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WBC orders immediate rematch of Mundine vs Rabchenko

22nd December, 2014
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Anthony Mundine will take on Danny Green once more. (AAP Image/Joe Castro)
Roar Guru
22nd December, 2014
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1421 Reads

The World Boxing Council has ordered an immediate rematch between Anthony Mundine and the man he beat via split decision in November, Sergey Rabchenko.

The decision was made due to the “highly contentious nature of the decision”.

I’m not overly shocked that a rematch will now likely occur, however I am shocked that the WBC has practically ruled that the judges were wrong in awarding the fight to Mundine.

The fight was close, I had Mundine winning seven rounds to five, however I could make an argument for Rabchenko winning the fight.

There can be no argument however to say that Rabchenko was robbed of a victory.

The fact that two judges were from Melboure, the host city of the sold-out fight, seems to be the point of contention. That being said, the two local scorecards were 115-113 (how I scored it) and 116-112. Hardly out of the ordinary.

The decision to order a rematch sets a dangerous precedent, as we can now expect to see any fighter on the wrong end of a close decision appealing the result.

Re-watching highlights of the fights earlier tonight before typing this, Rabchenko definitely hurt Mundine with body shots, however he hardly dominated the fight to the point the decision could be seen as “highly contentious”.

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Reports indicate that negotiations for the rematch will start in the New Year.

The WBC decision is a blow to Mundine, who was hoping to line up a big fight after beating the dangerous, undefeated Rabchenko, in what was perhaps his best career win.

I am by no means a member of Team Mundine. I respect what he has done and, as I do with all Aussie fighters, I wish him nothing but success, but I would not go out of my way to defend him out of simply being a fan.

In my view, the WBC has made an error, and can now expect a flurry of appeals by fighters and their management.

I look forward to the rematch, but Mundine has been hard done by. That is not something I thought I would ever say.

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