John Fury blasts referee for ’10 seconds too late’ stoppage

John Fury says the referee, Howard Foster, last Saturday night at the O2 Arena in London, England, the Joseph Parker vs. Fabio Wardley fight stopped “10 seconds too late” in round 11.

“Ten seconds too late” rage erupted

Fury, the father of former heavyweight champion Tyson Fury, says Parker (36-4, 24 KOs) was busy “unnecessary punches” by the powerful Wardley (20-0-1, 19 KOs) after being badly injured in the 11th round.

It was clear to many boxing fans that Parker (33) would not be able to survive the 1 minute and 6 seconds in round 11. There was too much time left, Parker wasn’t throwing back any punches in his defense, and Wardley was raining shots down on him.

Parker’s painful finals

Parker was in bad form when he came out for round 11 after being stunned late in round 10 by Wardley. In the 1 minute and 54 seconds of round 11, Parker threw only seven puncheswho only landed two before the referee stopped the match at the 1:54 mark. Nothing came back from the New Zealer for referee Foster to allow it to continue. In contrast, Wardley threw 52 strikes and landed 26 of them in round 11. The fight had become a bloodbath by that point, and Parker had to be rescued.

“Joseph Parker is going to come back stronger. Big Gypsy Joe will be back because he’s only 33 years young. I know it. Commisers to my brother,” said Tyson Fury on Instagramreacting to his friend, Joseph Parker, being knocked out by Fabio Wardley last Saturday night.

Fury is right. Parker can come back, but he needs to be selective in the opposition he faces. Staying away from Wardley, Moses Itauma and Agit Kabayel would be a wise move. However, at 33, he must take risks for him to claw his way back into world title contention. He cannot do this by fighting soft jobs for the next three to five years.

Was Foster’s timing off again?

“Whoever said the suspension was a bit early wants to be locked up and have their licenses taken away,” said John Fury. iFL TVin response to the controversy over referee Howard Foster stopping the match in the 11th round after Fabio Wardley hurt Joseph Parker.

“For my money it was 10 seconds too late because Joe took unnecessary punches from a man who can knock down a wall with both hands in Fabio Wardley,” said John Fury.

The Ten Second Controversy

The final series of the 11th round was a repeat of what happened in round two. Parker was saved in that situation after losing his mouthpiece and getting a 10-second reprieve. It was a questionable move on the referee’s part to stop the action, as Parker was in dire straits—very stunned and taking non-stop punches from Wardley.

In such cases, referees usually allow the sequence to play out rather than stop the action when a fighter is about to be knocked out. Wardley was understandably unhappy after the fight when the referee called a timeout in the second round.