Ref admits error, vows recheck

LAS VEGAS – In a gesture of humility, referee Kenny Bayless admitted his mistake in calling a knockdown on Manny Pacquiao in the 10th round of his WBO welterweight title defense against Sugar Shane Mosley at the MGM Grand Garden Arena here Saturday night and said he’s ready to issue a formal apology to affected parties after receiving a go-signal from the Nevada State Athletic Commission.

Bayless, 60, is widely considered one of the best referees in professional boxing today. The former California State at Hayward 400-meter relay track star was in excellent form until the 10th round when he gave Pacquiao a mandatory eight-count on what was obviously a slip caused by a push. Bayless made no excuses for the error.

“I happened to be at the back side of Mosley when Manny went down and I really thought it was a punch that caused it,” said Bayless in an exclusive STAR interview. “From my point of view, it didn’t look like a push. But in between rounds, the TV monitor in the arena showed a replay of what happened and it was clearly a push.”

Bayless confessed he was distraught for making the wrong call. “I take a lot of pride in my work,” he said. “For me to miss the call in a fight of that magnitude was a big blow. It has certainly brought me to recheck myself, to work harder in the future and to avoid a repetition of that mistake.”

Bayless said immediately after the fight, he approached Nevada State Athletic Commission executive director Keith Kizer in the ring to ask if he could issue a formal apology. Kizer said he had no problem with it.

“I felt duty-bound to express my apology to Manny, most of all,” he said. “I went over to Freddie (Roach) who was still in the ring and told him I wanted to apologize directly to Manny. I didn’t want to approach Manny who was celebrating and surrounded by TV interviewers. Luckily, as Manny was about to leave the ring, I was able to walk up to him and apologize. Manny is really gracious and he assured me it was no issue, that it was a human mistake. I felt very good about his reaction.”

Bayless said Pacquiao is a class act and a great asset to the sport.

“Manny fought masterfully once again in the ring,” he said. “He’s at the top of his game and the world’s best fighter today. As for my job as a referee, my priority is to look out for the protection of the fighters. I can’t comment on how the fight went even as I saw no problem with the decision. It was clear that Manny dominated but I wasn’t a judge, I was the referee. I think there was no doubt who was the superior fighter but as I mentioned, it’s not my role to decide who won.”

Bayless said he noticed there was no animosity between Pacquiao and Mosley unlike in the Filipino icon’s previous fights against Antonio Margarito, Juan Manuel Marquez, Ricky Hatton and even Oscar de la Hoya where the fans were treated to some trash-talking.

“Sure, I noticed Manny and Mosley often touched gloves before a round and after a round like they were good friends,” he said. “I don’t know if it’s because they had too much respect for each other. I followed the events leading to the fight and observed that in the press conferences, Manny and Mosley had only kind words for each other, like there was mutual respect.”

Bayless said the fight wasn’t difficult to work. “It wasn’t very different from any other normal fight,” he said. “What I was worried about was the accidental head-butts. I didn’t want the fight to be stopped because one fighter couldn’t continue due to a cut from an accidental head-butt. There were a few head collisions which happen when a southpaw faces an orthodox fighter. But fortunately, no serious damage was inflicted either way.”

Bayless also said holding wasn’t an issue although on several occasions, Mosley grabbed Pacquiao to stave off his attack. “I think it’s accepted that some fighters use holding as a defensive tactic,” said Bayless. “Holding shouldn’t interrupt the flow of a fight. If it does, that’s when a referee steps in. It happens in the course of a fight. You just have to watch that it doesn’t give either a fighter an advantage or disadvantage. I guess the experienced fighters use a lot more tricks to get by.”