Ghanaian featherweight John Laryea was disqualified in the ninth round of a WBA world title eliminator against Argentina’s Adrian Maximiliano Robledo in Buenos Aires, the first defeat of his professional career.
The referee ended the contest after repeated low blows. Robledo, who moves to 14 wins and one defeat, advances toward a title shot; Laryea goes home with a loss that arrived through his own conduct in the ring rather than through being outboxed, which is the harder kind to explain and the easier kind to fix.
A note on the reporting, because it matters if you are following this closely. The outlets covering the fight do not agree on the date it took place, and they give three different versions of Laryea’s record going in. AXN Sports has therefore not published either. What is carried consistently across Ghanaian, Argentine and international boxing coverage is the result, the method and the round.
For Ghanaian boxing the timing is unhelpful. The Bukom production line has been trying to convert domestic reputations into world ranking positions for years, and an eliminator is exactly the fight where that conversion happens or does not. Laryea was on the right side of the draw. Getting there again means starting from a lower rung, and it means a corner that stops the fight from drifting into the sort of trouble that hands a referee a decision to make. AXN Sports will follow his next assignment once it is announced.
Where to bet: Ghanaian books price world level boxing more thinly than football, but Betway and Premier Bet, both licensed by the Gaming Commission of Ghana, carry method of victory, round betting and fight outrights in cedis on the bigger cards, with deposits through MTN Mobile Money and Telecel Cash. Method of victory markets are where disqualification and stoppage outcomes actually pay, and they are usually the last markets a book will price accurately, so read the terms before you stake. Our guide to the best betting sites in Ghana covers licensing and withdrawal times, and there is more in Ghana boxing news from AXN Sports. 18+. Gamble responsibly.
