Another week, another major screw-up in the world of MMA officiating and judging, courtesy of a set of judges at UFC 327.
The botch occurred during the preliminary card matchup between Chris Padilla and MarQuel Mederos. The fight was filled with plenty of striking volume, especially from Padilla, who brought plenty of pressure. Mederos had his own strong strikes, including bloodying Padilla up with an elbow. Mederos, however, was deducted a point for an eye poke during round three.
Padilla was originally announced as the winner by majority decision, with two 29-27 scores and a 28-28 draw. Following the Tatiana Suarez vs. Loopy Godinez bout, however, the UFC broadcast announced that the score for Padilla vs. Mederos was corrected to be ruled a majority draw.
The corrected scorecards were then revealed, with all three judges appearing to not count the point deduction Mederos received during the third round.
Furthermore, under the original scorecards, Mederos was the one who would have been awarded a split decision win. The original scorecards’ totals had it two 29-28s in his favor, from judges Derek Cleary and Eliseo Rodriguez. Solimar Miranda originally had it 29-28 for Padilla, resulting in the lone 29-27 Padilla total on the corrections.
Chris Padilla vs. MarQuel Mederos Ruled Majority Draw After Scoring Mix-Up At UFC 327
The mix-up prompted another round of mockery and anger from the MMA community.
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Padilla stepped into this fight with a seven-fight win streak, including a 4-0 UFC record. Padilla had most recently fought Ismael Bonfim in November, scoring a second-round finish.
Mederos entered this bout with a nine-fight win streak and an 11-1 professional MMA record. He was 3-0 in the UFC before tonight, most recently defeating Mark Choinski at UFC 316.
