Ref: NSAC Let Lawson Fight Ortiz Jr. After Failing Brain Scans

Weeks received a lot of criticism for stopping Ortiz Jr. vs. Lawson early. Now he claims he was protecting Lawson after the Nevada commission ignored troubling brain scans.

Boxing referee Tony Weeks has fired back on social media against allegations he stopped a fight between Vergil Ortiz Jr. and Frederick Lawson way too quickly.

Ortiz pushed Lawson into the corner late into the first round and started unleashing alternating hooks to the body and head. Referee Weeks stepped in and called a stop to the fight at 2:33 of the first round.

“And that … is it?” announcer Mauro Ranallo exclaimed in confusion on the broadcast.

No one was happy that an impressive performance by Ortiz Jr. was shut down early by the ref. There was a lot of talk about Weeks blowing the call. Now the veteran ref claims he was protecting Lawson after the Nevada State Athletic Commission let the 30-4 boxer compete after failing two brain scans.

“What the public didn’t know that prior to the fight they did a brain scan on him, and it came up that he had an aneurysm,” Weeks claimed in a since-deleted Facebook post. “And they did a test again, and the same aneurysm came up. Another doctor was brought in and gave him the same examination and he tested negative for the aneurysm, so they cleared him to fight.”

This is a shocking charge that calls into question the morals and competency of the Nevada commission. They’re supposed to be there to keep fighters safe, and if it’s true that they went doctor-shopping to clear Frederick Lawson after the original doctor discovered a potential aneurysm, that would be a major scandal and heads should roll.

That being said, we have nothing to go on right now other than the word of Weeks, who may be looking to protect his reputation after a blistering amount of criticism was sent his way. Fortunately, it shouldn’t be hard to prove or deny these allegations. We’ll keep you updated as this story unfolds.