Bad scoring overshadowed the Jermell Charlo vs. Brian Castano bout
It was to crown boxing’s first undisputed king at super-welterweight during the modern four-belt era.
Instead, the main event ended without either Jermell Charlo or Brian Castano reaching boxing hallowed ground as they battled to a controversial split decision draw at the AT&T Center in San Antonio, Texas, on Saturday night.
Castano (17-0-2), the current WBO champion, was forced to settle for a controversial split draw on Saturday after largely outboxing Charlo (34-1-1, 18 KOs) before holding a late rally inside. at the AT&T Center in San Antonio.
Judge Tim Cheatham scored 114-114 and Steve Weisfeld scored 114-113 in favor of Castaño. But Nelson Vasquez gave Charlo a 117-111 head scratch, which allowed him to retain his WBA, WBC and IBF titles.
Despite what appeared to be a lack of urgency in the middle of the fight, as the 31-year-old opponent Charlo was very selective in his production, the Houston native picked up the pace considerably in the final three rounds. Charlo hurt Castaño in the tenth round but was unable to take him down or submit him, leading many to believe that Castaño, a 31-year-old Argentine, had done enough.
“The draw wasn’t what I wanted to hear. If anything, I won this fight,” Charlo said. “Brian Castaño is a tough warrior. He is going to give a lot of people problems but like I said, my power is serious in this division.”
“My coach told me I needed a knockout and I just knew he knew that he was talking about. I trust him. This is the first time something like this happened to me.”
Although Castaño showed respect to Charlo after the fight, it was obvious he felt like he’d been ripped off and openly proposed for a second chance.
“I hope there is a rematch,” Castaño said. “He is a terrific fighter too. I want a rematch.”
Charlo x Castaño scorecard
| Round | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Charlo | 9 | 10 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 112 |
| Castaño | 10 | 9 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 116 |
