Issue 066

September 2010

Each issue UFC referee Marc Goddard brings fight fans the ref’s side of the story 

Carlos Condit TKOs Rory MacDonald with seven seconds remaining. Should the ref have let it finish?

To round off a potential fight of the year at UFC 115 in Vancouver, Carlos Condit was awarded a TKO at 4.53 of the third and final round of his clash with up-and-comer Rory MacDonald. The Canadian had arguably won the first two rounds – that’s certainly what trainer Greg Jackson told Condit when he had him on the stool. It worked: MacDonald was on the end of some serious heavy leather just before the stoppage and was left visibly dazed, bleeding and hurt by Condit’s last-ditch onslaught. MacDonald, however, was on the way towards a win on home turf, and the live audience was in disagreement of the stoppage to say the least.

Let me ask you a simple question. A loved one – maybe a young child – stands precariously close to a dangerous drop. Do you wait for seven seconds just to see what the outcome may be, or do you react without hesitation to the danger that you can see?  

Now put yourself in the shoes of Kevin Dornan. Kevin was absolutely correct to stop that fight when he did. He saw, assessed and immediately reacted to the punishment that MacDonald was absorbing. The fallen fighter was in no position to defend himself, regardless of the time left in the fight.  

A referee’s job is often described as ‘damned if you do, damned if you don’t,’ and this is the perfect example. What if Kevin had decided upon hearing the ten-second clapper to just let the round play out? People would be shouting from the rooftops that he should never referee again. In an MMA fight seconds seem like minutes, especially in the case of a fallen fighter who may not be in a position to defend himself. Time is not something ever considered during the course of a fight, especially when a fighter is on the verge of a potentially serious injury. We simply cannot take that risk. 

CYBORG VS FINNEY

Cris ‘Cyborg’ put the most brutal of one-sided beatdowns on Jan ‘Cuddles’ Finney. Should ref Kim Winslow have stopped the fight much earlier?

First off, I’d like to set something straight. There is absolutely no difference, bias or slant offered due to the fact that this was an all-female affair. A professional rules mixed martial arts contest is just that, and is subject to the same rules across the board – regardless of gender. 

The fight started with Santos quickly overwhelming, overpowering and completely dominating her opponent, and this continued throughout the first round. Forcing Finney to the canvas no fewer than five times (each time following up with a barrage of strikes), at one point Cyborg herself turned and beckoned to the referee, appealing for her interception. Most pundits scored Cyborg winning the round 9-8 [Cyborg was deducted a point for repeated strikes to the back of the head] or even 9-7. There is a good argument that this round could even have been scored 9-6 due to the punishment that Finney took. 

Also (on two separate occasions) when Finney had gone down, with next to no warning Kim Winslow actually asked Cyborg, ‘Do you want her up?’ 

This is not the regular course of action a referee would take – stalemates between prone and standing fighters are handled at the sole discretion of the referee in charge, and should not be a choice given to the standing fighter. 

Many people misconceive what compels a ref to stop a fight. If a fighter’s taking repeated punches to their body and arms (blocking their head and face) and these remain unanswered, or the fighter makes no attempt at trying to stop the attack by improving their position, then a referee has absolutely no choice but to stop the contest. On a couple of occasions we saw Finney in the turtle position taking unanswered (and undefended) blows to the head and body. Another very important point, and one often missed, is the position of the fighter under attack. When a fighter rolls to their side with their arms covering their head (critically taking their eyes off their opponent, as Finney did) it is a very good indication that the fighter is looking to be saved. 

I am very reluctant to criticize my peers, and I don’t doubt that Kim Winslow acted solely on what she saw in front of her without ever compromising the fighter’s safety. Jan Finney’s heart and determination was immense in that fight, and there was no question of her quitting. In fact, her will to fight back endured. Most observers believe the fight should’ve ended sooner. This was as great an example you will see proving the adage, ‘Sometimes a fighter needs saving from the toughest of adversaries – themselves!’

ASK THE REF Q&A

Don’t know your DQs from your decisions? Each issue, Marc will answer your questions on the ‘Unified Rules’ used in MMA 

Q: I know a referee can stop a fight if the fighter ceases ‘intelligently defending’ himself under punches, but what about if they’re in a submission? We’ve seen fighters get choked out, but what if you see an arm breaking? Do you have to wait until they tap out? 

Paul via email

A: The Ref says: When a submission is locked in, the vast.majority of the time an experienced fighter knows he is caught and, not wanting to risk serious injury, will tap (or verbally submit, if his hands are tied). A referee cannot stop the contest for what he thinks will happen. A professional rules contest is just that. When a submission is applied the fighter on the receiving end knows the risk involved if he cannot escape or tap out in time. Fighters often escape some deep and very painful-looking submissions and go on to finish fights with broken or badly hyperextended joints. The simple answer is no, we do not wait for a fighter to submit. We can stop the contest if we see something very bad – think about Frank Mir vs Tim Sylvia, when Herb Dean stopped the contest after seeing Sylvia’s arm snap. Sylvia did not submit, but Herb made the right call. Fortunately, these sorts of career-threatening injuries are few and far between, and professional fighters are astute enough to know when they are caught. 

Q: Lots of fans seem to want the old Pride rules for inside the Octagon. Do you think a yellow card and red card system could work in shows like the UFC? 

Ed via email 

A: The Ref says: Personally, I do not favor the yellow card system. A foul or infringement is a foul or an infringement, regardless of whether I stop the contest to deduct a point or issue a yellow card. Don’t forget that the card system in Pride also meant a deduction to the fighter’s purse, so a referee brandishing these cards would need to be very sure that it was the correct call! It could be a good incentive to eliminate unnecessary fouling in the game, but I don’t think that we have that problem. The deduction of points is adequately covered by the Unified Rules as far as I am concerned.