Kermit Cintron, Sergio Martinez Stay Undefeated* After Draw

Kermit Cintron and Sergio Gabriel Martinez fought to a majority draw on Saturday night in a strange fight that most observers believe Martinez should have won. And yet two judges scored the fight a draw, allowing both fighters to say they're still undefeated*.

Yes, it's true, they're not really undefeated. Cintron is 30-2-1 while Martinez is 44-1-2. But Cintron's two losses were both to Antonio Margarito, and Martinez's only loss was also to Margarito. And now that Margarito has been banished from boxing for putting a hard, plaster-like substance into his hand wraps, every single boxer who has lost to Margarito can legitimately claim that their losses should be ruled no contests.

It remains to be seen whether the state boxing commissions want to go back and do the kind of revisionist history that the International Olympic Committee routinely does when athletes use steroids. But there's still a chance that the commissions will do that, and if so Cintron and Martinez would both be considered undefeated.

As for Saturday night's fight, everything about it was strange. In the fifth round, referee Frank Santore Jr. incorrectly ruled that a cut on Cintron's head was caused by an accidental head butt; it was in reality caused by a punch from Martinez. In the seventh round Cintron went down and barely got up before the count of 10; Santore actually reached the count of 10 but then ruled that Cintron was up before he said "ten." That 10-count came right at the end of the seventh round, and in the ensuing confusion, the break before the eighth round lasted more than three minutes.

And in the 12th round Santore took a point away from Martinez for hitting Cintron in the back of the head; that was a questionable ruling that swung the fight from a Martinez unanimous decision to a majority draw. (The third judge ruled it for Martinez handily, 116-110.)

A rematch between Cintron and Martinez may be needed to sort things out once and for all, but Cintron is apparently hoping to get Miguel Cotto next. No matter what happens, let's hope that the next time Cintron and Martinez fight, Santore isn't the ref.