Fighters rip judges' decision in UFC 313 bout: 'Clear robbery'
A controversial decision at UFC 313 sent social media into a frenzy Saturday night.
Featherweight Mairon Santos earned a split-decision victory over Francis Marshall on the preliminary card. Judges Chris Lee and David Lethaby scored the fight 29-28 for Santos, while judge Derek Cleary had it 30-27 in favor of Marshall.
Santos had the edge in significant strikes 58-39 and total strikes 78-64, though Marshall dropped him in the first round. Marshall also completed three takedowns and amassed over two-and-a-half minutes of control time throughout the fight.
Several fighters sounded off on the judges' scorecards on X following the bout:
Henry Cejudo
"The fix is in!" he wrote.
Aljamain Sterling
"At this point, I have no idea how to score fights anymore," he wrote. "Great fight nonetheless, and I need to watch it again because maybe I'm missing something?"
Renato Moicano
"Two robberies in a row!" he wrote. "We will have a long night."
Michael Chiesa
"The judges are only there to break your heart," he wrote. "That decision was awful."
Corey Anderson
"First robbery of the night," he wrote. "Marshall won all three rounds. In the words of Burt Watson, 'Don't leave it in the hands of the judges. They'll make you cry every time baby!'"
Derek Brunson
"Damn, second fight of the night and already an awful decision," he wrote. "I thought Francis Marshall won that fight. It's 2025, and we still don't have a definitive scoring system in MMA!"
Thiago Moises
"OMG, that was unbelievable," he wrote. "Clearly (a) robbery."
Cody Durden
"Clear robbery!" he wrote.
Casey O'Neill
"Brooooo," she wrote. "Two bad judge calls tonight. Holy f--k."
Vince Morales
"Bruhhhhh!" he wrote. "(I don't know) about these judges already."
Dennis Buzukja
"Thought Marshall won that (to be honest)," he wrote.
Jeff Molina
"Judges wrongfully changing the trajectory of fighters' careers and facing zero consequences every weekend," he wrote.
Kyle Daukaus
"Robbery alert," he wrote.