UFC president Dana White has reiterated his disdain for MMA open scoring. Open scoring reveals how each judge has scored a fight after each round. The idea has been supported by elite fighters such as Max Holloway and was even trialed by Invicta FC during 2020.
Dana White Continues to Oppose MMA Open Scoring
Speaking to UFC on ESPN’s Laura Sanko at a virtual Q&A, Dana White made clear that he has no plans to introduce open scoring in the UFC. White expressed his belief that such a plan would reduce the drama surrounding mixed martial arts, leading to fighters playing it safe if winning by the third round.
White feels that the final round of each bout could end up being incredibly boring. “If you saw your score up there, all you have to do is stay away from this guy for the next five minutes. That makes for a lot of bad third rounds”.
White also was cautious that such a plan would potentially take the wind out of Bruce Buffer’s sails. He described the sensation of being told who wins a fight as being “blown away”, with open scoring “completely tak[ing] away the anticipation of who won the fight”.
The Argument for MMA Open Scoring
It is no secret that bad judging is rife in the world of mixed martial arts. Whether it’s not awarding valid 10-8 rounds or simply absurd decisions, it is rare to go through a complete MMA event without one bout being marred by a dodgy scorecard. Open judging could help to mitigate these robberies, putting pressure on losing fighters to step it up if they are clearly losing in the third round. Although it may not be the solution fight fans are searching for, it is certainly worth a try.
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