Floyd Mayweather’s exhibition rematch with John Gotti III ends in another farce as referee is SWITCHED out mid-fight
FLOYD Mayweather’s rematch with John Gotti III once again ended in a farce when the referee was SWITCHED mid-fight.
Last summer, Mayweather’s exhibition with the grandson of notorious New York crime boss John Gotti finished in an all-out brawl.
Gotti III was disqualified for holding and trash-talking before a melee broke out in the ring leading up to a rematch over 12 months in the making.
And after just two rounds of the rematch in Mexico it looked to be heading for the same outcome.
Mayweather, 47, landed what looked to be a perfectly legal hook on Gotti, 31, only for the ref to deem it an illegal blow.
Arguments erupted in the ring with Mayweather left fuming and demanding the official get out of his way so he could box on.
The two corners then looked to be getting involved from either side of the ring as a case of dejavu threatened to ensue.
But suddenly the action was resume – but with a totally different ref.
Off camera, the officials were remarkably swapped over and the action carried on.
The fight went the full eight-round distance and it was largely one-way traffic.
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Mayweather hammered Gotti with looping right hooks to head and body while sinking in lefts to the stomach.
He did show glimpses of his vintage defence and counter-punching but it was a shadow of his former self.
Still, three years off his 50th birthday and Mayweather had flashes of greatness with fast combinations and head movement.
The boxing legend is an old friend of Gotti’s dad, a once acting boss of the Gambino crime family made famous by his feared father.
Mayweather and Gotti III shared an embrace post-fight before Mexican icon Julio Cesar Chavez, 62, entered the ring.
Chavez appeared to call for an exhibition fight himself.
But Mayweather responded: “He’s older now and if I do an exhibition with him, it’s not going to look good on me.
“He paved the way for me and he does so much for the sport of boxing and for all the young Mexican fighters after him.
“This is one of the guys who paved the way, he’s one of the best fighters of all time.”
Mayweather officially retired in 2017 after beating UFC superstar Conor McGregor, 36, in 2017 but he has continued to box in exhibitions.
He even revealed before rematching Gotti that he has a deal to fight at least three more times.
