Majority decision

A majority decision (MD) is a winning criterion in several full-contact combat sports, such as boxing, kickboxing, Muay Thai, mixed martial arts and others sports involving striking. In a majority decision, two of the three judges agree on which fighter won the match, while the third judge indicates that neither fighter won (i.e., a "draw").[1]

Not to be confused with a majority opinion, a legal concept.

In boxing, each of the three judges allocates a score (round by round) for each fighter. If all scheduled rounds are completed (i.e., no knockout (technical included)), each judge totals the points for all rounds. If the same fighter scores more points than the other on two of the judges' scorecards, but the third judge scored equally for both fighters (a draw), the official victory is awarded to the agreed-upon (by a 2 to 1 'majority') fighter. If all judges rule for the same boxer, the decision is referred to as a unanimous decision.

The majority decision is frequently confused with the term split decision, but they are not the same. A split decision occurs when two judges pick the same fighter as the winner, while the third judge decides that the opposite fighter won. On very rare occasions, two judges vote for a draw while the third chooses a winner—this is a majority draw.

Notable examples
Date Fight Scorecards Source
November 6, 1993 Riddick Bowe vs. Evander Holyfield II 115–113 Holyfield 115–114 Holyfield 114–114 [2]
April 22, 1994 Evander Holyfield vs. Michael Moorer 116–112 Moorer 115–114 Moorer 114–114 [3]
May 10, 1996 Lennox Lewis vs. Ray Mercer 96–94 Lewis 96–95 Lewis 95–95 [4]
November 8, 2003 Antonio Tarver vs. Roy Jones Jr. 117–111 Jones 116–112 Jones 114–114 [5]
December 20, 2008 Nikolai Valuev vs. Evander Holyfield 116–112 Valuev 115–114 Valuev 114–114 [6]
November 12, 2011 Manny Pacquiao vs. Juan Manuel Marquez III 116–112 Pacquiao 115–113 Pacquiao 114–114 [7]
September 14, 2013 Floyd Mayweather Jr. vs. Canelo Álvarez 117–111 Mayweather 116–112 Mayweather 114–114 [8]
May 3, 2014 Floyd Mayweather Jr. vs. Marcos Maidana I 117–111 Mayweather 116–112 Mayweather 114–114 [9]
June 21, 2014 Vasyl Lomachenko vs. Gary Russell Jr. 116–112 Lomachenko 116–112 Lomachenko 114–114 [10]
August 16, 2014 Shawn Porter vs. Kell Brook 117–111 Brook 116–112 Brook 114–114 [11]
August 20, 2016 Nate Diaz vs. McGregor II 48–47 McGregor 48–47 McGregor 47–47 [12]
December 10, 2016 Joseph Parker vs. Andy Ruiz Jr. 115–113 Parker 115–113 Parker 114–114 [13]
September 16, 2018 Canelo Álvarez vs. Gennady Golovkin II 115–113 Álvarez 115–113 Álvarez 114–114 [14]
January 27, 2018 Oleksandr Usyk vs. Mairis Briedis 115-113 Usyk 115-113 Usyk 114–114 [15]

References
  1. "Decision - BoxRec".
  2. "Riddick Bowe vs. Evander Holyfield (2nd meeting) - BoxRec". boxrec.com. Retrieved 2021-06-10.
  3. "Evander Holyfield vs. Michael Moorer (1st meeting) - BoxRec". boxrec.com. Retrieved 2021-06-10.
  4. "Lennox Lewis vs. Ray Mercer - BoxRec". boxrec.com. Retrieved 2021-06-10.
  5. "Antonio Tarver vs. Roy Jones Jr. (1st meeting) - BoxRec". boxrec.com. Retrieved 2021-06-10.
  6. "Nikolay Valuev vs. Evander Holyfield - BoxRec". boxrec.com. Retrieved 2021-06-10.
  7. "Manny Pacquiao vs. Juan Manuel Marquez (3rd meeting) - BoxRec". boxrec.com. Retrieved 2021-06-10.
  8. "Floyd Mayweather Jr. vs. Saul Alvarez - BoxRec". boxrec.com. Retrieved 2021-06-10.
  9. "Floyd Mayweather Jr. vs. Marcos Maidana - BoxRec". boxrec.com. Retrieved 2021-06-10.
  10. "Vasyl Lomachenko vs. Gary Russell Jr. - BoxRec". boxrec.com. Retrieved 2021-06-10.
  11. "Shawn Porter vs. Kell Brook - BoxRec". boxrec.com. Retrieved 2021-06-10.
  12. Thomas, Luke (21 August 2016). "UFC 202 results: Conor McGregor defeats Nate Diaz via majority decision". MMA Fighting. Retrieved 21 August 2016.
  13. "Joseph Parker vs Andy Ruiz Jr - BoxRec". boxrec.com. Retrieved 2021-06-10.
  14. "Gennady Golovkin vs. Saul Alvarez (2nd meeting) - BoxRec". boxrec.com. Retrieved 2021-06-10.
  15. "Oleksandr Usyk vs. Mairis Briedis - BoxRec". boxrec.com. Retrieved 2021-06-10.


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