Boxing News: Tony Weeks' Referee Blunder Ruins Vergil Ortiz Jr. vs. Fredrick Lawson Clash
Tony Weeks was again at the center of the boxing world, as he was assigned DAZN's first main event of the year, a super-welterweight bout between Vergil Ortiz Jr. (20-0, 20 KOs) and Fredrick Lawson (30-4, 22 KOs) in Las Vegas, Nev.
A longtime boxing referee, Weeks added another blunder to his long-winded resume Saturday and created an anti-climatic and bizarre ending to the bout.
As the fight was getting underway, Ortiz Jr. caught Lawson with a stiff jab that appeared to hurt him. Ortiz Jr. began his semblance of punches before Weeks precariously halted the bout believing Lawson had failed to defend himself from further damage intelligently.
Weeks was too quick on the trigger, and the commentary booth agreed.
This isn't the first time Weeks has been caught under fire for a bad stoppage, as May 2023 saw him officiate Rolly Romero vs. Ismael Barroso, as Barrasso was stopped against the ropes in Round 9 to the disgust of the then-Showtime commentary team.
As for the fight itself, egregious stoppage or not, Ortiz Jr. already has his sights set on bigger names and becoming a dominant force at 154 pounds.
"I’m ready for anyone. It felt like I’m back to doing what I usually do,” Ortiz Jr. said afterward. “This is my calling; this is what I was made to do and I want to continue doing this. There’s a lot of fighters that I want to fight, but Tim Tszyu, with all due respect, I want him next. He’s a hell of a fighter and it would be an honor to take him next.”
Tszyu (24-0, 17 KO's) is coming off an Oct. 2023 win against Brian Mendoza, where he secured a unanimous decision.
Stick with MMA Knockout for more daily coverage of the UFC and MMA.