What's Wrong with Judging in MMA?

At UFC Fight Night:Fairfax the ugly head of bad judging surfaced again. Depending on who you ask Liz Carmouche lost her match and Al Iaquinta was demolished by Jorge Masvidal. Fans want the system fixed. What they really want is for whomever they felt won to win.My opinion in those two bouts was that Carmouche lost and Jorge Masvidal handily beat Iaquinta. But are the judges to blame or is the parameters of the sport? What can realistically be done to fix the bad decisions? Or is bad judging just something athletes and fans must accept?

The sport of MMA needs to accept some blame for the bad decisions it produces. Judging combat sports is difficult. Extremely. Boxing has had countless bad decisions in it's history and in boxing all you have to look for is whether one guy punches the other. In MMA a judge has to look for striking, grappling, cage control, aggressiveness, ground control, top control, submissions, damage, and probably a dozen more things. And how do you judge all that? What carries the most weight? A takedown or a three strike combo? What if a guy gets two takedowns but is hurt by strikes later in the round, what carries more weight? None of that has been defined in MMA. Or what if nothing happens in a round, who wins the round? The one with center control or the one who's footwork forced the other to have "center" control? Judging is essentially opinion. What do you think happened? So when a round is not clear cut it leaves the judge with all the power to choose what he prefers, including the fighter. Why can Floyd Mayweather use his superior footwork and speed to avoid damage and conflict and win every round while a lesser fighter loses the same type of round because he was inactive? Because everyone loves Mayweather and really, it takes boxing skill to avoid the way he does in the ring. The Masvidal/Iaquinta match is a perfect example of perception. Iaquinta is a fan favorite. He takes the fight to his opponent. Almost a brawler. Masvidal is extremely skilled on his feet. He, in my opinion was picking Iaquinta apart. But viewers felt that Masvidal was coasting and running because Iaquinta kept chasing and throwing bombs that mainly missed. I saw one fighter head and shoulders above the other in the striking department. But what many fans and the judges saw was a lot of effort from Iaquinta and another fighter not engaging. That was the perception. I can see that. Even with me giving the fight to Masvidal in the back of my mind I was thinking they may thinking Iaquinta is the aggressor. And to me, that's the worst of judging or commentating. "Well he was the aggressor" or "He was busier, threw more strikes" That means hey you should win for trying. Now, after the fight stats showed that Masvidal actually was more active and accurate during the rounds 2 & 3 that he "coasted" what other reason do we have to award the rounds to Iaquinta? I personally dislike the use of statistics to prove a fighter won because judges don't have that available. A fight should be judged on what we see, not on generated numbers. But I use them here merely to point out how opinion and perception play a major role in today's MMA judging.

UFC 137 Pits St. Pierre against a Killer

On October 29 in Las Vegas Georges St. Pierre once again faces an opponent, Carlos Condit, that few outside Condit's camp give any chance at success. GSP has been such a dominant welterweight for so long, really his entire career, that it is difficult now for fans to get excited about any of his matches. With the exception of the slip ups against Matt hughes and especially Matt Serra, St. Pierre has dispatched all comers with relative ease. It seems GSP's kryptonite is only men named Matt. He is criticized for not finishing fights as of late. His last finish was almost 3 years ago against  BJ Penn. He plays it safe and works for a decision detractors say. Well, that may be true but it is his opponents' job to not allow GSP  to impose his game plan and beat him. Above all it is GSP's job to win, not to provide entertainment. Will Carlos Condit prove any different?

Condit has been on a tear since coming over to the UFC from the WEC. He lost his first bout against Martin Kampmann but has knocked out his last 3 opponents including previously un-knocked out Dan Hardy and Dong Hyun Kim. Of his 27 victories, Condit has finished his opponent 26 times via either KO or submission. Does that mean anything against GSP? Probably not. St. Pierre learned a huge lesson against Matt Serra. Don't stand and trade against anyone. Period. GSP has developed the most insulated style of MMA in the game. GSP has shown too much speed and technique for everyone on the feet. He engages when he wants to, how he wants to and takes less chances than Tom Coughlin on a fourth and one. For all his highlight reel KOs I don't see Condit having the technique to coax a mistake from GSP. If he does, GSP will get one of his patented takedowns and dominate on the ground. GSP plays it safe but wins via fourth round submission. Carlos Condit will show up to fight, not to be able to say he lasted five rounds against GSP like many of the previous challengers.

Ah, what might have been. For a couple of years now my dream match has been Nick Diaz vs. GSP. It was supposed to happen at UFC 137 but for whatever reason Nick Diaz orchestrated his own dismissal from the main event. As a punishment/reward he is still on the card and now faces BJ Penn. In many ways this will make for a much more exciting match than the proposed Diaz vs. GSP. Nick Diaz' Achilles heel has shown to be elite wrestlers which GSP stands atop of. But in BJ Penn, Diaz faces an opponent willing and able to stand or go to the ground with him. Diaz has always said opponents fear him on the ground. I don't think BJ Penn shares the sentiment. Penn fears nothing and no one, especially in the Octagon. Both guys have displayed iron chins. Has Penn ever even been rocked? No. But Diaz doesn't rely on power but volume. He wears opponents down with a pitter patter of punches and well placed and timed strikes. Ask Robbie Lawler and Paul Daley. He absorbs punishment like vitamins. Ask Gomi and Cyborg. I doubt BJ Penn attempts to ground and pound Nick Diaz. I expect a stand up war which Diaz will win in the third round via stoppage. His work on Penn's body by then taken its toll and a fighter notorious for relying on physical attributes rather than preparation.

My picks for the rest of the card :
Hatsu Hioki upsets George Roop
Roy Nelson sends Mirko Filipovic into well deserved retirement
Cheik Kongo lays the law down on Matt Mitrione
Scott Jorgensen out hustles Jeff Curran
Donald Cerrone taps Dennis Siver
Tyson Griffin debuts with a win against BartPalazsweski
Brandon Vera returns triumphantly against Eliot Marshal