Many boxing fans were left furious after Johnny Fisher secured a controversial victory over Dave Allen ahead of Tyson Fury’s rematch with Oleksandr Usyk.
Two of the three judges scored the fight in Fisher’s favour despite Allen knocking him down and dominating for much of the contest.
The Romford Bull made a strong start and clearly won the opening rounds but Allen turned the tide with a powerful right hand in the fifth. It sent Fisher crashing to the canvas and he was fortunate to avoid being stopped before the bell.
Allen was largely in control for the rest of the fight but the judges saw it differently, with Fisher inexplicably avoiding the first defeat of his professional career.
Fans on social media were left baffled by the controversial split decision, with @ATokkers5 posting on X (formerly Twitter): “That’s an absolutely horrific robbery. Horrific. Johnny Fisher did not win that fight. I’m no Dave Allen fan, but that’s a disgraceful call.”
@johnny33black added: “Boxing can get to f**k! This new AI judging system better work because that’s f*****g disgusting. Not one person in the world would give that to Johnny Fisher.”
@davidrice17 fumed: “What’s the f*****g point in boxing? Honestly, no wonder everyone thinks the sport is a joke. Dave Allen won that fight by two or three rounds, everyone knows it, apart from the f*****g judges scoring it.”
Even pop superstar Louis Tomlinson thought Allen had done more than enough to win. He posted: “What an incredible performance from Dave Allen with so much on the line and so much pressure. Absolutely robbed from the judges. You did yourself proud mate!”
Loud boos were heard inside the Kingdom Arena in Riyadh as the judges’ scorecards were read out, while Allen looked puzzled as he tried to wrap his head around the decision.
Sky Sports Box Office commentator Shane McGuigan said: “I thought it was very easy to score. That’s boxing, that’s the business.
“The close rounds when you’re leaning towards the guy that’s selling five-thousand, six-thousand tickets, sometimes those are the decisions that you sway towards that fighter. I would be very, very, very disappointed if I was in Dave Allen’s corner.”
