SB Nation DC - Lamont Peterson Appeals WBA Decision Ordering Rematch Against Amir Khan

Lamont Peterson Appeals WBA Decision To Order Rematch With Amir Khan

2012-01-18T19:36:44Z

Lamont Peterson's camp has appealed a decision passed down by the World Boxing Association ordering a rematch between him and Amir Khan after Peterson emerged victorious in a December 10 title fight in Washington D.C., according to a Peterson camp press release.

"A comprehensive written appeal has been submitted to the WBA and we are confident that the WBA will overturn its decision mandating an immediate rematch and recognize Lamont Peterson as the true and final WBA Jr. Welterweight World Champion," the release states.

The appeal comes one week after the WBA ordered a rematch due to the discovery of "multiple irregularities" in the officiating on December 10. Peterson won a controversial fight due to two point-penalty calls on Khan. The WBA investigation also said that a man who was discovered talking to the officials late in the fight was unauthorized to do so.

Khan has already dropped his appeal to the International Boxing Federation to rematch for that crown, something pointed out in the press release Peterson's camp put out.

"The Peterson team aggressively responded with sound and factual supporting documentation to each of the various accusations which Khan used to dispute his loss of the World Championship to Peterson. This also included an unfounded allegation that a "mystery man" at ringside affected the outcome of the bout," the release stated.

"Other allegations by Khan were against the referee's actions during the bout and the calculation of the scorecards by the judges as part of the reason he was declared the loser of the bout," it continued. "Khan and Golden Boy vigorously used the media in efforts to further advance their argument, while Team Peterson responded with the facts and remained firm that they would not permit these tactics to detract from the Jr. Welterweight World Championship Lamont earned in the ring."

For more on the Khan Vs. Peterson saga, visit this StoryStream.

Lamont Peterson Not Bound To Rematch, More On 'Mystery Man'

2012-01-13T22:33:14Z

Although the WBA has ordered a rematch of Lamont Peterson and Amir Khan II's December fight, ESPN's Dan Rafael reports Peterson, the winner in a split decision the first time around, is not bound to the fight.

He could vacate the belt. He is also one of the leading candidates to land a June fight against welterweight titleholder Manny Pacquiao, one of boxing's two biggest stars. Peterson could move up in weight if that fight is offered to him and earn far more than he could earn in a rematch with Khan.

"One thing you cannot do is force a fighter to take a fight," Schaefer said. "Everybody has to do what they feel is best for them. I respect that. In this weight class a rematch is the biggest fight that can be made and it would be a shame if that doesn't happen. I say that, yes, as a promoter, but also as a fight fan. It would be a hugely anticipated fight."

A rematch would have to be negotiated between the two camps, so although it has been ordered, it doesn't actually mean it is going to happen.

Meanwhile, Rafael offers a statement from the Peterson camp on the so called "mystery man," Mustafa Ameen, who was seen ringside interacting with judges and celebrating with Peterson's people after the match.

"Since Khan continues to focus on a man at ringside, I want to be very clear -- Mustafa Ameen is in no way, nor has he ever been, affiliated or associated with anyone within Team Peterson," said Barry Hunter, Peterson's manager, trainer and father figure. "That includes myself, Lamont and (brother) Anthony Peterson."

Needless to say, things surrounding this fight seem pretty fishy at the moment. Stay tuned to SB Nation DC for any updates as they become available.

Lamont Peterson, Amir Khan Ordered To Fight Rematch After WBA Discovered 'Multiple Irregularities' In December Fight

2012-01-13T18:42:49Z

Lamont Peterson's December light welterweight title fight victory over Amir Khan was controversial at the time, and that controversy has caused the World Boxing Association to step in. The WBA has ordered Khan and Peterson to fight again after "multiple irregularities" were discovered during the December 10 fight, according to the Associated Press. The fight must take place within the next 180 days.

"In its resolution mandating the rematch, the WBA went out of its way to note that, under normal circumstances, it would not disturb the discretionary function of a referee," the organization said in a statement. "However, in this case, because of the multiple irregularities, it was necessary for it to order the rematch."

