Controversial UFC stoppages are relatively common, but we rarely see UFC personnel having such a heated debate over controversial results.
The last major controversial decision would have been Ciryl Gane's loss to Alexander Volkov at UFC 308, but that decision quickly disappeared. The same cannot be said for Chris Curtis's final-second stoppage of Roman Kopylov at UFC Vegas 101, where Paul Felder and Din Thomas battled it out.
In the final frames of their three-round fight, Kopylov launched a 2-3 head kick that rocked Curtis to his knees. Referee Mark Smith stepped in to stop the fight before the final buzzer could sound. It was the seventh time in UFC history that a fight was stopped with one second left on the clock.
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Paul Felder and Din Thomas debate Kopylov-Curtis' controversial finish
The result marked the first time Curtis was dropped in his UFC career and the first knockout loss on his UFC record. It was not without debate; commentators Paul Felder and Din Thomas had completely different views on the stoppage.
During the UFC Vegas 101 Post Show, Felder and Thomas debated Smith's refereeing. Felder insists Curtis should have gotten the second, and Thomas believes Smith worked in Curtis' best interests.
'Nobody says it [Curtis would have won the decision]” said Felder. 'But in such a battle… . That fight should not have been stopped. . . . There is a second on the clock and Kopylov is nowhere near him. . . . I wish he would have had the chance to at least stand his ground and have the decision read out, instead of it being a TKO.
Thomas disagreed: “I'm siding with Mark Smith on this. . . . It is not his job to ensure that the fighter achieves a moral victory. . . . It is not the referee's job to watch the clock […]”
“I couldn't disagree with that more though, Din,” Felder chided. “The man is still standing, there is no fighter around. . . . Even if the clock is not there, you have to let it go!”
Unfortunately, nothing can be done about the strike. Curtis should have the opportunity to appeal the decision, but it is usually a fruitless endeavor.
Bad luck for Chris Curtis
Curtis' last five fights have all been marred in some way. 'The Action Man' was headbutted en route to his decision loss to Kelvin Gastelum. Another headbutt caused a no contest between Curtis and Nassourdine Imavov – who is now challenging Israel Adesanya.
After this, Curtis got a tight split-decision over Marc-Andre Barriault. Then an injury affected the judges' scorecards in Curtis' rematch loss to Brendan Allen. Curtis' last-second TKO loss to Kopylov is the icing on the cake of an unlucky streak – granted, it won't continue.
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