Charity all round as Cox claims highly dubious Commonwealth title victory
On a night when diners gathered at London’s Hilton Hotel in support of the charitable organisation, DebRA, three of British boxing’s most experienced judges displayed some bewildering charity of their own as they awarded Jamie Cox a wholly unsatisfactory points victory which saw him wrestle the Commonwealth light-middleweight crown from Ghana’s Obodai Sai.
Officials Richie Davies (115-113), Ian John-Lewis (114-112) and Marcus McDonnell (114-113) somehow ruled in Cox’s favour, despite the Swindon southpaw twice being deducted points for persistent and blatant low blows as referee Mark Green, who showed patience in the extreme, took the easy way out by not disqualifying Cox despite repeatedly warning him to clean it up. BoxRec News’s scorecard tallied 115-112 for the unfortunate Sai, who gradually worked out how to deal with Cox’s onrushes and connect with some useful counters in the second half of the contest.
The fighters were both unbeaten in 15 fights going in but it was the former amateur star Cox, 10st 13 3oz, who made the initial running as Sai, 10st 11 8oz, appeared pensive early on. Cox attacked in straight lines but was guilty of dropping his guard following his bursts which enabled Sai to counter with rights through the middle. Not for the first time in his fledgling career, Cox sustained a cut as blood flowed freely from an unpleasant laceration to his left eye in round two which offered Sai (who claimed the Commonwealth title on a cuts victory) some encouragement.
The boxers heads continued to rub together in the third but Cox briefly found some room and uncorked an impressive right to the body and a left hook to the head which momentarily buckled Sai’s legs. For the majority of the contest though Jamie mostly smothered his work up close until he gradually ran out of steam, and ideas.
Sai, who was making the first defence of his title, was slowly getting into the fight and connected with an eyecatching left-right combination which forced Cox onto the back foot for the first time. Jamie’s initial swagger had now left him which triggered the commencement of the red mist which has previously manifested in the Swindon man’s behaviour both in and out of the ring. Two low blows delivered in quick succession, which landed closer to Sai’s knee cap than his mid-section, earned Cox his first stern rebuke from referee Green midway through the fourth. And so the pattern was set.
Another low blow in round five, which again travelled well south of the border, prompted Green to deduct a point from Cox as Sai was forced to take in big gulps of air before the onslaught continued. Refusing to heed the official’s warnings, Cox strayed low on Green’s blindside in the sixth which briefly doubled Sai over. Amongst all of this, Jamie picked up another bad cut, this time above his right eye, which saw expert cutsman Mick Williamson really earn his money last night.
Cox’s transgressions downstairs had now reached double figures but the petulant Swindon fighter had no intention of declaring as he continually hit Sai low in the seventh. The bemused Ghanaian turned to Green for assistance but was instructed to get on with it by the man in the middle. Cox’s punches were not merely borderline, they were blatantly low and seemed delivered (from this writer’s perspective) with deliberate intent.
As the fight progressed Cox’s workrate slowed as he gradually appeared devoid of ideas. His telegraphed onrushes had become predictable and by round eight Sai had solved the puzzle. The Ghanaian now began to feint in order to draw Cox in before countering Jamie’s bursts. Two good rights and a jolting uppercut stunned Cox who was starting to lose his way. With a little more conviction Sai may have been able to take over at this stage but the now former champion simply wasn’t busy or purposeful enough to seize the moment.
Round ten saw Cox finally elect to box in retreat which saw him display the silky skills which made him such a highly decorated amateur. The fight was still in the balance as the boxers entered the championship rounds but Cox, whose left eye visibly worsened, undoubtedly needed a big finish. For the umpteenth time in the contest, Cox’s lack of discipline could and should have cost him in the final round as he planted another ridiculously low shot into Sai’s nether regions. This finally prompted referee Green to take another point from Cox’s score total which should (in theory) have made the fight’s outcome academic.
To the astonishment of Sai, and the dinner-suited audience, the Swindon man was awarded a gift of a decision which served as the biggest kick in the balls that the unfortunate Ghanaian received all night. At the very least Sai deserves a rematch, at the very least the British Boxing Board of Control and the Commonwealth Council should ask both Green and judges McDonnell, John-Lewis and Davies to justify their actions. On a night when people came together to support a very worthy cause, the decision to award Cox the Commonwealth title left a bitter taste.
