Nate Campbell, left, winces in pain after a clash of heads with Timothy Bradley in the Aug. 1 championship bout. Nate Campbell, left, winces in pain after a clash of heads with Timothy Bradley in the Aug. 1 championship bout. (Mark Avery/Associated Press)

The International Boxing Federation said in a news release Thursday it was in favour of using instant replay for referee decisions that can be debated.

However the IBF stopped short of recommending how the replay would be handled and said it wasn't mandating it be used.

The only one of the sport's three sanctioning organizations based in the United States, the IBF said replay would be up to the event promoter, with local commissions and television networks also needed to determine how it would work.

Perhaps the biggest stumbling block to implementing replay is the fact that there are just 60 seconds between rounds of a fight.

Another is how to determine "decisions that can reasonably called into question."

The issues most commonly in dispute are knockdowns and the origin of cuts.

Knockdowns usually result in a loss of a point for the fallen boxer. If a fight is stopped because of a cut, there are different outcomes depending on whether it was caused by a punch or an unintentional head butt.

"Unlike many sports, especially team sports, a boxer usually only gets one opportunity to win a world championship and a chance to attain fame and wealth," said IBF president Marian Muhammad. "That opportunity should not be spoiled by an uncorrected error."

IBF adviser Larry Hazzard has helped influence the direction. Hazzard championed the use of replay when he was the head of the New Jersey State Athletic Commission.

The issue has been in the forefront in the sport after the contentious ending to last week's 140-pound junior welterweight title fight between undefeated champion Timothy Bradley and veteran challenger Nate Campbell.

Replays indicated that Campbell was cut over his eye by a head butt in the third round of the bout at Rancho Mirage, Calif. Campbell advised his corner after the round that he couldn't see, with the state doctor agreeing the fight should be stopped.

Referee David Mendoza ruled Bradley — who had been dominating the fight — the winner by technical knockout. California's rules dictate that a fight stopped before the beginning of the fourth round because of a cut caused by an unintentional head butt be declared a no-decision.

Campbell has already appealed to the California State Athletic Commission.

The commission last year overturned a victory for James Toney over Hasim Rahman to a no-decision after a similar scenario.