My ringside view of intimidation
30.05.2009
By: DAN KOCH
COMMENT
WEDNESDAY night's IBO world middleweight title fight between Daniel Geale and Anthony Mundine in Brisbane deserves better than the fallout we have seen over the past 48 hours.
According to several respected observers, the 12-round epic was the finest display of boxing seen in the country for 20 years.
Aside from the fight being the first all-indigenous world title bout, the whole show was worthy of the standing ovation most of the 8000 patrons gave both fighters prior to Mundine's hand being raised as a split-points winner.
A quick ring around yesterday confirmed both the judges' and my belief that Mundine's accuracy and superior power had given him a narrow victory over Geale, whose resilience, footwork, workrate and ringcraft pushed ``The Man'' to his limits.
Unfortunately for both warriors, the subsequent focus has been not on what happened in the ring, but rather the appalling behaviour outside it.
Most notably, it was the disgraceful and petulant performance of a member of Mundine's entourage in berating and repeatedly attempting to intimidate one of the three ringside judges which has earned this tiresome individual a host of undeserved centimetres in newspapers across the country.
I was sitting alongside English judge Marcus McDonnell when the individual began his tirade which continued during the fight.
The man in question peered over the shoulder of McDonnell -- a highly respected international judge -- as he scored the rounds, an act which in itself can earn the guy doing the hard work inside the ring an automatic disqualification.
He then relayed what he believed he saw to people around him before starting in with a barrage of obscene insults at McDonnell.
After one round, which he claimed McDonnell had given to Geale, he said: ``You are full of shit, c..., you are playing the game.''
McDonnell twice told the man to ``f... off''.
Eventually, as the 11th round began, I told the man he needed to settle down and that he was risking his fighter being disqualified if he continued.
That warning was howled down and he proceeded to direct a vitriolic rant at me which continued well after the fight.
During his ridiculous carry-on, he accused McDonnell of racism, a clear indication of his level of intelligence as Geale, a proud indigenous fighter, was sporting an Aboriginal flag on his trunks.
He also referred to me with a term similar to the one which landed Cronulla captain Paul Gallen in hot water, only the adjective used this time was ``white''.
Such taunts would have been especially offensive had the man raised his voice higher so that my indigenous fiancee sitting some four rows back and unashamedly cheering for a Mundine win, could have had heard them.
I read with interest comments from Mundine's management that claims the judges had been intimidated by Mundine supporters had to do with envy, jealousy or anger from sections of the media over the controversial boxer's success.
Nothing could be further from the truth and if anyone from within the Mundine camp wants to question the Koch family's contribution to the search for social justice for indigenous Australians, then that is one battle I am willing to take up.
The lead-up to the fight was greeted with a roar of approval from a media contingent in Brisbane happy to share in the fun and games of Mundine's sensational fight against Geale and Sonny Bill Williams' fundraiser against Gary Gurr.
While not exactly a classic fight, Sonny Bill's bout raised $50,000 for the KO to Drugs campaign, which did not go unrecognised.
Had this incident occurred at a major fight venue in the United States, Mundine most likely would have been disqualified.
That would have been a very unjust outcome for this great fighter -- to lose because of the irresponsible standover tactics of some village idiot.
