Sean Strickland almost fell victim to the judges once again.
Despite outclassing Paulo Costa for the majority of their five-round fight in the co-main event of UFC 302, Strickland almost found himself suffering his second straight loss once a scorecard of 49-46 in favor of Costa appeared, courtesy of judge Dave Tirelli. Fortunately for the former UFC middleweight champion, the other two judges (Sal D’Amato and Chris Lee) knew what they were looking at, awarding scores of 50 to 45 and 49 to 46 to Strickland and giving him victory by split decision. But things certainly seemed dicey, if only for a second.
See how the MMA world reacted to Strickland’s performance and a particularly egregious scorecard below.
Costa is also slowing down now. Strickland in the corner is so much fun
– Sam Alvey (@smilensam) June 2, 2024
Costa does a good job with the low kicks and bodywork. The fight is very close.#ufc302
– Herbert Burns (@HerbertBurnsMMA) June 2, 2024
Strickland’s gas tank is beautiful to look at. #ufc302
– Will Brooks (@ILLxWillBrooks) June 2, 2024
Did Costa’s corner just say it’s 2-1 for us??!!
I have it 3-0 Strickland #ufc302– Miles Chapo Johns (@milesxjohns) June 2, 2024
Sean fights like he was marching towards independence in 1776. Super effective
–Adrian Yañez (@yanezmma) June 2, 2024
3-0 Strickland.. Strickland didn’t even look tired in this 4th round #ufc302
– Tracy Cortez’s ERA (@TracyCortezmma) June 2, 2024
300 kicks lol
– Belal Muhammad (@bullyb170) June 2, 2024
You know how when there is no activity on the ground the referee stands them up… they should do the opposite for this fight, let’s make them start on the ground
– Belal Muhammad (@bullyb170) June 2, 2024
Solid smart fighting from Sean so far, Costa can’t seem to figure anything out yet. #ufc302
– Jason Mayhem Miller (@mayhemmiller) June 2, 2024
They’ll act like Strickland is crazy because it lasts 3 seconds
– Belal Muhammad (@bullyb170) June 2, 2024
Shoot whoever said split up. There are blind people who judge the fights now
– Sam Alvey (@smilensam) June 2, 2024
Split decision!?
–Jalin Turner (@JalinTurner) June 2, 2024
News Source : www.mmafighting.com
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