In boxing the referees job is to protect the fighters and enforce the rules of the sport. Sometimes however the referee gets more involved than they need to and sadly this was the case for referee Vic Drakulich who was the 3rd man in the ring when Julio Cesar Green defended his NABF Light Middleweight title against Lonnie Beasley in 1994.
Going into this bout Green was 16-1 (10) and on a 12 fight winning streak which had seen him defeat the experienced Wayne Powell for the NABF title 6 months earlier. This series of wins had seen Green earn a number of solid world rankings including top 10 rankings with the IBF, WBC and WBA. Beasley had also come to the ring with a solid record of 22-1-1 (7) and had been a former IBO world champion who was looking to move into world contention with a win against Green.
Whilst Beasley had started the bout well he was starting to look tired and had started to take solid shots through the second half of the bout with his eye and ear swelling noticeably as Green started to pour on the pressure. Although Beasley was still surviving he was starting to take real damage and must have been well down on the scorecards. Green came out aggressively for the final round and early on he landed 2 excruciating body shots which appeared to take it all out of Beasley who held on for dear life. The referee attempted to split the two men but sadly Beasley didn't seem to have enough left in the tank to get up causing the referee to wave the bout off.
Since the bout Drakulich has gone on to become one of the most well known referees in the sport. Green would later go on to win the WBA Middleweight title before retiring in 2004 with a record of 27-6-1 (19) with losses to the likes of Mikkel Kessler, William Joppy, Carl Daniels and Byron Mitchell. Sadly this loss would spell the start of the end for Beasley who would win just 5 of his next 11 bouts before retiring in 1999 with a record of 27-7-2 (8) with 5 straight losses to end his career.
The video of the end of this bout is thanks to torontogem
Going into this bout Green was 16-1 (10) and on a 12 fight winning streak which had seen him defeat the experienced Wayne Powell for the NABF title 6 months earlier. This series of wins had seen Green earn a number of solid world rankings including top 10 rankings with the IBF, WBC and WBA. Beasley had also come to the ring with a solid record of 22-1-1 (7) and had been a former IBO world champion who was looking to move into world contention with a win against Green.
Whilst Beasley had started the bout well he was starting to look tired and had started to take solid shots through the second half of the bout with his eye and ear swelling noticeably as Green started to pour on the pressure. Although Beasley was still surviving he was starting to take real damage and must have been well down on the scorecards. Green came out aggressively for the final round and early on he landed 2 excruciating body shots which appeared to take it all out of Beasley who held on for dear life. The referee attempted to split the two men but sadly Beasley didn't seem to have enough left in the tank to get up causing the referee to wave the bout off.
Since the bout Drakulich has gone on to become one of the most well known referees in the sport. Green would later go on to win the WBA Middleweight title before retiring in 2004 with a record of 27-6-1 (19) with losses to the likes of Mikkel Kessler, William Joppy, Carl Daniels and Byron Mitchell. Sadly this loss would spell the start of the end for Beasley who would win just 5 of his next 11 bouts before retiring in 1999 with a record of 27-7-2 (8) with 5 straight losses to end his career.
The video of the end of this bout is thanks to torontogem
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