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When UFC fighters enter an Octagon, they are doing so in some of the toughest conditions as they are expected to knockout or finish their opponent in a certain amount of time. The only thing that makes the fights have some sort of sense and ensure that the fighters don't cross a line is the referee.
The role of the referee is to make sure that both fighters are protected properly and that one fighter does not take too much offense, as that might lead to death inside the Octagon. Unfortunately, at UFC Fight Night 161, in the fight between Thomas Gifford and Mike Davis, one fighter found himself taking an unnatural amount of punishment while the referee stood by and did nothing.
Thomas Gifford at UFC Tampa
Thomas Gifford faced Mike Davis during the Preliminary Card of UFC Tampa. Unfortunately, Gifford took an extreme amount of punishment in the first two rounds of the fight. It was unnatural the number of body shots he took, and the fight should have been called off by either by the referee or Gifford's corner.
Neither happened and with seconds remaining in the final round, Gifford was knocked out in the last round with a final shot.
While it was a really good performance by Mike Davis, Gifford took way more punishment than he should have.
MMA Community reacts to the officiating
Top members of the MMA community were less than happy after the fight as they saw how dangerous it had been for Gifford and how the fight might have done irreparable damage to the fighter.
Fighters like Rafael Dos Anjos, Michael Chiesa, and others reacted to the KO very negatively.
While a faceplant KO is something to usually celebrate, such was not the case at all tonight. Thankfully, according to reports, it turns out that Gifford is okay at the moment, but that might have turned out far worse. He had to be taken to the hospital following the fight.
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