UFC 104 & The Blind Flu: A Cage-Side Epidemic

By Ron "The Yacman" Yacovetti

The Scene: UFC 104

At the close of what was a solid night of Mixed Martial Arts action, at the Staple Center in Los Angeles, CA, two co-main events ended with a collective one-two punch that irritated the crowd in attendance.

Both Cain Velasquez’s win over Ben Rothwell and Lyoto Machida’s win over Mauricio
"Shogun" Rua upset the fans that, up until that point in the evening, seemed very pleased with UFC 104.

The diagnosis for what caused so good a night to turn bad is an epidemic of bad vision, that will seemingly stricken ring or cage-side judges and officials in the combat sports community. I call it The Blind Flu. Symptoms include rendering a verdict that clashes so greatly with what actually happened that most would question if the afflicted were even at the event, had they not seen them with their own eyes.

It was in the theme of a jab, straight right hand combination, that this outbreak of Blind Flu went from bad to worse, with co-main event one, then two being ruled in such a way that a vast majority completely disagree with.

Here’s how it went down.

TYPE “A” BLIND FLU: Premature Stoppage of Ben Rothwell vs. Cain Velasquez

This particular lapse in judgment is the kind that is so close to what is a just call, that the reaction by fans and media alike is usually mixed. A majority of people in attendance at UFC 104, however, a group spearheaded by Ben Rothwell, were quite vocal about the fact that they felt the stoppage by referee Steve Mazagatti was premature.

And while the case for that is both reasonable and bothersome, it was not out of the blue. Mr. Mazagatti did walk over to Rothwell’s corner before the second round to caution him about taking unnecessary abuse. So, when he saw more of the same, he halted the action.

Round one, as I blogged that night, looked a lot like Cain and Unable. Take downs by Velasquez, then ground-and-pound work, were all that we saw happen in this fight. These guys would stand, then, as they say on shampoo labels...repeat.

Rothwell needed to stop Cain’s momentum before the man in black officiating did. However, round two was more of the same. No matter what position Ben and Cain were in, Cain was using his one free hand to slug him non-stop.

So, it is my belief that when fans witnessed the stoppage, it was not apparent to them that Steve Mazagatti had seen enough, heading into the second round, poised to save Ben from a gratuitous beating. This scenario is not horrible, as both of the possibilities, stopping the fight or letting it go on, seem fair.

Ben Rothwell is a tough and durable fighter, period. However, the sole reason why the stoppage did not seem too extreme is because there was not even a hint of evidence that the fight would look any different should it have continued. Cain Velasquez was going to continue to shoot in, score take downs, and throw his free hand(s) until Steve Mazagatti did stop the fight.

Now, here is where it became a more severe case.

TYPE “B” BLIND FLU: Inability to see what is before you

The main event between former Pride FC star Mauricio "Shogun" Rua and current UFC Light heavyweight Champion Lyoto "The Dragon" Machida was as good a matchup as one can hope for in MMA.

Two great strikers who can mix it up standing or on the ground entered the cage for what most also did not expect would go the distance. That was the first unexpected result to come of this bout, but certainly not the last.

Machida was an insanely heavy favorite to win. And why not? His statistics going into it made it seem easier to solve a Rubik’s cube with your feet than to beat him.

Shogun did what Dana White

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