Karate Combat Statement on Chelmiah vs Lopez

TECHNICAL ERROR RESULTED IN LOPEZ BEING WRONGLY ANNOUNCED AS WINNER 

CHELMIAH RETAINS TITLE; IMMEDIATE REMATCH TO TAKE PLACE IN NEW YEAR

The Karate Combat 37 bout between defending champion Eoghan Chelmiah and challenger Jesus Lopez resulted in Lopez incorrectly being announced as the winner due to scorecards being tallied incorrectly at the end of the bout.

Lopez was announced as the winner by split-decision and new Karate Combat World Bantamweight Champion following five rounds of fighting in the event’s co-headline bout.

However, the Florida State Boxing Commission - which supplied and oversaw the three judges officiating the bout - subsequently notified Karate Combat that the scorecards in fact had Chelmiah as the winner by split-decision.

Both fighters were notified of the error after the event had concluded and both have agreed to an immediate rematch as early as practicable in 2023. 

“This is an unprecedented situation for Karate Combat and obviously heartbreaking for Jesus Lopez, who put in a career-best performance and feels that he is the rightful new champion. Mistakes do happen but it’s extremely disappointing to have it happen in such an important high-profile fight,” said Karate Combat president Adam Kovacs.

“In the meantime, I think as an organization the best thing we can do is to give them an immediate rematch. I’ve spoken to both fighters and their teams and all sides are agreed on a rematch as soon as possible. A date and location for the world title rematch will be announced as soon as bout agreements are in place.“