Referee Jon Schorle's take

Jon Schorle said he would’ve stopped the fight anyway.

Schorle, the referee who made the decision to stop the Robert Guerrero-Daud Yordan fight on Saturday night in San Jose, Calif., said Guerrero only made his job easier by saying he couldn’t see because of blood dripping into his eye from a bad cut.

Schorle said it was one of the worst cuts he’s seen in years. It required 23 stitches to close.

“I knew I was going to stop it,” said Schorle, a professional referee for 19 years. “… It was really, really deep. If the blood was flowing next to the eye, I would’ve stopped it after the round. Since it was going directly into his eye, I stopped it immediately.

“He’s a smart kid. He had the presence of mind to know it was a really bad cut. I was going to stop it anyway, though.”

The cut, above Guerrero’s right eye, was caused by an accidental head butt and began bleeding immediately. Guerrero pawed at it, an indication it was bothering him, and then told Schorle during the action that he was having trouble seeing.

That prompted Schorle to call timeout and bring Guerrero to a corner, where the ring doctor could take a look. The doctor didn’t order the fight stopped; Schorle made the decision on his own.

“He said he couldn’t see,” he said. “Since he said that, our hands our tied at that point and we have to stop the fight.”

Schorle wouldn’t say whether he believes Guerrero quit, as so many have suggested. However, he did say that it isn’t right to label him “quitter.”

“No, not fair at all,” he said. “The blood was going right into his eye. If he can’t see, he can’t see. A kid like (Yordan) that is real fast, if you can’t see, you can’t perform. And if you can’t perform at the highest level, it’s smart to stop it.”


Michael Rosenthal can be reached at theringeditor@yahoo.com