STEPHEN A. Smith called out the boxing judges after O’Shaquie Foster was stripped of his WBC belt on Saturday night.
The 56-year-old sportscaster claimed that Foster was “totally robbed” in his confrontation with Robson Conceição.
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Smith tuned in to ESPN to watch the WBC super featherweight title fight in Newark, New Jersey.
Foster defended the belt and sought to make the work of Brazilian Olympic gold medalist Conceição easier.
He dominated much of the 12-round fight, but was surprised when two of the three judges ruled in favor of the Brazilian.
Foster won 116-112 on one card, but lost the belt after two others judged the fight 116-112 and 115-113 for Conceição.
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“Go ahead boxing… continue to make us run away from the sport,” Smith wrote angrily on X.
“Watching @TopRankBoxing. This kid O’Shaquie Foster just got robbed.
“He literally won 11 of the 12 rounds, but they gave the decision to Robeson Conceição.
“The promoters – who make us wait for the best fights – are bad enough. Bad managers make everything worse.”
Fans at home were equally outraged by the result.
“You are so spot on every time I try to get back into boxing, things like this happen. Push me back into MMA,” an angry fan responded to Smith’s speech.
“Boxing is a joke right now,” raged another.
“It’s a repetitive theme in boxing. Sad but true,” wrote a third.
“That’s the worst boxing robbery I’ve ever seen,” said a fourth.
An emotional Foster appeared to have tears in his eyes after the controversial decision.
“I thought it was closure,” he he told ESPN.
Stephen A. Smith’s journey through the media
STEPHEN A. Smith is now the face of ESPN and executive producer of First Take, having initially started working for the company in 2003.
Smith has held numerous roles at the network, including radio show host, contributions to SportsCenter and appearance on NBA Countdown.
He was a columnist for the Philadelphia Inquirer from 1994 to 2010.
He started as an NBA writer before becoming a general sports columnist.
Prior to that, Smith worked as a reporter at the Winston-Salem Journal, the Greensboro News and the New York Daily News.
“I thought it was easy. I wasn’t touched except for a headbutt.
“I’ll be back. I want the rematch. They stole this fight from me.”
Foster’s loss ends the fighter’s 12-fight winning streak and drops his professional record to 22-3.
Stephen A. is currently enjoying a summer break from his weekday role on the sports debate show First Take.
The popular sportscaster is eyeing a new $25 million deal with ESPN.
This story originally appeared on The-sun.com read the full story
