‘Canelo,’ GGG promoters had say in judges for rematch

In an attempt to avoid controversy, the Nevada Athletic Commission modified its protocol when selecting the judges for Saturday’s Saul “Canelo” Alvarez-Gennady Golovkin rematch at T-Mobile Arena.

Bob Bennett, the commission’s executive director, allowed promoters from both camps to have input on the pool of potential judges.

Tom Loeffler, Golovkin’s promoter, and Eric Gomez, Alvarez’s promoter, each submitted five preferred judges. From that list, Bennett narrowed the field to seven and had final say on the three recommended judges that were presented Aug. 22 at the monthly commission meeting.

The commission unanimously approved Bennett’s final list of Dave Moretti of Las Vegas, Steve Weisfeld of New Jersey and Glenn Feldman of Connecticut.

“The protocol was changed a bit,” Bennett said. “There was numerous communication in an effort to make sure the right officials were officiating this fight and that we got it right.”

In the customary protocol, Bennett creates the pool of judges before sending the list to the promoters, allowing them an opportunity to speak against a judge. If Bennett agrees with the complaint, he’ll adjust the list before presenting it to the commission.

Loeffler and Gomez also had a say on the referee for Saturday’s fight, an assignment that went to Benjy Esteves Jr. of New Jersey.

The judges will be paid $3,500 and the referee $5,000.

“Tom (Loeffler) and I spoke until 11:45 last night exchanging emails,” Bennett said after last month’s commission meeting. “I understood his concerns. Golden Boy Promotions was happy with whomever. … The commission did an outstanding job trying to meet the promoters’ needs because the first fight was a controversy.”

After the first bout, the commission received backlash for Nevada judge Adalaide Byrd’s heavily criticized 118-110 scorecard in favor of Alvarez.

The competitive match in September 2017 at T-Mobile Arena was ruled a split draw, with Connecticut judge Don Trella scoring it 114-114 and Moretti 115-113 for Golovkin.

Alvarez found it ironic that Golovkin’s team had no issue with Moretti returning for the rematch.

“How is that you want to change everything but leave the judge that scored you the fight?” Alvarez said. “I’ve never been one to worry about the judges or care to see who’s doing the scoring. I believe in the laws and have confidence in the commission.”

Alvarez said he’s grown tired of Team Golovkin’s complaints. Golovkin’s trainer, Abel Sanchez, had issues with Alvarez’s beard and hand wraps before the first fight.

Alvarez also said that Golovkin had a problem with the loud noises coming out of Alvarez’s locker room and requested to be moved to a different room.

“They’re kicking air with all these complaints,” Alvarez said. “They’re insecure. I don’t know if it’s Abel or Golovkin, but too many excuses and requests.”

Loeffler recently requested to have the three national anthems sung before the HBO pay-per-view broadcast instead of the main event. Oscar De La Hoya, Alvarez’s promoter, called Golovkin unpatriotic.

“I have no idea what Oscar is talking about, but it is not true,” Loeffler said. “The truth is, Team Golovkin had requested that the national anthems of Kazakhstan, Mexico and the United States be sung before the pay-per-view telecast began so that we could proceed with the fights seamlessly and uninterrupted. HBO supported this position.”

Last year, Sanchez accused Byrd of having her scorecard filled out before the fight. Byrd was never suspended by the commission but was asked to take a one-month break.

She hasn’t been assigned a championship fight in Las Vegas since the controversy. Byrd did score two title fights in December in Japan.

Bennett’s pool of judges for the second Alvarez-Golovkin bout included Burt Clements, Julie Lederman, John McKaie and Nelson Vazquez.

“I think this time around we have a great set of judges,” Sanchez said.

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Contact Gilbert Manzano at gmanzano@reviewjournal.com. Follow @GManzano24 on Twitter.