“Stop the fight!”
That’s what everyone in their right mind who was watching was yelling at one official during Friday’s Shooto Brasil 132 in Rio de Janeiro.
The incident that caused the simultaneous complaints took place in the final sequence of Joao Oliveira’s TKO win over Wilian Prado.
Oliveira (15-6) landed a beautiful right high kick, which he hid behind a fake punch. It was clean, and one for the highlight reel. But Prado’s unresponsive body wasn’t enough for the referee. The official’s expression remained largely the same, as he stood with his hands by his side, looking at the fighter.
Twice, Oliveira put his arms up, lobbying for a stoppage, but the referee didn’t move until Oliveira landed some pittery-pattery ground-and-pound shots.
In a sport full of officiating issues, fighter safety sometimes takes the backseat despite it theoretically being the paramount core value by which all regulation is built around.
Check out the stoppage for yourself below, courtesy of the great Grabaka Hitman.
The Blue Corner is MMA Junkie’s blog space. If you come complaining to us that something you read here is not hard-hitting news, that’s on you.
