Those watching the UFC 115 preliminary show on Spike TV were not exposed to the cleanest of UFC officiating, as the Matt Wiman-Mac Danzig fight ended with a questionable call from referee Yves Lavigne.
The fight, a bout between two “Ultimate Fighter” alumni, kicked off the televised portion of the UFC 115: Liddell vs. Franklin event. Early in the first round, Matt Wiman reversed Mac Danzig’s dominant ground position into a guillotine choke, rolling the season six winner over with the hold.
With Danzig showing no signs of getting out, the referee tested Danzig’s arm and based on seeing no reflex, decided to stop the fight. As soon as the fight ended, however, Danzig was shown protesting the decision, a clear sign that he was not out. He later said that he was trying not to make any sudden movements to relax in the position and prevent giving Wiman the chance to transition to a more dangerous hold.
In addition to the quick protest and having shown some minor activity in his opposite hand (although, in fairness, it could have been a last ditch reflex prior to going to sleep), Danzig also had evidence in the fact that an entire side of his neck was not trapped in the choke. Both fighters expressed willingness to continue the fight, but as the referee had made his stoppage, the fight simply could not continue.
Matt Wiman b. Mac Danzig via submission (guillotine) at 1:45 of Round ONe
Just watched this tonight (I know, I’m behind the times). While I hate early stoppages, the fault rests squarely on Danzig’s part. When the referee is checking to see if you are out or not, the onus is on the fighter to communicate to the referee that they are able to continue. Danzig did not do this, and despite his explanations after the fact, I really don’t get what he was doing. When a referee is checking on you, you know the fight is close to being stopped and your number one priority should be demonstrating that you are not in trouble and that you can continue. I honestly think that Danzig was almost out, as that’s the only explanation I can think of for his failure to act. He’s a veteran fighter and knows better. It sucks the fight ended this way, but if the referee hadn’t intervened I’m fairly certain Danzig would have been out soon after anyway.