• Boxing

British judge ill for Pacquiao-Bradley

Boxing judge John Keane of Great Britain is ill and will be unable to make the trip to Las Vegas to serve on the panel that will score the welterweight title rematch between titleholder Timothy Bradley Jr and Manny Pacquiao on Saturday night at the MGM Grand.

Keane was replaced on Monday by Craig Metcalfe of Canada, Top Rank vice president Carl Moretti told ESPN.com.

Moretti said that Top Rank, which promotes Pacquiao and Bradley, was notified of the change by Nevada State Athletic Commission chairman Francisco Aguilar.

Moretti said that "both camps approved" of Metcalfe, who had been on the initial list of potential judges circulated to Top Rank, the fighters and their managers.

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"Metcalfe is a good judge. We have no issue whatsoever," Moretti said.

The other two judges on the panel are Glenn Trowbridge of Nevada and Michael Pernick of Florida. The referee will be Kenny Bayless of Nevada.

The officials were assigned earlier this month and drew more attention than usual because of the massive controversy over the scoring in the first fight between Pacquiao and Bradley two years ago.

Bradley was awarded a split decision in a fight that most believed Pacquiao won easily. It led to the Nevada commission promising a more open process when it comes to selecting officials for major fights, which is what it did for Pacquiao-Bradley II.

Top Rank and both fighter camps were given a list of potential judges and referees and given the opportunity to strike anyone they felt uncomfortable with followed by a conference call with commission members to discuss any issues. After that, the officials were appointed from a pool both camps were agreeable to.

This article first appeared on ESPN.com

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