Over on BloodyElbow.com and Sherdog.com, there is quite a bit of talk going on calling this weekend’s stoppage in UFC 95’s fight between Paulo Thiago and Josh Koscheck premature. There is some split over the idea of stoppages getting too premature, and the defense of referees doing the right thing. However you see it, there is a legitimate debate growing in the MMA world about just when a fight should be stopped.

Here’s what happened.

Thiago catches Koscheck with a perfect uppercut, putting Koscheck on queer street. He’s practically unconscious as he falls like a sack of bricks, before regaining some of his wits as he hits the ground. By the time he bounces off the canvas and the referee approaches, he’s got some focus in his eyes and his arms are up to attempt to defend himself?

To quote 1980’s NFL commercials — “you make the call!”

The debate is, do you stop the fight, seeing that Koscheck was pretty much knocked out with one clean punch, stepping in for his own safety. Or do you give it a few seconds to see if A) he can defend himself, or B) Thiago finishes him off?

In boxing, it would be a clean knockdown, and it was in no way the kind of knockdown that would trigger an immediate stoppage. But in MMA, there is no standing eight count, and the next blow to a defenseless fighter could be very dangerous.

Exactly where is the line here?

Jordan Breen from Sherdog.com chimed in first, giving us the money quote of: “It may sound ridiculous, but a couple of perfunctory hammerfists aren’t about to jeopardize any fighter’s health.”

I’m sorry, but that’s exactly what a few extra defenseless blows to the head do. If MMA is going to have to fight the unfair reputation that it has of being along the lines of “human cockfighting,” then the supporters of the sport need to come up with more intelligent arguments than this.

“Kid Nate” over at BloodyElbow.com goes on to indirectly support this statement by saying, “A fighter might briefly lose consciousness but be able to regroup in a split-second. There’s too much on the line to stop fights every time a fighter is stunned by a blow.”

Luckily, Brent Brookhouse came in to save the day at Bloody Elbow. He responds to Breen’s “hammerfists” quote by dropping a bit of science:

Replays of the Josh Koscheck fight show that he was unconscious following the uppercut and was “brought to” by his head bouncing off the ground as he landed. As far as I’m concerned there is no arguing the fact that he was out prior to hitting the ground. Even as he is “recovering” while on his back his left leg is slightly quivering as his brain is trying to get back on track.

The quivering leg (and more importantly the fact that he went out completely to begin with) is a sign of the failure in neurotransmission that is a part of being knocked out and concussed. When you are knocked out or concussed your brain undergoes trauma which does include the failure of your brain to be able to transmit messages and your brain does not immediately go back to full function in that split second that you regain consciousness. Furthermore, after undergoing such trauma the victim can undergo changes in blood flow to the brain which can result in increased pressure on the brain. Striking the head of someone who is undergoing an increase of pressure on the brain can result in considerable brain damage and potentially even death.

Reading between the big words, he is pointing out the scientific facts that come in to play here. Taking a human and knocking them unconscious puts them in a very vulnerable state, even after they “appear” to regain consciousness and their brain starts working again.

Simply put, a few “perfunctory hammerfists” are absolutely putting a fighter’s health in jeopardy. To say otherwise is idiotic and is a crystal clear example of why MMA has the reputation that it has.

It’s not that the sport is barbarous and disgusting, it’s far from it. It’s that the fans of it (some of them, at least) want it to be. The fact that people are going out of their way to say that these fights may have been stopped prematurely is an indirect way of saying that they want more blood and carnage, and these damn safety rules are getting in the way.

What makes MMA safer than boxing is the lack of blows to the head of a fighter that has already had enough. Boxers stand to suffer greater head injuries because of the prolonged punishment they take with bigger gloves. Mixed Martial Arts is extremely safe, comparatively, because of the smaller gloves which lead to quicker, more decisive knockouts. Attempting to prolong the beatings that a beaten fighter takes is just asking for serious injuries.

I’ll admit, when I watched the Thiago-Koscheck fight live, I thought the stoppage was premature. But I would never in a million years try to make the argument that a few extra blows to finish him off would be acceptable, and not a risk to Koscheck’s health. My argument would have been simply, give him one second to see if he looked as if he could defend himself. If Thiago jumped on him and Koscheck looked to be in further danger, stop the fight. It would have been clear in about one second. More than likely, Koscheck would not have recovered and survived the impending beating that he would have taken on the ground. But on the other hand, I thought it was a very quick decision. At the end of the day, I have to yield to the referee, who had a much better view. Watching it live, I could not see Koscheck’s eyes as he fell. Standing next to him, the ref could. Upon watching the replays, I think the ref made the right call. That is why he was standing where he was, and I’m watching from home.

It is a legitimate debate, one that has good arguments on both sides. Unfortunately, the first wave of “too soon” arguments are not good ones. The “perfunctory hammerfists” line is the perfect example of what I don’t like about MMA (MMA fans, at least). This is a combat competition, where each fight should be decided when a winner has made himself clear — not when a loser has been beaten to the viewer’s delight.

Arguments like this make you believe that it is just a matter of time before the UFC and MMA learn the hard way that you are better to err on the side of safety than to watch a fighter get beaten to death.

Share this story...

Discussion

One comment for “MMA World Debating Early Stoppages”

Post a comment

You must be logged in to post a comment.