Khan lost the fight after being penalized two points for pushing without being issued a warning. Later, he complained on Twitter about the outcome, showing video of a "mystery man" that seemed to be interacting with the referees. The WBA's report called the pushing point penalties "questionable" and deemed the mystery man -- identified as Mustafa Ameen -- was not authorized to speak to officials.

It remains unclear where the rematch might take place.

Lamont Peterson 'Tired' Of Amir Khan's Complaints, Wants To Fight Manny Pacquiao

2012-01-06T14:36:07Z

The fight between Amir Khan and Lamont Peterson was almost a month ago but Khan, who came up on the losing end of a decision, is still upset about the results of the fight. A few days ago he tweeted pictures that he thought showed a conspiracy in the works. Lamont Peterson responded to those claims, and according to Gene Wang of the Washington Post, he's pretty sick of hearing about it.

“I’m tired of it,” said Peterson, who attended the Belfast Beltway event at a restaurant on Dupont Circle with his younger brother Anthony, who won his undercard bout on Dec. 10. “That’s his energy being wasted. I’m at the point where I’m like, ‘Forget it.’ I know the hearing’s coming up. Whatever they decide, they decide. I’m not going to sit and cry about anything. I’m happy with my performance. I believe I won the fight.”

Khan has appealed the decision, and we aren't sure exactly when a new decision will be made on the results of the fight. But I find it hard to believe that it will be overturned, considering Khan is really the only one who thinks that the fight was stolen from him unjustly. But we'll have to wait and see what happens with the appeal before we jump to any conclusions.

Peterson is already looking ahead to the next fight, and hopes to get a shot at Manny Pacquiao. That might be hard to organize considering Pacquiao would love to fight Floyd Mayweather in his next bout, after he gets out of jail, of course.

Amir Khan Still Thinks Loss To Lamont Peterson Was A Conspiracy

2012-01-05T14:55:09Z

You may remember Amir Khan going off on the officiating following his controversial loss to D.C.'s own Lamont Peterson in the light welterweight championship fight in December. At the time, Khan said that the controversial finish was the reason why D.C. hasn't had high-profile boxing in 18 years. We could have shrugged off the comments as frustration in the heat of the moment ...

... Except, Khan hasn't backed down. Nearly a month after the fight happened, Khan went on an epic Twitter rant to say the fight was fixed. He also said Peterson doesn't want a rematch, which I suppose is the newsworthy part of his rant. But let's set that aside for now and focus on the rant.

"Ther [sic.] is a guy wearing a grey suit with a blue shirt wearing a hat," Khan tweeted, referring to the man sitting third to the end in the front row on the right. In a series of subsequent tweets, Khan tries to demonstrate that the man interfered with the judges, beginning in the sixth round. Here's a shot of it that perhaps provides the strongest "evidence." Khan later claimed that Michael Walsh, one of the judges who is standing next to the guy, had a score sheet that didn't match the others.

I've read in some articles and people have also told me that after the fight Michael Walsh the guy in the red tie apparently said his score cards didn't match up to the others, it wasn't fair and he looked really scared and he was told to butt out and there was nothing he could do.. Since then no one has heard from him

Peterson has yet to respond to Khan's claims.

Here's the thing that Khan has to remember, though: when you make the rare decision to fight a challenger on his home turf, you run the risk of weird things like this happening. Not to defend cheating, if it happened, but in the world of boxing, you'd be naive to think Peterson didn't have some sort of home-field advantage.

Khan Vs. Peterson: Washington D.C. Shows Up, Makes Its Case For More High-Profile Boxing

2011-12-12T16:00:28Z

In the moments immediately following his shocking and controversial defeat in the IBF and WBA light welterwight championship fight against Lamont Peterson at the Washington Convention Center on Saturay, Amir Khan made the following bold statement:

"There's never been boxing in D.C. the last 20 years because things like this happen," Khan said to the HBO cameras. "He was the home fighter."

Granted, people say things they later regret when they hear news they don't understand. But the line was incredibly ironic. It was Khan's decision to fight on Peterson's home turf, a move champions rarely take. He did it because he figured this wasn't a boxing town, seeing as it hadn't hosted a championship fight in 18 years (not 20). He did it because it would provide the perfect low-key atmosphere for his final title challenge before moving up to fight the Floyd Mayweathers of the world in the higher weight class.

Instead, he ran into something he didn't expect. He ran into a real fighting atmosphere and an opponent who benefited from it.

