Tony Bellew faced fire on social media for a scorecard that saw friend Anthony Joshua awarded every round on Saturday night.
Joshua won in a poor performance and did not score a shutout with everyone who watched the bout barring those who wanted him to win.
The first four rounds were even, at best. However, Bellew scored every round for Joshua in the first ten sessions. He eventually gave Franklin eleventh, but ironically, Joshua probably won that round.
The scorecards read 118-110 and 117-111 twice for AJ, with the latter a fairer reflection.
Tony Bellew on DAZN
In the aftermath, fans reacted to Bellew’s scoring. Some going so far as to brand him as a company man for DAZN.
“Could Tony Bellew be more of an AJ fanboy if he tried? Literally b**s him up so that he can get in the spotlight. Pathetic.”
Others added: “I know Tony Bellew wants to back our boy, but my god, this is so biased.”
“Tony Bellew scorecards so far are trash. What fight is he watching? I had it 2-2 after 4.”
“Tony Bellew filled in his scorecard on the Tube on the way to the O2.”
In a harsher campaign, others called for Bellew to be sacked by DAZN.
“Tony Bellew should be sacked from DAZN and never on TV screens again. A vile creature,” said a commenter.
Hometown scoring
Franklin was worried about their hometown UK scoring before the fight, and his respect for Joshua was questioned.
“I’m very strong mentally. My team and the fans made me feel okay about the decision. This is boxing, and sometimes, it happens in boxing.
“We don’t all get fair shakes. I’ve never really had a fair shake in my whole career. I didn’t cry about it. I didn’t complain about it. So I just went back home and started working.
“You’ve got to knock them out, or you’ve got to dominate them conclusively.”
“I respect him as a man. I respect all fighters. When people talk [s***], we talk it back. I’m a fan of the sport.
“I’ve been a fan of the sport for a long time before I ever thought we’d get this fight.
“I feel like all boxers need a little bit of respect. It’s a tough sport, it’s a real brutal sport, and some of us don’t make it out of that ring.”
