Joe Rogan has come to the defence of Floyd Mayweather after the boxing legend controversially ‘fired’ the referee of his recent exhibition bout.
The multiple-weight world champion was midway through the second round of his rematch with John Gotti III last month when the referee made a call he disagreed with. He ultimately made the on the spot decision to have a brand new official step in, essentially ‘firing’ the referee.
But UFC commentator and comedian Rogan feels that Mayweather was right to be annoyed with the initial referee’s call. And he found the funny side within the boxing icon flexing his privileges during an exhibition fight.
Floyd Mayweather swaps out referee after ‘firing’ one during a fight
The recent Floyd Mayweather and John Gotti III exhibition was a rematch after their initial bout led to a controversial disqualification that sparked a mass brawl last summer. The pair traveled to Mexico this time, with the boxing icon bringing along his usual team.
After a dominant first round, it appeared to be business as usual until referee Hector Afu of Panama stopped Mayweather for throwing what he deemed to be an illegal shot behind the top of his opponent. This enraged Mayweather, who got into an heated argument with the official.
Ultimately, the boxer made the decision on the spot to have the referee modified, with Mexican official Alfredo Uruzquieta stepping in. Fans on social media immediately caught the incident, calling it Mayweather ‘firing’ the referee.
Joe Rogan defends Floyd Mayweather after ‘firing’ referee
One keen viewer of the exhibition was podcaster Joe Rogan, who felt that the punch was a legal one. He welcomed neuroscientist Andrew Huberman on to his podcast last week, where he discussed the incident.
“The primary referee was terrible,” Rogan explained. “The referee called Floyd Mayweather for hitting behind the top, absolutely incorrect call. Floyd threw a right hand and it caught him on the side of the top and the referee claimed that it was behind the top.
“So Floyd fired the referee in the midst of the bout. He stops the bout and he’s like ‘get the f*** out of here!’” When Huberman noted that he was also the event’s promoter, Rogan replied: “Well, I suppose, however it’s Floyd Mayweather so what’s the referee going to do, stop the fight?
“Also, they’re in Mexico City, you possibly can get killed, so just get out of the ring buddy. Floyd was 100 per cent correct, the punch landed to the side of the top. It’s a right hook, it’s an ideal punch and the referee says ‘watch the back of the top’.
“Floyd is like ‘what the f*** are you talking about?’ That wasn’t the back of the top, so he kicks the guy out they usually finished the fight… It was an exhibition, it’s type of a bulls*** money grab, truthfully.
“If anybody is qualified to say get the f*** out of here it’s Floyd Mayweather. He’s the perfect boxer of all time. That referee made an enormous, silly error and he’s like ‘get out of here’ and he’s right, nobody thinks it’s a nasty punch… It’s just an ideal right hook.”
Floyd Mayweather pours cold water on Julio Cesar Chavez exhibition
After his fight in Mexico, which went with out a rating, Mayweather was greeted within the ring by Julio Cesar Chavez. The legendary boxer, who’s 62-years-old, appears keen to tackle certainly one of these exhibition challenges.
But Mayweather wasn’t so sure, going back on previous teases by saying on the published after the fight: “He’s older now and if I do an exhibition with him, it’s not going to look good on me.
“He paved the way in which for me and he does a lot for the game of boxing and for all of the young Mexican fighters after him. That is certainly one of the fellows who paved the way in which, he’s among the best fighters of all time.”
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