Retired boxing referee Carlos Padilla said he made a way to prevent Manny Pacquiao from losing in his fight with Nedal Hussein in the year 2000 when he was the referee. Such a fight is said to be important to the career of the National Fist.
At one point in the fight, Pacquiao allegedly head-butted Hussein, causing the Australian to be injured in the face. But instead of saying that what happened was a head butt, Padilla declared that the wound was caused by a legitimate blow from Pacquiao.
The fight reached Round 10 and Pacquiao won via technical knockout based on the judges’ score cards from Australia and Korea due to Hussein’s injury.
Padilla said it was an important fight with Pacquiao because the winner would have the opportunity to fight in the world championship.
Meanwhile, Hussein said he has no grudge against Pacquiao. However, he is said to be angry with what Padilla did in their fight.
Hussein insisted he should have won the fight if Padilla didn’t delay the count when he knocked Pacquiao down.
“The fight should not have gone in the forefront. Manny was hurt. If it was me, if Manny pulled me down, the referee would have stopped the fight. I would have won because it would have been a knockout,” he insisted.
Hussein also mentioned that the source of his facial wound was a head butt. But he said he accepted that Pacquiao won based on the judges’ scorecard.
Hussein no grudge against Pacquiao amid referee controversy
After Padilla’s revelations, Hussein’s lawyer wrote to the World Boxing Council to request that the fight be declared a no-contest.
He said all awards given to Padilla should be revoked, including the Nevada Boxing Hall of Fame.
“He should be held accountable. He should not be in any hall of fame because he is not a credible referee. He’s a cheat,” Hussein added.
Pacquiao said he watched the video of his fight with Hussein again and thought that Padilla did the right thing when he knocked him down.
He believes that Padilla also did the right thing to get Hussein’s attention at that moment because he was not listening to the referee.
Pacquiao also maintained that it was his uppercut and not a head butt that caused Hussein’s facial injury.
With Hussein insisting that their fight be declared a no-contest, Pacquiao believes it is unlikely to happen.
Visit our Facebook page for more news updates.