After three rounds of an uneventful show opener on Saturday, Yao Zhikui and Nolan Ticman stood in the middle of the cage awaiting the decision of the judges. As the scores were read out it became clear that two of them had got it wrong.
Evan Field and Christopher Shen both scored the fight 29-28 for Zhikui despite him landing a combined eight strikes over the two rounds they had awarded him. A third judge, Barry Foley, scored the bout 29-28 for Ticman. A disappointing fight, awarded a disappointing decision.
The look on Zhuikui's face when he won the decision? We call that emotion 'surprise.' That's what Ticman gets for running, I guess.
— Ben Fowlkes (@benfowlkesMMA) May 16, 2015
Later on the same night we saw the judges get it wrong again. This time it was Yui Chul Nam on the wrong end of a decision against Philippe Nover.
Barry Foley, who should at this point be everyone’s new favorite judge, was the only one to score the fight correctly. Foley’s 29-28 for Nam was made irrelevant by Mark Craig and Kon Papaioannou’s scorecards. Both had scored it 29-28 the other way, which saw Nover get his hand raised.
I knew the judges were gonna ruin that fight! So frustrating, I don't know how u watch that fight and think Nover won 2 rounds. SUCKS!
— Dana White (@danawhite) May 16, 2015
Typical outrage ensued. As is so often the case that was not the only common thread shared by fans and media alike. Once the screams of foul play had been heard, the second wave of opinion on both fights flooded the internet. Attention was drawn away from the judges and directed back to the fighters.
Rarely is it simply, “I think the judges got that one wrong” without a “but” to follow. But he was running away too much. But the other guy was throwing more. But the other guy was the one coming forward. But the other guy did score a takedown. But the other guy was bleeding. But the other guy was more aggressive. But I think that’s how fights should be judged anyway. But… But… But…
Assigning outright blame to an individual, or group of individuals is never easy. We’d all like to justify their actions a little bit and find excuses when people do things wrong. So often we find them, because the alternative is accepting that they are not doing their job correctly and we’re not conditioned to view most situations as that clear cut.
Look back at Jorge Masvidal’s defeat to Al Iaquinta in April. Masvidal out-landed Iaquinta in each of the three rounds, and successfully defended each and every takedown attempt made by his opponent. He was never hurt or in danger, and consistently made Iaquinta miss. Still, both Dave Tirelli and Cardo Urso watching the fight from cageside scored the contest 29-28 for Iaquinta.
We heard the same things then. Iaquinta was the aggressor. Iaquinta was coming forward. Iaquinta was going for takedowns. Some were keen to find justification for the mistakes made by the judges, but others were looking to apply something entirely different, their own thoughts on how fights should be scored.
Everyone has their own ideas on what should count when scoring a fight. Fans, media, fighters, Dana White. Everyone.
Some people think fighters like Jorge Masvidal and Nolan Ticman should not be awarded decisions when they are moving backwards, because that’s not what they believe fighting is all about. In principal that sparks debate and gives people something to talk about. It seems harmless because after all, we aren’t the ones actually scoring the fights anyway.
The concern is that some of the people who are, the judges, could be doing the exact same thing. Rather than following the very definite criteria and judging guidelines they are given, they are importing their own anarchic opinions on what scores and what doesn’t. That is wrong.
As Marc Raimondi found out during his excellent recount of time spent with the California State Athletic Commission back in April, many of the things we say when debating who won a fight are barely a factor. Effective striking and effective grappling decide who wins rounds in mixed martial arts. Those other elements, aggression, octagon control, they only come into play when the fighters can’t otherwise be separated.
Throwing them out there as justification each and every time a fight is scored incorrectly simply makes excuses for people who have not done their job properly. Diverting that blame back to the fighters does nothing to address the problem. It is the judges, not the fighters who are to blame for the bad decisions in Manila on Saturday.
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