Former world champion Shawn Porter Jr was one of several boxing figures left stunned at how the referee allowed Tony Harrison to take as much damage as he did in the final flurry that decided the fight.
Danrex Tapdasan was the official assigned to the interim WBO super welterweight bout between Tim Tszyu and Harrison at Qudos Bank Arena.
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It was Tszyu who emerged on top, pulverising his American rival with a barrage of thunderous uppercuts in the ninth round that had Harrison seeing stars.
However, it seemed as if Tszyu perhaps landed more damage on Harrison than was necessary.
The Detroit native was on the ropes and holding on for dear life when it seemed he was completely out of the contest, but Tapdasan allowed Tszyu to continue teeing off at will in pursuit of the stoppage.
Tszyu eventually pummeled Harrison to the ground, but Tapdasan didn’t immediately wave off the contest, allowing Harrison to get to his feet.
The American eventually stood up just before the ten count but was evidently on unsteady legs and risked serious damage should the fight have continued, as Tapdasan waved it off.
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It sparked jubilation from everyone inside Qudos Bank Arena and Tszyu’s team, as Harrison was left to lament what could have been.
Yet Porter and a number of pundits felt it should have been waved off as soon as Harrison looked out of it with his right hand resting on the rope.
“Look at this right here, uppercut, uppercut, I have to say, I’m very mad at this ref for allowing Tony to take this many clean shots and not step in,” Porter said on Main Event’s coverage.
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“I felt like the ref should’ve been there. Tony’s head goes out of the ring, the ref is still allowing this fight to take place.
As replays of the finish were beamed inside the venue, Main Event’s Ben Damon admitted it made for painful viewing.
“That’s hard to watch because Tony Harrison is a star and he’s been such a brilliant part of this promotion and he took some enormous shots with his back turned and his senses gone,” Damon said.
“We hope he’s OK because he’s a special character.”
Former AFL star Dane Swan tweeted: “Tszyu nearly murdered that poor guy. Jesus Christ that was a nasty finish.”
Fox Sports News reporter Cody Kaye added: “Ref should’ve jumped in. He was gone. Harrison didn’t need to take those last shots.”