Darren Stewart’s management has responded strongly to the suggestion that the British middleweight “baited” Eryk Anders into throwing the illegal knee that brought their UFC Fight Night 187 but to a premature close last Saturday night.
Speaking to MMA Junkie Radio on Monday, the UFC vice president of regulatory affairs Marc Ratner suggested that referee Herb Dean felt that Stewart’s actions while on the canvas were designed to elicit an illegal strike from Anders.
Explaining why that fight was ruled a no contest, as opposed to Petr Yan’s illegal knee on Aljamain Sterling a week earlier resulting in a disqualification, Ratner said it came down to the perception of the foul by the referee in each instance.
“What we start with is the referee’s judgment,” Ratner stated. “That’s the most important thing. He’s going to determine, in his mind, whether it was intentional or accidental. It certainly changes the way the fight is scored or the outcome. In the Yan fight, Mark Smith was the referee, and he felt that the knee was intentional. And therefore, because Sterling couldn’t go forward, that became a disqualification.
“The difference from last Saturday’s fight was Herb Dean felt that maybe (Anders), who landed the knee, (and Stewart), who was putting his hand up and down, kind of baited him into that knee. He felt it was an accident. Therefore it became a no contest or a ‘no decision.’ If it would’ve (gone) two rounds full, we would’ve gone to the scorecards.”
However, Ratner’s account, and the view attributed to Dean, has been strongly rebutted by Stewart’s manager, Graham Boylan.
In a statement provided to MMA Junkie on Wednesday, Boylan said, “I have asked five UFC referees, 10-plus judges, 30-plus fighters and coaches, along with other managers in the game globally. Every one of them called it a DQ. No question.
“At no point did Darren Stewart bait the knee from Anders. He made two movements, and neither show the ‘baiting’ that is referenced. Anders took Darren down, Darren was on all fours for a second, the position then changed from all fours to right foot to the floor, right hand to his head. Where in those two movements over three seconds did Darren bait an illegal knee? He made two movements to protect himself in a time period of three seconds from being put in that position by Anders.
“We are talking about a three-to-four-second period in the fight, where Anders put Darren in a ‘downed opponent’ position, put his hands on his shoulder and the back of his head, and threw the illegal knee. Where was the baiting?
“Darren made TWO movements: 1. Right foot to the floor; 2. Right hand to the head. Watch the tape, look at the two movements and the time frame they happened in.”
Boylan then continued, saying, “I’ve been in this game for more than 14 years and have been involved with thousands of Cage Warriors fights, plus the UFC fights of our guys I look after, and never have I seen such a wrong call or excuse for making the wrong call.
“I respect all the refs and judges who work hard to make this sport what it is. A referee’s priority is to protect the fighter and make the big calls that determine fights when required. Your priority is NOT to protect your own image and reputation first.
“It’s OK, on reflection, to put your hand up and say, ‘I was wrong on that one.’ It’s not OK to create a story that doesn’t match the actions in question. No doubt this fight will be rebooked.”
Manager scoffs at notion that Darren Stewart ‘baited’ Eryk Anders into illegal knee