Make no mistake about it: the city showed up. The Convention Center opened a little over 9,000 seats for the event, and they were all gone in days. Some of those went to the boisterous Khan's Army, vuvuzelas and all, but most of them went to Peterson supporters. Those fans did their part as the fight was going on, cheering loudly when Peterson gained momentum and standing behind him when he lost it. Perhaps it wasn't the largest crowd in the world, but it was one of the most vocal. Just like a boxing crowd should be.

And yes, it made a huge difference for Peterson. Before the fight, HBO's Max Kellerman said that while he thought Peterson was a good fighter, he had yet to see him put on a signature performance against someone better than him. That all changed on Saturday night. Spurred on by his hometown fans, Peterson expertly switched gears mid-fight. He negated Khan's speed advantage by coming after him and pinning him to the boards, then landing body shots to slow him down. He took plenty of hits himself, but that's what happens when you employ a strategy like this. It was a brilliant plan and it was executed tremendously. It practically defined a signature performance.

All this is true even if Peterson lost. Khan's gripe about the results is somewhat legitimate. Peterson was coming in low, and to fend him off, it's hard to do anything but push him. But ultimately, that's good tactics by Peterson more than anything else. It was his only chance to prevent Khan from fighting his kind of fight, and it put him in a position to win. Whether he ultimately got that win is a separate issue.

From the city's perspective, the competitiveness of the fight really was all that was needed. Oddsmakers suggested that Peterson had no chance and that Khan would blow him away early. It nearly happened in the first round when Khan knocked Peterson down and caused him to slip. Instead, Peterson, inspired by his hometown fans, picked himself off the mat and gave Khan an incredible run for his money. Sure, maybe he needed a couple favorable calls to eventually take that money, but he put himself in that position. Credit to him for doing so.

And credit to Washington D.C. too. Peterson would surely admit it, but without this city's support, he doesn't fight like he did. D.C. showed on Saturday night that, when given the chance, it can absolutely be a suitable location for big-time boxing.

Hopefully, it won't take 18 more years for big-time boxers in the future to figure that out.

For more on the Khan vs. Peterson fight, including live results throughout the bout, visit this StoryStream, Bad Left Hook and MMA Nation.

Khan Vs. Peterson: Amir Khan Says Rematch Is '99 Percent Confirmed'

2011-12-11T19:54:01Z

The immediate thought by everyone after Lamont Peterson stunned Amir Khan in a WBA and IBF light welterweight championship fight at the Washington Convention Center on Saturday night was obvious: when will the rematch happen? Both Peterson and Khan expressed interest in fighting again, especially given the controversy of the final result.

It looks like that rematch is well on track to happen, at least according to Khan himself, who tweeted the following:

Hi, Morning all, staying in DC another night, jus want to thank everyone for all the support and nice msg. A rematch is 99% confirmed.

It's not clear where the rematch would happen, but Peterson did say after the fight that he would be willing to fight in Khan's native United Kingdom, since Khan traveled to Peterson's home town to fight him.

For more on the Khan vs. Peterson fight, including live results throughout the bout, visit this StoryStream, Bad Left Hook and MMA Nation.

Amir Khan's Next Fight To Be At 140 Pounds, He Announces

2011-12-11T13:15:07Z

Amir Khan's controversial loss to Lamont Peterson in an IBF and WBA light welterweight title bout at the Washington Convention Center on Saturday night has apparently foiled his plans to eventually move up weight classes. Before the fight, Khan announced that if he won, he would move up to 147 pounds and potentially even fight Miguel Cotto. But with the loss, it appears Khan will stay right where he is right now.

As he said in his post-fight press conference, he has no plans of moving up until he can get a rematch against Peterson. Via ESPN's Dan Rafael:

Khan said plans for 147 on hold until after the rematch #boxing #khanpeterson

Khan's defeat came in large part because he received two point penalties for pushing Peterson. Khan protested the penalties by saying Peterson lowered his head so much that it made it impossible for him to do otherwise.

For his part, Peterson said he'd be happy to fight again in Khan's native United Kingdom.

For more on the Khan vs. Peterson fight, including live results throughout the bout, visit this StoryStream, Bad Left Hook and MMA Nation.