Containing both controversy and entertainment, the Riyadh Season February 22 card showed the very best, and worst, of boxing as several headline-worthy fights transpired on the card.
The most notable fight on the undercard was the light-heavyweight (175 lbs) title bout between two British fighters; WBO interim champion Joshua Buatsi (19-1, 13 KO’s) and Callum Smith (31-2, 22 KO’s). Both came with the intention to win but it was Smith whose size, experience and range proved the difference in him claiming Buatsi’s title to become the new WBO interim 175-pound champion. Smith won by unanimous decision (UD) through scores of 115-113, 119-110 and 116-112.
The fight was close with both fighters having moments that made it difficult to call. However, during the latter half of the fight it was Smith who displayed a surprising degree of technical prowess to win him the fight.
Size was somewhat of a factor as Smith’s reach of 78 inches, compared to Buatsi’s 74½, caused problems for the interim champion whose style was more accustomed to him boxing from the outside. Combined with Smith looking like the heavier man, Buatsi lost by several rounds as he failed to adapt accordingly while Smith’s reach tested his ability to fight on the inside.
Even in the pocket, Smith proved to be better, mostly through his greater strength which made it difficult for Buatsi to thread inside. Buatsi proved himself to be a tough customer during the fight but his inability to make an impact up close or at range proved to be his undoing and eventually culminated in a UD loss.
The only notable controversy in this fight was the 119-110 scorecard by British judge Steve Gray which further illustrates the complete lack of competency tests when it comes to judging, which throughout this card continued to highlight one of boxing’s primary faults.
At heavyweight (200+ lbs), Chinese contender Zhilei Zhang (27-3-1, 22 KO’s) and German contender Agit Kabayel (26-0, 18 KO’s) faced off in a 12-rounder. The first round seemed to go largely in favor of Zhang whose size and power saw moments of vulnerability for Kabayel. However, the subsequent rounds seemed to go in favor of the German fighter as his speed, footwork and effort in the ring made him take a firm lead.
Things spiraled out of control in the 5th round as the competitive match witnessed Kabayel get knocked down by the Chinese heavyweight, though Kabayel recovered quickly. Despite turning point of the 5th round, the 6th round saw an even greater surprise as Kabayel’s strategy to work Zhang’s body paid off and Zhang was unable to continue as a crunching body shot floored him, allowing Kabayel to win the match by knockout (KO).
It was another impressive victory for Agit Kabayel who remains undefeated and will now be regarded as one of the best heavyweights in the world after defeating a fearsome puncher in Zhilei Zhang.
At super welterweight (154 lbs), American WBC interim champion Vergil Ortiz Jr. (23-0, 12 KO’s) and Uzbek contender Israil Madrimov (10-2-1, 7 KO’s) engaged in a competitive match that showed glimpses into two different styles similar to the Beterbiev vs. Bivol main event.
Ortiz was the pressuring fighter in this bout while Madrimov applied a more pure boxer style. The first half went clearly into Madrimov’s fighter whose constant movement, elusiveness and feints became an issue for Ortiz who found himself quickly outboxed.
However, the latter half decisively went into Ortiz’ favor as his pressure tactics paid off. Madrimov’s fluid footwork became his undoing as he was unable to maintain the pace for too long, forcing him to fight on the inside which was Ortiz’ playground. Being the stronger fighter, Ortiz’ approach had to rely on his patience as Madrimov was no longer able to sustain his movement, allowing the American’s pressure to pay off and culminating in Madrimov being in trouble.
Ortiz took at least two out of the championship rounds to crawl back from what had been him being down on the scorecards during the first half, allowing him to claim victory through a UD victory through scorecards of 115-113, twice, and 117-111.
As with most of the other matches, one score stood out this match; the 117-111 score which was quite wide given Ortiz had been losing the fight before coming back to win in the latter half.
The most controversial match on the card occurred in the middleweight (160 lbs) title bout between WBC world champion Carlos Adames (24-1-1, 18 KO’s) and British challenger Hamzah Sheeraz (21-0-1, 17 KO’s).
The fight was very much a showcase for Adames who displayed the ability to count himself amongst some of the best at 160 pounds. Sheeraz performed admirably but his own efforts were not enough as he failed to prevent Adames from giving him plenty of trouble.
Sheeraz, a 6’3 middleweight as opposed to the 5’11 Adames, had issues with landing his strong jab ― though he still managed to stun Adames several times whenever it landed. Despite his longer reach, Adames’ gameplan was well-suited towards allowing the Dominican to come within the inside of Sheeraz and force the issue.
