Paul McCloskey was robbed of his chance that others had

[physiker]

PM’s cut should have been allowed to be fixed by his corner. They did quickly close it up after the fight was called by the dr/ref.

PM’s strategy may well have been to let the faster Khan tire himself out. The overwhelming majority of Khan’s punches were being slipped by PM in impressive fashion. I like Khan in general, so this is not the issue here. But he was hardly landing any punches in his combos. This also has a psychological effect.

Many others have played possum for the majority of a fight and then won, in part because the opponent tired. Jake LaMotta was getting hammered for much of the 15 rounds by Dauthuille, until Jake KOed him with 13 seconds to go. Mike Weaver was getting battered for much of the 15 round fight with John Tate until—with about 30 seconds left, he KOed a tired Tate.

Boxing is, in part, about a full 12-round strategy, and being given a chance. Unlike the 2 above examples, PM was NOT getting battered, and surely deserved a chance to try his strategy over the full 12 rounds.

It appears to have been another home-cooked decision to not let PM have his chance.

And Khan’s inability to land so few while throwing so many, either proves PM has near Whitaker abilities, or Khan is not as fast or accurate as some want to believe.

[Earl-Hickey]

If his strategy was to try and KO Khan late, then his strategy failed didnt it.

At the end of the day, Mcloskey had a spot of bad luck but there was NOTHING to suggest that he was going to come on late, in fact the odds were collapsing into khans favour at the time of the doctor calling it off

[Prince Mongo]

I am a Khan fan and think the fight was stopped way too quickly and looking from the outside there was something very dodgy about how the doctor finished the fight the way he did. Having said that I am certain that had McCloskey continued he would have lost anyway and he did not do enough IMO to justify a rematch. IMO he was not the right opponent in the first place and nothing was right about the fight from the get go.
There is no question McCloskey is elusive and difficult to hit but his offence was not up to his defence. I can see why he was not happy about the stoppage but I do not believe for one moment that he would have mounted a barrage of punches in the later rounds that would have finished Khan off but he should have been given the chance and the Doctor screwed him.

[physiker]

******, the statement was clearly rhetorical

[physiker]

I am a Khan fan and think the fight was stopped way too quickly and looking from the outside there was something very dodgy about how the doctor finished the fight the way he did. Having said that I am certain that had McCloskey continued he would have lost anyway and he did not do enough IMO to justify a rematch. IMO he was not the right opponent in the first place and nothing was right about the fight from the get go.
There is no question McCloskey is elusive and difficult to hit but his offence was not up to his defence. I can see why he was not happy about the stoppage but I do not believe for one moment that he would have mounted a barrage of punches in the later rounds that would have finished Khan off but he should have been given the chance and the Doctor screwed him.

The reason I cited the LaMotta/Dauthuille and Weaver/Tate fights is that if you've seen those, you might have demanded that the ref stop them in mid-fight also, as it looked like LaMotta and Weaver had "no chance" either for a late comeback.

We can never know, boxers--especially if they are evading the vast majority of punches deserve--the chance.

[shenmue]

It was one of the worst Performance from a title challenger i can remember in a long time, it was pathetic. He should have atleast tried to hit Amir.

He dosen't deserve a remach unless he beat Kotelnik, Maidana, Alexander, petterson ect.

[BetterCallSaul]

Amir Khan had McCloskey shook up a couple of times in rounds 5 and 6, something he hadn't been able to achieve prior to this. So, if anything, Khan was the one coming on strong and would have stood a good chance of stopping McCloskey who has never went 12 rounds with a world class fighter.

Yes, the stoppage was premature, but that isn't Khan's fault, and McCloskey didn't look like he was that desperate to continue. Now, Khan has bigger fish to fry and McCloskey will have to get back in line.

Fortunately, the JWW division is one full of top fighters, and McCloskey should have no shortage of opponents for his next fight, if he so chooses to face a strong competitor.

In fact, losing by a controversial stoppage will in the long run benefit McCloskey more than losing by a lopsided decision. At least the questions still remains over whether he is championship material or not, which wouldn't have been the case if he has lost a wide UD to the far superior Khan.

[physiker]

I disagree. Some people like to shout that Khan has the fastest hands in boxing. PM was able to slip nearly all Khan's combos. Quite impressive.

As noted, his side might have felt--being the slower man--that his best strategy was to get Khan tired out this way. They may even have noted the trouble Khan had in the later rounds in his previous fight--gassing out so that he was no longer able to evade Maidana. (And no, I am not saying that PM is a Maidana.)

But he deserved his chance for 12 rounds to see if his strategy would have worked. He was an undefeated fighter, and was NOT getting battered.

[physiker]

Amir Khan had McCloskey shook up a couple of times in rounds 5 and 6, something he hadn't been able to achieve prior to this. So, if anything, Khan was the one coming on strong and would have stood a good chance of stopping McCloskey who has never went 12 rounds with a world class fighter.

Yes, the stoppage was premature, but that isn't Khan's fault, and McCloskey didn't look like he was that desperate to continue. Now, Khan has bigger fish to fry and McCloskey will have to get back in line.

Fortunately, the JWW division is one full of top fighters, and McCloskey should have no shortage of opponents for his next fight, if he so chooses to face a strong competitor.

In fact, losing by a controversial stoppage will in the long run benefit McCloskey more than losing by a lopsided decision. At least the questions still remains over whether he is championship material or not, which wouldn't have been the case if he has lost a wide UD to the far superior Khan.

You make some interesting and good points in your reply.
Thank you.

[Hard Boiled]

I disagree. Some people like to shout that Khan has the fastest hands in boxing. PM was able to slip nearly all Khan's combos. Quite impressive.

As noted, his side might have felt--being the slower man--that his best strategy was to get Khan tired out this way. They may even have noted the trouble Khan had in the later rounds in his previous fight--gassing out so that he was no longer able to evade Maidana. (And no, I am not saying that PM is a Maidana.)

But he deserved his chance for 12 rounds to see if his strategy would have worked. He was an undefeated fighter, and was NOT getting battered.

Nobody cares about McCloskey he is ****!