Emile Griffith vs Jorge Fernandez 3

On December 8, 1962, at the Las Vegas Convention Center, Emile Griffith (145 lbs) defended his WBA and WBC welterweight titles against Jorge Fernandez (147 lbs) in their third meeting. The bout ended controversially in the ninth round following an unusual sequence of events.

The fight was competitive through eight rounds. Griffith held a slight edge on two of three official scorecards: referee Harold Krause (38-35), judge Bill Stremmell (39-36), and judge John Romero had it even at 38-38. UPI's unofficial scorecard favored Griffith 38-36. Fernandez had already been knocked down once in the seventh round before the decisive moment.

At 1:34 of the ninth round, Griffith landed what referee Harry Krause deemed an unintentional low blow. Fernandez collapsed to the canvas and, despite being given the maximum five minutes recovery time, told commission physician Dr. Donald Romeo he could not continue. Under Nevada rules, which stated that a fighter ahead on points who scores a questionable fight-ending knockdown wins by TKO, Athletic Commission Chairman James Deskin upheld Krause's decision to award Griffith the victory.

The ending sparked chaos in the ring, with Fernandez's corner protesting vehemently while officials consulted rulebooks. For Fernandez, it marked only his second TKO loss in 82 fights, with his previous stoppage coming under similar circumstances against Isaac Logart in 1955. The controversial conclusion ended their trilogy with official victories for Griffith but lingering questions about the final outcome.