For most of the fight, Adames was the more aggressive fighter which worked in his favor as he appeared to land the more punches. While Sheeraz has displayed solid defense past fights, Adames showed his ability by managing to slip through the British fighter’s defense in almost every round and pushing him back for most of the fight.
Sheeraz did well for his first world title fight but lacking the aggressiveness and efficiency to actually win, it was Adames who proved to be the better fighter with his tactics, effectiveness and determination which should have granted him a surefire unanimous decision win.
However, this did not occur as the judges would haul out scorecards, with one judge scoring it 118-110 in Adames’ favor ― which despite the wide score may have been the only wide scorecard during the event that was correct ― while another judge, Italian official Guido Cavalleri, scored it 115-114 in favor of Sheeraz. The 114-114 scorecard by Mexican judge Omar Mintun Sr. culminated in a split-decision draw.
Both the 115-114 and 114-114 scorecards have raised eyebrows with the fight having been competitive but Adames having clearly taken most of the rounds through his effort, skill and intent. Both scores are equally controversial, with Sheeraz having clearly not done enough to show he deserved to be a world champion and Adames in turn having showcased his capability as a champion.
Despite the draw, Adames retained his title as a result but the Dominican fighter will likely not be satisfied by the scores that robbed him of a deserving and hard-fought win.
There was also some controversy outside the ring with Riyadh Season head Turki Alalshikh having been depicted reading the judges scorecards to Sheeraz’ corner. Even though this does not implicate Alalshikh in meddling in the judges’ decision, it does showcase his clear bias during fights which is a major concern.
Alalshikh, who also owns The Ring media outlet, is the chairman of Saudi Arabia’s government branch dedicated towards sports and entertainment; the General Entertainment Authority (GEA). He is generally considered to be the main authority in boxing due to his ability to set up prevalent and entertaining cards, mostly in Saudi Arabia, and backed by an extremely large amount of wealth, the Saudi official is undoubtedly the most influential figure in boxing.
However, despite the efforts Alalshikh has bestowed on boxing, his decision to relay the judges’ scorecards towards Sheeraz’ team displays a clear sense of favoritism that continues to paint boxing as an open ground for corruption.
At lightweight (135 lbs), American WBC champion Shakur Stevenson (23-0, 11 KO’s) faced stand-in opponent and challenger [#12 WBC lightweight contender] Josh Padley (15-1, 4 KO’s) from the UK who replaced Floyd Schofield who suffered from an unknown illness.
Stevenson was by far the better fighter offensively and defensively as opposed to Padley who substituted Schofield on late notice. Despite demonstrating his ability it was Padley’s determination that stole the show.
Without having gone through the training necessary to compete for a world title fight, Padley showed grit and resilience even as Stevenson was quite easily beating him down over the rounds. Padley showed glimpses of his own relatively lesser-trained ability with his spurts of combinations which forced Stevenson to cover up.
The clear gap in ability was evident but Stevenson’s inability to finish Padley quickly as well as the British fighter’s intent to come to fight and brawl, if needed, made it a rather underwhelming performance for the American. His ability to stay defensively responsible while balancing offense was clear to see, but the lack power at 135-pounds was evident.
Despite landing countless of clean punches, Padley refused to go down which forced Stevenson to adapt and hit at the body. Padley eventually found himself knocked down thrice in the 9th round until his corner threw in the towel, allowing Stevenson to net his second win at lightweight through a technical knockout (TKO), but the American fighter’s lack of power was emphasized during the fight ― drawing questions as to whether he can truly match against the other lightweight champions if it comes down to physicality.
The most underwhelming match was New Zealand WBO interim champion Joseph Parker’s (36-3, 24 KO’s) title defense against Congolese heavyweight contender Martin Bakole (21-2, 16 KO’s). With Bakole substituting Daniel Dubois who also fell ill and had to be replaced, there had clearly been little time for him to train as he weighed in at 310 lbs during the official weigh-in ― a career high for Bakole.
According to Bakole himself during a post-match interview, he had not gone through training camp but had been training for several weeks. However, judging by his state and performance, this training did not significantly prepare him for an actual fight.
Parker was undoubtedly solid in his win over Bakole as he landed some crushing right hands in the 1st and 2nd rounds to knock Bakole down in latter round. The referee quickly waved the match off afterwards, allowing Parker to note a TKO win on his record, though neither fighter will be satisfied with their performance.
While Parker was trained and ready to go, Bakole was not fit enough to participate in a 12-round bout. While it was Bakole’s choice to enter the ring on short notice following Dubois’ withdrawal, as far as opponents went, it was a match both fighters will be looking to forget as they move on with their respective careers.
