This Makes Herb Dean Look Like an Angel… Jorge Alonso, What Were You Looking at? This is one of the Worst Refereeing Displays We’ve Ever Seen…
There is a lot of pressure on referees in combat sports. Whether it’s boxing, kickboxing, or MMA the man in the middle is there to keep the fighter safe from their opponent and from themselves. They can stop the fight whenever they think it’s necessary but sometimes, being human, they make mistakes.
We get that. And MMA is one of the most difficult combat sports to referee because there’s just so much you need to be aware of. The stand-up game, the wrestling and the jiu-jitsu side all come into play and the referee has to be quick to intervene if the fighter taps out.
MMA referee Jorge Alonso is facing massive criticism though after failing to stop a fight despite a fighter tapping out on three occasions. It’s shocking.
Hey ref… there is a fight going on. #TitanFC56
Props to @jimmysmithmma & @TitanFighting COO @lexmcmahonMMA for being on top of it. pic.twitter.com/pexdnqLl7S
— UFC FIGHT PASS (@UFCFightPass) August 24, 2019
Dodgy Refereeing
Titan FC is one of the bigger regional US MMA promotions, along with the likes of Legacy Fighting Championships and the Professional Fighter’s League. They’ve produced some solid fighters like Anthony ‘Rumble’ Johnson, Tim Elliot, James Krause and Zak Cummings. They’re a respected organization.
The problem with the smaller promotions is that the standard of refereeing tends to be lower. When you look at the likes of the UFC where Herb Dean, Dan Miragliotta, Steve Mazzagati and notoriously Mario Yamasaki have all been heavily criticised at various points of their careers.
And that’s at the very top of the game.
Shocking
When you go further down the MMA pyramid, the quality of refereeing gets even more erratic. That’s where Titan FC comes in. Landon Quinones was fighting Calvin Glover and putting on an excellent, dominant display. Titan 56 went down in Fort Lauderdale and was available on UFC Fight Pass, with Jimmy Smith and UFC welterweight champion Kamaru Usman on commentating duties.
Quinones was totally overwhelming Glover who finally tapped out to strikes. The referee Jorge Alonso was right there looking at them, yet still somehow failed to stop the fight. To make it worse, Glover tapped again and again, with Alonso just there staring at the two men on the ground. It was one of the most confusing performances by a referee we’ve ever seen and there’s no excuse for it at all.
Not Good
It was so bad that both Smith and Usman protested on the microphone. The two men are seasoned veterans of the industry. Smith is one of the best commentators in the game and Usman is a phenomenal fighter. They were shocked by what they were seeing and shouted into the cage at the referee to stop the fight. Both of them were audible in their complaints about Alonso’s lack of decisiveness.
To make things worse for the referee, Titan FC COO Lex McMahon was cage-side and was picked up on the microphone angrily arguing with him for the late stoppage. We don’t blame him. This was dangerous and if Glover was seriously injured it would tarnish the name of Titan FC and MMA in general.
