Referee Dan Miragliotta took a lot of heat for his officiating at Triller Triad and he’s offered a response to his critics.
This past Saturday night (Nov. 27), Triller Triad took place inside Globe Life Field in Arlington, Texas. In the main event, former UFC Heavyweight Champion Frank Mir went up against top-ranked boxing heavyweight Kubrat Pulev.
In the end, it was Pulev who emerged victorious. He scored a brutal first-round TKO finish and many have panned Miragliotta, believing he hesitated far too much in stopping the fight.
Dan Miragliotta Explains Pulev-Mir Stoppage
The moment Mir got rocked and was stumbling around, play-by-play commentator Ray Flores frantically urged Dan Miragliotta to stop the fight.
During an interview with MMAFighting.com, Miragliotta shared why he didn’t stop the fight immediately.
“I was waiting for Pulev to come in. That would have made it so much easier for me, because as soon as he would have made one step as if he was attack, I was in a position with my left shoulder and the left side of my body to bump him, push him out, and stop the fight. But he didn’t engage – he backed off, and that’s why I kept watching Mir.
“Then Mir didn’t go down and didn’t put his hands back up – as soon as Pulev made that slight step, I stepped in and stopped the fight. It was easy.”
The referee went on to say that he was giving Mir a chance to take a knee.
“I didn’t want to allow Pulev to come in and hit him again. But when Pulev backed out, I figured Mir has a chance to either go down and take that knee or put his hands up, and he didn’t do either one, so that’s why I stopped it.”
Frank Mir’s transition into the boxing world hasn’t exactly gone his way. He dropped a unanimous decision to Steve Cunningham back in April but was praised for looking competitive. Obviously, it was the complete opposite with the Pulev fight.
Kubrat Pulev STOPS Frank Mir in the first round! #TriadCombat pic.twitter.com/t0BmaKYPSs
— TrillerTV (@FiteTV) November 28, 2021
