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Rashad Evans recently made a triumphant return to active contention in MMA with a dominant performance at Eagle FC 44 on January 28. However, a highlight of his performance inside the cage was the awkward moment when the referee had to step in and fix his shorts.
The UFC Hall of Famer relied on a wrestling-heavy attack to outscore Gabriel Checco over the course of three rounds, earning the win by way of unanimous decision. The judges' scorecards read 30-27, 30-27, 30-27.
However, Evans was faced with an awkward situation when he was trying to wrestle with Checco. The shorts he was wearing came loose and were pulled down to his thighs, forcing the referee to step in and save him.
The referee pulled 'Suga's shorts back up to the right spot as quickly as possible, subsequently resuming the fight.
Watch the referee come to Rashad Evans' aid below:
Evans last featured in a fight against Anthony Smith back in June 2018 under the promotional banner of the UFC. The 42-year-old suffered a first round knockout loss in his UFC 225 outing against 'Lionheart'.
Rashad Evans believes he is no longer the same fighter he was in the UFC
Rashad Evans' return to winning ways at the FLXCast Arena in Miami, Florida, marked his first win since 2013. His last victory came way back in November 2013.
It was in his fight against Chael Sonnen at UFC 167, where he knocked out 'The American Gangster' in the first round. He subsequently suffered a significant fall from grace, accumulating five losses in a row.
In the aftermath of his recent triumph against Gabriel Checco, Evans admitted that he had changed as a fighter and as a man since his split with the UFC. He highlighted the difference in his mindset as a UFC fighter and as a fighter now.
Evans said:
"Yeah, it was definitely a different [Rashad Evans] tonight, you know. The Rashad you've seen tonight was, you know, a more focused Rashad, a more relaxed Rashad, you know, and a more confident Rashad. You know, losing fights in a row, like I was losing in the UFC, you know, it kind of beat up my confidence a little bit and kind of just, had me second guessing my game."
He continued:
"And tonight, I was like, 'I may lose. Something bad may happen. But I'm not going to second guess myself. And I'm going to go out there and just fight the fight I want to have and you know, whatever happens happens."
Check out Evans' post-fight interview below:
