitez stoppage to be very premature, no matter what the climate was around that fight.

Benitez had been dropped, but didn't look that hurt. Then, Leonard never really hits him with anything and the ref is jumping in with just a little bit of time left.

Meldrick Taylor was far more hurt and busted up than Benitez was- no doubt about that! Just because Taylor was ahead and Benitez was behind doesn't mean it was a worse stoppage.

[SCtrojansbaby]

If you look at the clock and where Chavez was (middle of the ring), there is no way that Taylor would have taken another punch. Assuming that the referee was honest and competent, JCC would have had to come from a neutral corner. So the only thing Steele saved Meldrick from was a victory.

The ref isn't the time keeper. Taylor looked away when Steele asked if he could continue it was a good stoppage

[Scott9945]

The ref isn't the time keeper. Taylor looked away when Steele asked if he could continue it was a good stoppage

He looked away because his cornerman was shouting at him. It wasn't that unusual. Steele allowed Tommy Hearns to continue against Barkley when his legs wouldn't even hold him up. So enough about how Steele has such high standards. He basically just looked after the house fighter.

[SCtrojansbaby]

He looked away because his cornerman was shouting at him. It wasn't that unusual. Steele allowed Tommy Hearns to continue against Barkley when his legs wouldn't even hold him up. So enough about how Steele has such high standards. He basically just looked after the house fighter.

So what was Steele supposed to do? Let Taylor continue even though you asked him if he could and he looks away? That doesn't make any sense.

[SBleeder]

A good referee is aware of every aspect of a fight. It's not like calling balls and strikes. An experienced ref like Steele definitely saw the 10 second warning lights.

Not if he was focused on Taylor and his safety, as he should have been.