UFC 251 saw some questionable calls from one of the judges sitting cageside. Now former referee Big John McCarthy would like the UFC to do something about it.
UFC 251 was the first event on the novel Fight Island, and McCarthy, like the rest of us, was watching with anticipation and excitement. For the most part, the card delivered too, with awesome fights and good finishes. However there were some curious scorecards turned in by the judges, in particular Mark Collette. Although there were other fights that had poor judging, the biggest examples from him bafflingly giving Jessica Andrade the nod over Rose Namajunas, and being one of the two judges to favor Alexander Volkanovski in his bout with Max Holloway.
Big John McCarthy Urges The UFC To Do Something
It is safe to say that John McCarthy was not very impressed with what he saw from Mark Collette. When someone on Twitter proposed a question as to how the UFC can clean up judging for the rest of the Fight Island cards, the former referee turned Bellator commentator had some thoughts. He responded, saying that since the UFC is who hired Collette, not an athletic commission, they have the power to stop him from judging further fights on the Island, and that is what they should do.
“The @ufc hired, transported, tested & paid for Mark Collet to be part of 251 and they will be paying him to be a part of the other shows on Fight Island. When your performance is not acceptable, your employer has the right to remove you from their employ. Let’s see if they do it”
The @ufc hired, transported, tested & paid for Mark Collet to be part of 251 and they will be paying him to be a part of the other shows on Fight Island. When your performance is not acceptable, your employer has the right to remove you from their employ. Let’s see if they do it https://t.co/FL1ExUdquK
— Big John McCarthy (@JohnMcCarthyMMA) July 13, 2020
Typically, for UFC events stateside, the athletic commission is who appoints judges and referees, so while the UFC may have a say, there is not much they can do in the way of stopping someone that the commission appoints. However in Abu Dhabi, where Fight Island is located, they act as their own commission, and can stop using Mark Collette if they choose to. We will just have to wait and see if they do what John McCarthy is suggesting.
