Challenger Francisco “The Wizard” Palacios says he did enough to win comfortably. WBC cruiserweight titleholder Krzysztof “Diablo” Włodarczyk says Palacios didn’t risk enough to beat a champion.

What is certain is that neither fighter presented their full skills during Saturday’s WBC cruiserweight championship fight in Bydgoszcz, Poland. In the end, judges decided that the current champion did enough to earn a split decision. Although scores 116-113 for Włodarczyk and 115-113 for Palacios both have some merit, the Italian judge who decided that Włodarczyk dominated with an 118-112 advantage clearly was watching a different bout than the 8,000+ fans, 60 member media contingent and millions watching on the TV screen.

And of course both fighters had different views on what happened during the twelve round fight:

Krzysztof “Diablo” Włodarczyk: “Palacios was screaming so loud before the fight that he’s going to destroy me. He was fighting on the enemy territory, but he was not risking enough to get the title, avoiding the fight all night. When my jab was connecting with his head, I could tell that he’s feeling my power, so no wonder he was reluctant to start any meaningful exchanges. He wanted to surprise me with left uppercuts, but I avoided them all night. He had so much to win, but did not want to risk and attack.”

Francisco “The Wizard” Palacios: “I did enough to win this fight. I was doing cruise control from round nine thinking I have a big lead. How many rounds did Włodarczyk win? Maybe three. In my book I won first five easy. He was eating my punches all night – just compare my face to his. In hindsight, maybe I could do more, maybe not count on the judges’ scorecards but just finish the job in the ring. I will not be a sore loser and complain because Włodarczyk is a great champion, strong fighter who has power. I just want everybody to see the fight and judge it yourself.”