In what was a final eliminator for the IBF welterweight world title, Limerick’s Donovan seized control of a compelling bout against Crocker but was disqualified for knocking down the hometown boxer after the bell had already sounded to end the eighth round.
Donovan, who had also knocked down Crocker legitimately seconds earlier, was earlier in the bout deducted two points as McDonnell held him responsible for the boxers’ heads coming together during exchanges.
Donovan’s DQ for the late blow resulted in a first career defeat for ‘The Real Deal’, whose record dropped to 14-1, 11KOs, while Crocker (21-0, 11KOs) is now the mandatory challenger for the IBF welterweight world title, which might even lay vacant by summertime.
Donovan’s team have already set the wheels in motion to appeal the result and are demanding an immediate rematch with ‘Croc’ before he challenges for the belt.
Speaking post-fight, Lee was heavily critical of referee McDonnell for how he perceived the head clashes between Donovan and Crocker, but even more so for McDonnell’s failure to separate the boxers at the bell before Donovan delivered the costly blow half a second after time had elapsed in the eighth round.
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“Can I just say first off, Marcus McDonnell: I don’t know him personally and I’ve nothing against him personally but his performance tonight was a disgrace,” said Lee, before a question had even been asked. “Both boxers were leaning in with their heads.
“When a boxer is leaning in like that,” Lee explained, mimicking Crocker’s hunched-forward high guard, “you have to go to him. You can’t lean back and try to distance yourself because you will end up getting hurt.
“We knew that was going to happen. We trained to stand there with him. Both guys going in with their heads. He (McDonnell) only ever warned Paddy.
“I said to him after the first warning, I said: ‘They’re both leaning in with their heads.’ He says, ‘I know.’ But he only ever warned Paddy.
“The second thing he did”, Lee continued, “which is the worst thing of all: the crowd is loud. He sees Paddy going for the finish. If he knew the bell was coming or if he heard the bell — because we didn’t hear the bell — he should have been there to say, ‘Stop boxing!’”
Lee, taking to his feet to illustrate this point, became increasingly animated as he insisted that McDonnell should have been physically close enough to the action to prevent Donovan from throwing his final punch and to prevent Crocker from absorbing a shot that “could have hurt him or ended his career.”
“So, Marcus McDonnell”, Lee added, sitting back down, “it’s nothing personal but you were a disgrace tonight. It needs to be looked into. That performance was horrible.”
New York lawyer Keith Sullivan, who co-manages Donovan with Lee, then confirmed that he had sent both an email and a text message to IBF president Daryl Peoples informing the sanctioning body of Team Donovan’s intention to appeal the result of Saturday’s bout.
Sullivan has asked the IBF not to stage another mandatory fight for its welterweight world title — for which Crocker is now the no.1 challenger — until the Belfast man settles unfinished business with Donovan.
Donovan, meanwhile, remained devastated as he gave his version of events from a caustic, compelling main event in Belfast.
The Limerick southpaw expressed his belief that referee McDonnell had taken against him “from the get-go”.
“Look, I got Lewis down. I hit him with some big shots. I went in for the finish. The crowd was hectic. I hit him on the bell or, whatever, after the bell, and it is what it is,” said Donovan.
“I was dominating from start to finish. I was only getting better. I want an automatic rematch.”
Donovan's final punch on Crocker. Laszlo Geczo / INPHO
Laszlo Geczo / INPHO / INPHO
When it was put to trainer Lee that the fight had not resembled for eight rounds the 50-50 contest that most believed it would be, the former middleweight world champion insisted that Donovan still has plenty of scope for improvement despite having produced an arguably world-class performance in dismantling Crocker.
And much like Eddie Hearn in the ring immediately after the bout, Lee stressed that Saturday’s controversy would only raise Donovan’s profile among more casual sports observers, propelling him forward in his career irrespective of the blot on his record.
“What we saw tonight from Paddy was just a fraction of what he can do,” said Lee. “It’s what I’ve seen of him ever since I watched him back in 2019 in the National Stadium here in Ireland.
“He’s a phenomenal fighter, an even better person, and he didn’t deserve this tonight. He didn’t deserve what happened.
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“But God has a plan for everyone and this will make him big. And I’ve said to him it doesn’t feel like a loss because you’ve actually beaten Lewis — everyone saw what happened. You’ve got a moral victory and even though there’s no room for sentiment in this game, people saw what happened. He’s the people’s champion.
And we’ll get the rematch. It’ll be bigger than ever. Let’s take it to Thomond Park. Let’s take it to the 3Arena, get a fair shake, and this man won’t let anyone down.
Asked what Crocker’s camp might be thinking having come out on the right side of Saturday night’s controversy, Lee replied: “Lewis is a great guy and a good fighter but they got out of jail tonight.
“I don’t want to say he was looking for a way out but… he was looking for a way out, maybe. And Paddy was just eager, he smelt blood.
“And we could not hear the referee. We couldn’t hear the bell, but the referee is supposed to be on hand. He’s supposed to be there.
