I have mixed feelings about that fight. I agree that Augustus was the better fighter and dominated Burton when he squared up and fought. The problem is that after the 3rd or 4th round Augustus spent more time dicking off than fighting. You could make a point that the last 6 rounds had to go to Burton due to the fact that he actually fought the whole three minutes of each round, Augustus danced around for 2.5 minutes then fought for 30 seconds.
I completely agree that the point deductions were BS and the body shots that put Burton on the canvas should have resulted in a knockdown for Augustus not a 5 minute (much needed) break for Burton. The ref said he took a point because Augustus spun Burton around, but in reality he spun himself around to get out of a clinch. But the biggest problem I had was when Burton continuously rabbit punched Augustus in the back of the head. The ref acted like it didn't happen and then warned Augustus for hitting Burton's glove with the back of his head.
I don't know if I'm more disgusted over the referee/judging or Augustus' display of disrespect for his opponent and the sport of boxing in general. Sure fighters like Ali, Leonard, and Jones have danced around in the ring from time to time but it was usually only a few times a fight for a few seconds at a time and in no way disrespected the opponent. Augustus is not a professional fighter he is an amateur clown, and as a judge I would have a very hard time giving him any round in which he dicked off more than he fought. But there is no excuse for the way the ref called the fight.
IMO this just shows how ignorant Augustus must be. Like you said he was dq'd in his last fight due to his behavior in the ring and he obviously didn't learn his lesson. Everyone in boxing knows how hard it is to win a decision in the opponents back yard but Augustus chose to give Burton, the ref, and the judges every chance to screw him out of a decision. I don't feel sorry for the guy one bit. If he would have taken this fight seriously he would have won easily, but he turned the judges (and obviously the ref) against him and it cost him. Just like Judah's behavior in the ring almost cost him an easy win over Corely.
I have to thank Augustus for being a jackass though. There is no dought in my mind that he would have stopped Burton in the mid to late rounds if he actually cared about winning and fought hard for the full 3 minutes of each round. Thanks for the winner, loser!
I can't believe Teddy and Joe didn't have a problem with Augustus' obvious disrespect for his opponent and the sport in general. I was also suprised that Burton didn't have a problem with the way Augustus was fighting him. I guess he realized that Augustus was giving away the fight with his behavior so he let it go.
Maybe I'm the only one that thinks there is no need for Augustus' behavior in "professional" boxing.
