The best and worst from UFC 229: Khabib vs. McGregor

#2 Worst: Reyes robbed of a knockout by a bad call

A strange refereeing call robbed Dominick Reyes of a knockout win over Ovince St. Preux

One of the more intriguing fights on the undercard saw Light-Heavyweight prospect Dominick Reyes face off with established gatekeeper Ovince St. Preux.

I was hoping that Reyes could make a statement with a win and become the next big thing at 205lbs, and for the most part he did. He picked ‘OSP’ apart throughout all three rounds, looking very much like a future title contender.

Unfortunately, the fight ended with a bit of controversy. After a big exchange, Reyes dropped OSP with a big right hand that appeared to knock him out. Reyes even walked away, Mark Hunt-style, and it was quite clear that St. Preux was unable to continue. The problem was that OSP hit the deck at the same moment that the buzzer sounded to end the fight.

Referee Dan Miragliotta urged St. Preux to get up to return to his corner – and eventually, he did, but if the shot had landed at any other time, the fight would’ve been called off.

So why did Miragliotta decide that the punch hadn’t ended the fight and send it to the judges’ scorecards? Your guess is as good as mine.

Thankfully the worst that happens here is that Reyes gets robbed of a KO and takes a decision win on his record instead. But can you imagine if Reyes had been behind on the scorecards before landing that shot?

Would OSP have won a decision then? It boggles the mind and it’s probably something the various State Athletic Commissions need to look into. At the very least, the NSAC should award Reyes with a knockout.