The World Boxing Association (WBA) Oceania president Ferlin Marsh has announced that they are currently investigating the video footage of the recent match between New Zealand’s John Parker and Fiji’s Alivereti Kauyaca, which took place in Hamilton last week.
In an email response to RNZ Pacific, Marsh indicated that he has enlisted the help of four international boxing judges to review the footage and provide their assessments following a complaint from Farmaan Ali, Kauyaca’s trainer and manager.
Ali has formally requested a declaration of ‘no contest’ and a rematch for his fighter, contesting the split-point decision that favored Parker. In this match, two judges awarded the victory to Parker, allowing him to claim the WBA Oceania cruiserweight title, while one judge scored the fight for Kauyaca.
Marsh confirmed receipt of the complaint from Ali regarding the outcome of the match held on Saturday at the Glowbox Arena in Hamilton. He stated that he acted immediately upon receiving and reviewing the fight footage, and he emphasized that the term “robbed” should not be used in reference to any of the title fights under WBA Oceania.
After watching the match, Marsh reached out to four additional international boxing judges for their evaluations. One judge has already submitted their score, while the others are expected to respond by the end of the week.
Marsh acknowledged that boxing is a sport filled with controversies, and close contests will often leave one party dissatisfied. He noted that without a decisive knockout, it’s common for at least one corner to be unhappy with the outcome.
Ali has accused the two judges who favored Parker—Arden Fatu and Joshua Niyka—of delivering a “hometown decision” against Kauyaca. He characterized the decision as “totally” biased and commented that many are puzzled by the judges’ choices.
So far, John Parker’s team has not addressed the inquiries made to them.