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Andy Lee brands referee a 'disgrace' after Donovan's DQ defeat to Crocker in Belfast
TRAINER ANDY LEE has slammed the refereeing performance of Marcus McDonnell after his boxer Paddy Donovan suffered a controversial disqualification defeat to Lewis Crocker at Belfast’s SSE Arena on Saturday night.
In what was a final eliminator for the IBF welterweight world title, Limerick’s Donovan seized control of a compelling bout against Crocker but was disqualified for knocking down the hometown boxer after the bell had already sounded to end the eighth round.
Donovan, who had also knocked down Crocker legitimately seconds earlier, was earlier in the bout deducted two points as McDonnell held him responsible for the boxers’ heads coming together during exchanges.
Donovan’s DQ for the late blow resulted in a first career defeat for ‘The Real Deal’, whose record dropped to 14-1, 11KOs, while Crocker (21-0, 11KOs) is now the mandatory challenger for the IBF welterweight world title, which might even lay vacant by summertime.
Donovan’s team have already set the wheels in motion to appeal the result and are demanding an immediate rematch with ‘Croc’ before he challenges for the belt.
Speaking post-fight, Lee was heavily critical of referee McDonnell for how he perceived the head clashes between Donovan and Crocker, but even more so for McDonnell’s failure to separate the boxers at the bell before Donovan delivered the costly blow half a second after time had elapsed in the eighth round.
“Can I just say first off, Marcus McDonnell: I don’t know him personally and I’ve nothing against him personally but his performance tonight was a disgrace,” said Lee, before a question had even been asked. “Both boxers were leaning in with their heads.
“When a boxer is leaning in like that,” Lee explained, mimicking Crocker’s hunched-forward high guard, “you have to go to him. You can’t lean back and try to distance yourself because you will end up getting hurt.
“We knew that was going to happen. We trained to stand there with him. Both guys going in with their heads. He (McDonnell) only ever warned Paddy.
“I said to him after the first warning, I said: ‘They’re both leaning in with their heads.’ He says, ‘I know.’ But he only ever warned Paddy.
“The second thing he did”, Lee continued, “which is the worst thing of all: the crowd is loud. He sees Paddy going for the finish. If he knew the bell was coming or if he heard the bell — because we didn’t hear the bell — he should have been there to say, ‘Stop boxing!’”
Lee, taking to his feet to illustrate this point, became increasingly animated as he insisted that McDonnell should have been physically close enough to the action to prevent Donovan from throwing his final punch and to prevent Crocker from absorbing a shot that “could have hurt him or ended his career.”
“So, Marcus McDonnell”, Lee added, sitting back down, “it’s nothing personal but you were a disgrace tonight. It needs to be looked into. That performance was horrible.”
New York lawyer Keith Sullivan, who co-manages Donovan with Lee, then confirmed that he had sent both an email and a text message to IBF president Daryl Peoples informing the sanctioning body of Team Donovan’s intention to appeal the result of Saturday’s bout.
Sullivan has asked the IBF not to stage another mandatory fight for its welterweight world title — for which Crocker is now the no.1 challenger — until the Belfast man settles unfinished business with Donovan.
Donovan, meanwhile, remained devastated as he gave his version of events from a caustic, compelling main event in Belfast.
The Limerick southpaw expressed his belief that referee McDonnell had taken against him “from the get-go”.
“Look, I got Lewis down. I hit him with some big shots. I went in for the finish. The crowd was hectic. I hit him on the bell or, whatever, after the bell, and it is what it is,” said Donovan.
“I was dominating from start to finish. I was only getting better. I want an automatic rematch.”
When it was put to trainer Lee that the fight had not resembled for eight rounds the 50-50 contest that most believed it would be, the former middleweight world champion insisted that Donovan still has plenty of scope for improvement despite having produced an arguably world-class performance in dismantling Crocker.
And much like Eddie Hearn in the ring immediately after the bout, Lee stressed that Saturday’s controversy would only raise Donovan’s profile among more casual sports observers, propelling him forward in his career irrespective of the blot on his record.
“What we saw tonight from Paddy was just a fraction of what he can do,” said Lee. “It’s what I’ve seen of him ever since I watched him back in 2019 in the National Stadium here in Ireland.
“He’s a phenomenal fighter, an even better person, and he didn’t deserve this tonight. He didn’t deserve what happened.
“But God has a plan for everyone and this will make him big. And I’ve said to him it doesn’t feel like a loss because you’ve actually beaten Lewis — everyone saw what happened. You’ve got a moral victory and even though there’s no room for sentiment in this game, people saw what happened. He’s the people’s champion.
Asked what Crocker’s camp might be thinking having come out on the right side of Saturday night’s controversy, Lee replied: “Lewis is a great guy and a good fighter but they got out of jail tonight.
“I don’t want to say he was looking for a way out but… he was looking for a way out, maybe. And Paddy was just eager, he smelt blood.
“And we could not hear the referee. We couldn’t hear the bell, but the referee is supposed to be on hand. He’s supposed to be there.
“Where was he? Where was he?”
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