The State of Texas is a destination state for thousands of people looking to improve their lives, because, in addition to great BBQ and no state income tax, Texas is a well-run state.
That is, unless you’re talking about the Texas commission which provides boxing and MMA judges. The latest installment of Lone Star combat sport madness, came our way Saturday night after UFC Light Heavyweight Champion Jon “Bones” Jones was declared the unanimous winner following a challenge from Dominick Reyes, in which it appeared to many that Reyes had won.
Joe Rogan and Dominick Cruz, who both serve as commentators on the UFC PPV broadcast, blasted what Rogan referred to as “incompetent judging.” While Cruz advocated for pooling the collective resources of the MMA community, media and fighters, to come up with a better system for judging fights. Rogan also criticized the practice of using judges who had a background in judging boxing, who don’t really understand the complex nature of mixed martial arts.
After #UFC247, @joerogan and @DominickCruz call for reform to fight scoring and judging pic.twitter.com/Mc1fI0eD7j
— ESPN MMA (@espnmma) February 9, 2020
The fight between Reyes and Jones was extremely close. While many, including myself, thought Reyes won the first three rounds and won the fight, none of the judges saw it that. Judge Marcos Rosales scored the fight 48-47, giving rounds 2, 4, and 5 to Jones. Judge Chris Lee also scored the fight 48-47, gave rounds three, four, and five to Jones.
While many thought Reyes won, the 48-47 scores from Rosales and Lee were not what caused the majority of the controversy. The real controversy comes from the scorecard of Judge Joe Solis, who gave rounds two, three, four, and five to Jones.
According to Fight Metric Statistics, Reyes landed more total shots in the first three rounds, and landed a larger number of significant strikes throughout the five rounds of the fight.
As Business Insider reports:
Reyes landed 23 of 59 punches (38%) compared to Jones landing 17 of 27 (62%) in round one. In the second, Reyes landed 33 of 68 (48%) against Jones’ contribution of 22 from 37 (59%). And, in the third, Reyes again landed more with 26 of 45 (57%) while Jones landed 19 of 34 (55%).
It was only in the fourth when Jones snatched the momentum, landing 20 of 34 (58%) compared to Reyes who landed 13 of 41 (31%). In the fifth, Jones landed 26 from 34 strike attempts (76%) compared to Reyes who landed 21 from 46 (45%).
UFC President Dana White Was also shocked by the judges decision.
“Going into the last round, I had Dominic Reyes three rounds to one,” White said at the post-fight press conference. “My kids are terrorizing [me saying] that the fix is in, and, ‘How could this happen, dad? Reyes won that fight.’
“The reality is, who gives a s—. We’re not judges. The judges called the fight. That’s that.”
Dana White scored the main event for Dominick Reyes. #UFC247 pic.twitter.com/NLPQZFsnEm
— MMA Junkie (@MMAjunkie) February 9, 2020
The victory gave Jones a total of 14 wins in championship bouts, passing UFC legend Georges St-Pierre.
Follow Dylan Gwinn on Twitter @themightygwinn
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