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Chael Sonnen recently accused Leon Edwards of cheating his way to a title win over Kamaru Usman in the main event at UFC 278. UFC president Dana White was recently asked to weigh in on Sonnen's comments about Edwards' title victory.
Sonnen's accusations were primarily based on Edwards allegedly grabbing the fence on multiple occasions. However, White believes it was a perfectly timed head kick that earned 'Rocky' the welterweight strap rather than fence grabs.
White lauded Edwards' stellar effort to come out on top despite being dominated by 'The Nigerian Nightmare' for most of the bout. The UFC boss believes its ridiculous and unfair of 'The American Gangster' to discredit Leon Edwards’ title win with accusations of cheating. The 53-year-old said at the DWCS Season 6, Week 6 post-fight presser:
"He became champion with a head kick. He didn't win by grabbing the fence. I mean he got absolutely dominated in that whole fight excpet for that couple of minutes in the first round. He got absolutely dominated and you know, that's completely unfair of Chael Sonnen to say that. That kid sucked it up, dug down deep and landed literally the perfect head kick with like a minute left in the fight. So I would say that that's silly, ridiculous and absolutely unfair to say."
Watch the clip below:
Watch White's appearance at the post-fight scrum below:
Herb Dean explains fence grab fouls amidst Leon Edwards vs. Kamaru Usman title fight controversy
Leon Edwards was warned for grabbing the fence a few times during his UFC 278 title clash against Kamaru Usman. However, it wasn't just 'Rocky' who was grabbing the fence to defend takedowns. Even 'The Nigerian Nightmare' was warned for fence grabs on occasions.
Watch a detailed breakdown of both Edwards and Usman breaking the rules below:
UFC referee Herb Dean, who was officiating the bout, did not deduct any points from either Kamaru Usman or Leon Edwards for fence grabs. Dean later explained why deducting points for fence grabs can be dicey in MMA.
The UFC referee noted that grabbing the fence is a very natural reaction in the sport of MMA. However, Dean went on to explain that deducting a point for the same might not be justified in a sport which is usually decided by a point's difference. The 51-year-old told Helen Yee in the aftermath of UFC 278:
“Fence grabs are very difficult to deal with in the sport because it’s a natural reaction… but to deduct a point… what’s the most common score that goes to the cards- 29-28. So that means we have a one point for the majority of fights that happen that go to the card, 29-28 is the most common score. So if you take a point, that means you’ve taken a win. So it’s not like in other sports where you have 12 rounds and you take a point. It’s a much stiffer punishment… so to have that balance there, that grab needs to significantly affect the fight. And it doesn’t have to always happen right away.”
Watch Dean's interview with Helen Yee below:
