Rothwell Knows Win Over Struve Was Controversial, But ‘You’ve Got To Move On’

Esther Lin, MMA Fighting

Ben Rothwell got the win he was desperately looking for last night (Sat., Dec. 7, 2019) at UFC on ESPN 7 live on ESPN from inside Capital One Arena in Washington D.C., when he took out heavyweight staple Stefan Struve via second-round TKO (punches), but the fight came with a little bit of controversy.

Struve had commanded most of the action in the early going by utilizing his height along the cage to limit Rothwell’s offense inside. When the action separated in the middle of the Octagon it was Struve who did more damage on the heels of long jabs and blistering body and leg kicks. Rothwell did what he needed to do to survive the onslaught, but found himself fighting from behind on the judges’ scorecards following a point deduction for his second low blow.

“I was down because I knew they were taking a point [away],” Rothwell said. “So I’m like ‘they might stop the fight.’ But then I looked at his cornermen and they were like ‘You’ve got to fight, you got the fight. Coast to a win. You got this.’ So, I was pretty sure he was going to keep fighting. Everything was against me. I had to get the finish or else I’d lose another decision.

“So I was pretty confident he was going to fight. That is unfortunate the ref said that because he’s basically just repeating what his cornermen were telling him.”

Rothwell, 38, came into this fight riding a disappointing three-fight losing streak, dropping his first two Octagon appearances after returning from a two-year suspension earlier this year. This knockout victory — albeit a controversial one — is exactly what the doctor ordered as Rothwell tries to reclaim momentum in the UFC’s heavyweight division entering 2020.

“I think I was on the chopping block,” Rothwell said. “Let’s be honest, I’ve lost three decisions prior to this. I didn’t get helped, I don’t get finished and I fight to the end. But four losses is four losses and it can’t happen. So, this was crucial.”

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