Veteran boxing referee of 170+ title fights speculates what may have gone wrong in questionable 'low blow' call in Oleksandr Usyk vs. Daniel Dubois

Oleksandr Usyk returned to the squared ring this past weekend against Daniel Dubois. While the Ukranian successfully managed to defend his unified heavyweight championship, it did not come without controversy.

Usyk was hit with what seemed like a shot right at the belt and was immediately dropped to the canvas. Referee Luis Pabon then proceeded to rule out the punch as a low blow while many believe that it was a fair shot to the body.

Oleksandr Usyk was given time to recover and returned to action a while later only to secure a ninth-round TKO finish. Reacting to it, Hall of Fame referee Joe Cortez has given his opinion on the matter.

During an interview with Fight Hub TV, the Hall of Fame referee had this to say:

“To me, that punch was right on the belt, it wasn’t a punch for him to get all that time. I would’ve gave a warning and let it continue, but I would not have given him five minutes for that. I don’t think it was intentional.”

He added:

“Good referee, Luis Pabon. I think with the language barrier, he didn’t tell them exactly what was wrong with low blows … All of these things you address is in the dressing room. You don’t have time inside the ring prior to the fight. But you gotta make sure to have a good interpreter to explain it carefully.”

Catch his comments in the video below:

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Oleksandr Usyk low-blow: Is Daniel Dubois appealing the decision?

Yes, Daniel Dubois and his team are set to appeal the controversial low-blow incident during his fight against Oleksandr Usyk. As revealed by Dubois' promoter Frank Warren, they are set to appeal the decision and hopefully look to get a rematch between the two.

While speaking about it during the post-fight press conference, Frank Warren had this to say:

"It hit him on the waistband. I wish they could put it up. That’s all he worked on in camp, working on the body. The referee got it badly wrong. If it was a low blow, why didn’t he take any points off him? He’s a hero. We all love Ukraine and what you’re fighting for. The governing body will have to do something again and order a rematch. [We will] appeal what goes on here, and we’ll see where it goes from here."

Catch his comments in the video below: