Controversial decision in Minnesota boxing match leads to suspension of judge

A controversial scoring decision at a boxing match at the Armory in Minneapolis last weekend raised eyebrows across the sport.

Now it has reportedly gone a step further, with the suspension of one of the judges from the interim welterweight title bout between Mykal Fox and Gabriel Maestre.

ESPN reported that judge Gloria Martinez Rizzo has been suspended for six months by the World Boxing Association after her 117-110 decision Saturday in favor of Maestre — one that ESPN called "highly controversial," "head-scratching" and "sparking outrage."

All three judges scored the match for Maestre, even though most other observers thought Fox — who scored a knockdown and was said to have controlled many of the other rounds — should have been the winner by decision.

ESPN also reported that racist tweets from Rizzo were discovered, prompting further investigation.

"We saw her score was wrong despite the unanimous decision," WBA President Gilberto Mendoza told ESPN. "Those comments she made in the past — she might be expelled by the WBA."

Also per the ESPN report: The Minnesota Office of Combative Sports didn't respond when asked whether the result would be overturned; only the commission has the power to do so. It also didn't comment when asked whether the commission would review the scoring of the fight. Instead, it sent ESPN a statement saying, "The Minnesota Office of Combative Sports has a grievance procedure. However, it is ultimately up to the World Boxing Association to determine if there is a rematch."