While Yair Rodriguez unquestionably stole the show at UFC Denver with his electrifying last second knockout of all-action favorite Chan Sung Jung, Chas Skelly found himself at the center of the night’s biggest controversy. The ‘Scrapper’ suffered a second round submission defeat at the hands of UFC newcomer Bobby Moffett. But, it’s a loss that had many fans and pundits saying that Skelly had been robbed.
After spending most of the first round on Moffett’s back, Skelly was cuaght off guard in round 2 by what looked to be a deep D’arce choke attempt. Skelly circled away and actively fought the choke for several seconds before stopping and appearing to relax his body. That was when the ref stepped in to declare him unconscious, after which Skelly leapt to his feet in protest.
“Dude, it sucks for the ref, because I can understand the ref saying, ‘Oh, well he was kinda limp,’” explained Beneil Dariush, a BJJ black belt who also competed on the Denver card, when asked about the controversial submission finish in Skelly’s fight. “But at the same time, what [Skelly] is saying makes perfect sense. He hip escapes out; when you’re stuck in a d’arce, you want to come on top of the guy, because that angle relieves the pressure. And when you come on top of the guy, you relax.
“So, he doesn’t know who’s grabbing his arm, he’s just trying to relax because it gives him room to breathe. And the ref stops it. So, the ref couldn’t have known, he probably thought he was out, I just feel for the guy. Honestly, I really do. I don’t think that should have been considered a finish...”
The fight ending sequence was sent to video review by the referee and commission officials. However, the decision in the cage was upheld, with Moffett ultimately awarded a TKO victory via technical submission. It’s an especially tough break for Skelly, as the review process appeared to rely heavily on the referee changing his interpretation of events as he experienced them. And the result is Skelly’s second strait loss. A loss he may end up appealing, provided he can guarantee it doesn’t cost Moffett any money for his win.
“If I can get a guarantee that Bobby will not lose his win bonus with a No Contest,” Skelly wrote on Twitter, “then I’m gonna appeal. If he loses the win bonus, then I’m just gonna leave it alone... but I would like to run it back.”
“I really wanted this to be a tough, hard fight,” Skelly explained to the assembled media during his post-fight presser, “and for it to end the way that it did is sad. You know, I’m sure I’ll go through the steps and try to appeal it first thing in the morning. But, I don’t want to take anything away from Bobby. I think he fought a great fight. I think he’s improved a lot; his striking has improved a lot and he’s a tough fighter. So, I don’t want to take anything away from the guy. He came out and fought a tough fight, and I had his back the whole first round. And, to be able to defend when I have your back, you’re pretty good. Because I can choke anybody from there. So, I don’t want to take anything away from the guy, but I will say, I wasn’t out. I wasn’t close to being out.”
Skelly claims that outside of the debate that his arm may have gone limp, the referee told him that he saw Skelly’s eyes flutter. That explanation doesn’t track with what he feels happened, however.
“I don’t need to watch the replay,” Skelly responded, when asked about if he saw what the ref explained on video. “I said, ‘There’s no fucking way my eyes fluttered, because I wasn’t in any way, shape, or form, out.’ I remember the whole thing, I remember exactly what happened. I know exactly what was going through my mind. I was defending it perfect.”
Even if Skelly does end up appealing the loss, it seems unlikely that the result would be overturned. Commissions often require evidence that a referee was willfully negligent or improper in their interpretation of rules to overturn a result. It leaves a lot of wiggle room for decisions made in the moment, based on what a referee thought they saw or felt was happening. A tough break for Skelly, but likely one he’ll have to live with.