“Absolute insanity” – MMA fans expose UFC 288 judge for costing Henry Cejudo iconic title win with sloppy scoring in championship round

Controversial scoring of round five in the main event of UFC 288 costs Henry Cejudo. The judge who scored it for Aljamain Sterling completely changed the fight's result.

“Absolute insanity” – MMA fans expose UFC 288 judge for costing Henry Cejudo iconic title win with sloppy scoring in championship round

A judge scored round for five for Aljamain Sterling (Image Courtesy - MMA Fighting)

MMA judging has become the biggest problem in the sport. Each fight event continues to get marred with sloppy judging decisions. At UFC 288, the main event became controversial with the judges’ scorecard. Aljamain Sterling defended his bantamweight title against Henry Cejudo. However, the scorecard created controversy when a judge scored the fifth round for Aljamain Sterling.

In the fight’s final round, Cejudo became more active and landed better shots. Sterling ran around the cage after believing he had won three rounds. Two judges scored the final round for Henry Cejudo, but one scored it for Sterling. The judge that scored the fifth round in favor of Sterling changed the result. Hence, Sterling got the victory via a split decision.

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The fight started with a fast-paced back-and-forth action. Cejudo got the first takedown of the fight. However, Sterling got back up and outwrestled his opponent in the first round. Sterling was the more active fighter in the bout. He landed 186 strikes from 261 attempts. Ring rust might have taken a toll on Cejudo. Cejudo found it challenging to get into a rhythm during the fight.

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Sterling fought with little to no action in the last round. It led two judges to score the round for Cejudo. However, one judge scored it for Sterling. Fight fans and analysts got baffled by that judge’s decision. After five rounds, Sterling won the fight via split decision. Cejudo did not announce his retirement from MMA, but his future remains uncertain.

Related: “Done the splits like a stripper” – Conor McGregor and fans troll ‘mastermind’ Henry Cejudo for failed comeback after hype

Fans get angry at the judge for scoring round five for Aljamain Sterling

Henry Cejudo Aljamain Sterling
Face off before UFC 288 (Image Courtesy – The Mirror)

Aljamain Sterling entered UFC 288 to break the bantamweight record for the most title defenses. Cejudo came intending to reclaim the title he never lost. However, the result of the fight came down to a judge’s decision. Fans took to Twitter to express their displeasure. Check out some of the fan reactions:

Aljamain Sterling will now defend his title against Sean O’Malley. If he can defend the title one more time, he will become the greatest bantamweight fighter of all time. On the other hand, Cejudo indicated that he might retire after the fight at UFC 288. However, he has not made a decision yet.

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