There were questions surrounding the judges headed into the mega fight between Terence “Bud” Crawford and Canelo Alvarez on Saturday night.
The Nevada State Athletic Commission named Tim Cheatham of Nevada, Max De Luca of California, and Steve Weisfeld of New Jersey as the three judges for the highly anticipated matchup. Thomas Taylor of California was also approved to serve as the referee for the 12-round super middleweight title fight, which Netflix is streaming worldwide from Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas.
The judges are familiar faces for the fighters, but they also received a lot of attention following a bout between boxing legend Manny Pacquiao and champion Mario Barrios earlier this year.
GettyLAS VEGAS, NEVADA – SEPTEMBER 11: Canelo Álvarez (L) and Terence Crawford (R) face off onstage during Netflix’s Canelo vs Crawford press conference at T-Mobile Arena on September 11, 2025 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by David Becker/Getty Images for Netflix)
Judges Made a Controversial Draw Decision Earlier This Year
The July 2025 fight between Pacquiao and Barrios was ruled a surprising majority draw in the 46-year-old’s first return to the ring since August 2021.
“I thought I won the fight,” Pacquiao said after the fight. “It was a close fight. He was very tough.”
Pacquiao led on all three scorecards entering the 10th round. However, Barrios took the final three rounds on every judge’s card, allowing him to retain his title. The final scores—114-114 from two judges and 115-113 for Barrios from the third—fell flat with a capacity crowd of 13,107, mostly Pacquiao fans, at the MGM Grand Garden Arena.
GettyLAS VEGAS, NEVADA – JULY 19: Manny Pacquiao (R) hits Mario Barrios in the seventh round of their WBC welterweight title fight at MGM Grand Garden Arena on July 19, 2025 in Las Vegas, Nevada. The fight was declared a majority draw and Barrios retained his title. (Photo by Ethan Miller/Getty Images)
Steve Weisfeld is a Very Familiar Face for Both Fighters
According to Ring Magazine, Weisfeld has played a prominent role in Alvarez’s career, having judged eight of his past nine fights in Las Vegas, including an unbroken streak of five consecutive bouts that began with his rematch against Gennadiy Golovkin in September 2018 at T-Mobile Arena.
In recent years, his scorecards have drawn particular attention: in May 2022, Weisfeld awarded a 115-113 decision against Alvarez in his bout with Dmitriy Bivol, and just a few months later, in September 2022, he scored Alvarez a 115-113 victory over Golovkin in their highly anticipated third encounter, once again at T-Mobile Arena.
Crawford is no stranger to Weisfeld’s judging style, as well. Since February 2016, Weisfeld has scored seven of the four-division champion’s fights.
In their November 2021 clash at T-Mobile Arena, he had Crawford narrowly ahead, 86-85, when the Omaha, Nebraska, native stopped Shawn Porter in the 10th round. Weisfeld later had Crawford in front against Errol Spence Jr., 79-70, before Crawford secured a ninth-round technical knockout in July 2023 at T-Mobile.
Most recently, he awarded Crawford a 115-113 victory over Israil Madrimov on August 3 at BMO Stadium in Los Angeles.
Cheatham and De Luca Also Have History with Canelo and Crawford
Cheatham has been part of Alvarez’s judging team three times, scoring two fights in Las Vegas and one in Arlington, Texas. Fifteen months ago at T-Mobile Arena, he had Alvarez comfortably ahead, 117-110, against Jaime Munguia. He also scored Alvarez a narrow 115-113 loss to Dmitriy Bivol and had him leading 77-75 when Billy Joe Saunders was forced to stop after the eighth round due to a fractured eye socket in May 2021.
De Luca, likewise, has been assigned to three of Alvarez’s fights. He awarded Alvarez a commanding 118-109 win over Edgar Berlanga on September 14 at T-Mobile, another 118-109 victory against Jermell Charlo in September 2023 at the same arena, and had him ahead of Saunders 78-74 when their bout ended—two points more than Cheatham.
Both Cheatham and De Luca have also judged two of Crawford’s fights. Cheatham, like Weisfeld, had Crawford dominating Errol Spence Jr., 79-70, while De Luca had Crawford slightly more comfortably ahead of Shawn Porter, 87-84, before the 10th round began.
These Are the Judges for Canelo vs. Crawford: Tim Cheatham, Max DeLuca & Steve Weisfeld