Romanian heavyweight Benjamin Adegbuyi found himself on the wrong side of a dubious piece of judging in the main event of GLORY 43 NEW YORK, losing a split-decision to Guto Inocente after appearing to dominate two of the three rounds they had fought. The fight was nearly over twenty seconds after it started thanks to a left hook from Adegbuyi which landed flush on Inocente’s jaw and sent him staggering backwards across the ring and into the ropes. The Brazilian made it through that ordeal and got into the fight, making for an entertaining first round in which both landed good shots. Adegbuyi’s hands are better but his tendency to throw kicks with no setup, while keeping his head on the line, meant Inocente was able to find solid interception opportunities with his right hand. Adegbuyi won the first round via landing the better shots, but Inocente stormed back in the second frame. Early in the round he landed a hard shot which came razor-close to ending the fight there and then. Adegbuyi was in a lot of trouble and it was remarkable that he was able to hang on for long minutes and make it to the end of the round. Inocente’s failure to capitalise on his near-KO meant that the fight went to a third and final round, with everything to fight for. Fatigue began to play a part, two heavyweights throwing constant shots taking its toll. The fight became a grinder, the two standing right in font of each other and hammering away. With a minute left, Inocente suddenly backed off and retreated into a corner. Adegbuyi followed him and then landed some of his best shots of the fight, visibly rocking him for the second time in the bout. Inocente then got mobile and spent the remainder of the fight moving around while Adegbuyi stalked after him. The seconds ebbed away and then the bell sounded, ending the fight. Adegbuyi was sure he had won, raising his arms in victory, but the judges had other ideas. The ringside judges, supplied by the New York State Athletic Commission, returned a split-decision, two of them giving Inocente two rounds and the other judge giving two out of three rounds to Adegbuyi. The result was met with boos from the crowd when it was announced and Adegbuyi looked nonplussed. Having visibly rocked Inocente in the first and third rounds, he had been certain the decision was going his way. Guto Inocente def. Benjamin Adegbuyi, Split-Decision, R3 (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
