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Last weekend’s UFC 259 featured three title fights. And while two of them saw the champions retain their titles, the third saw one of the most controversial title changes in UFC history.
The UFC has seen several title fights end controversially over the years, with UFC 259 seeing the most recent entry.
With that in mind, ignoring contentious judges’ decisions, here are five UFC title fights that ended in controversial circumstances.
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#1 Petr Yan vs. Aljamain Sterling – UFC Bantamweight title, UFC 259
Naturally, it’s worth looking at the most recent UFC title fight to end in controversial circumstances first.
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The UFC Bantamweight title clash between champion Petr Yan and challenger Aljamain Sterling was one of the most highly anticipated fights at UFC 259. It lived up to the hype in the early going.
Sterling took the fight to Yan in the first round, bouncing back from a knockdown to outwork ‘No Mercy’.
As the fight ticked into the second and third round, the Russian champion took over, landing the heavier strikes and taking ‘The Funk Master’ down on numerous occasions.
However, nobody could’ve seen what was about to happen next.
With Sterling on his knees following a failed takedown attempt, Yan made the error of landing a brutal knee to his head, despite being told not to by referee Mark Smith.
Sterling was instantly knocked out by what was clearly an illegal blow, and after being checked over by the doctor, it was decided that he couldn’t continue.
Perhaps inspired by the WWE’s rule that a title can’t change hands on a disqualification, even commentator Joe Rogan seemed confused as to what would happen next, but the truth soon dawned on everyone.
Yan was disqualified for the illegal blow and Sterling became the first fighter in UFC history to win a UFC title by disqualification.
The UFC is likely to book an immediate rematch between the two soon, and rightfully so, but that won’t stop this title fight from being remembered as one of the UFC’s most controversial.
#2 Tim Sylvia vs. Frank Mir – UFC Heavyweight title, UFC 48
This was a strange fight to begin with.
Tim Sylvia won the UFC Heavyweight title at UFC 41 and defended it against Gan McGee at UFC 44, but a positive test for a banned substance saw him stripped of the gold shortly thereafter.
But strangely, rather than crowning a new champion, the UFC simply waited for Sylvia to return and booked him right into a title fight with Andrei Arlovski.
And when that fight fell apart, Sylvia was booked in a fight with rising star Frank Mir to decide the new champion instead.
‘The Maine-Iac’ was widely expected to stop Mir and pick up where he left off with the title, but the exact opposite happened.
Sylvia made the error of taking Mir – a submission expert – to the ground in the fight’s opening seconds. And right away, Mir rolled for an armbar and appeared to be on the verge of locking it up when referee Herb Dean stepped in to stop the fight.
Confusion then reigned, as it appeared that Dean had made a major gaffe. Sylvia stood up, apparently unhurt, while the crowd chanted in anger at the events they’d just witnessed.
Even commentators Mike Goldberg and Joe Rogan seemed baffled – until they saw a replay of what’d happened.
Essentially, before he’d had a chance to tap out, Sylvia’s forearm had snapped in two as he tried to escape the armbar. Dean had quite rightly stopped the fight, and evidently, adrenaline was the only thing preventing Sylvia from being in serious pain.
And so Mir was controversially crowned the champion, while Sylvia spent the next seven months on the shelf.
#3 Randy Couture vs. Vitor Belfort – UFC Light-Heavyweight title, UFC 46
When the UFC booked Vitor Belfort as Randy Couture’s first light heavyweight title challenger in early 2004, everyone expected an instant classic.
Not only had Belfort returned to form in late 2003 with a nasty KO of Marvin Eastman, but he’d also put on a war with Couture at UFC 15 that ended with ‘The Natural’ becoming the first man to stop the Brazilian.
At UFC 46, Belfort would avenge his loss, but not in the way anyone would’ve hoped.
As the fight began, Couture rushed ‘The Phenom’ to grab a clinch, possibly dodging a left hand in the process. But as the two grappled, it was clear something was wrong.
Referee John McCarthy quickly stepped in, and sure enough, Couture was badly injured.
His left eyelid was hanging off. Replays showed that a freak occurrence had caused the injury – the stitching of Belfort’s glove had caught Couture's eye as he dodged the punch.
It immediately became clear that Couture was in no state to continue, and after just 49 seconds, the fight was stopped – with Belfort winning the UFC Light-Heavyweight title on what was a technicality.
The UFC booked an immediate rematch, and Couture would take his title back at UFC 49 just seven months later.
However, the ending of this title fight at UFC 46 remains one of the most maligned – and controversial - in UFC history.
#4 Murilo Bustamante vs. Matt Lindland – UFC Middleweight title, UFC 37
This UFC Middleweight title fight saw a major blunder from referee ‘Big’ John McCarthy. Thankfully, a truly controversial ending was avoided by the brilliance of champion Murilo Bustamante.
‘Busta’ faced Olympic Greco-Roman wrestling silver medallist Matt Lindland in what was billed as a tricky fight for him.
‘The Law’ had put together a 7-0 record and had beaten the likes of Pat Miletich and Ricardo Almeida since debuting in the UFC in 2000.
Bustamante, meanwhile, was considered one of the world’s best pound-for-pound fighters, but how he would deal with Lindland’s wrestling was still a question mark.
As it turned out, the Brazilian simply outclassed ‘The Law’ in all areas. And late in the first round, it appeared he’d finished the fight when Lindland tapped out to an armbar.
McCarthy stepped in to wave the fight off, but somehow Lindland was able to convince the veteran referee that he hadn’t submitted.
Replays revealed the tap. But for reasons known only to himself, McCarthy restarted the fight, essentially giving Lindland another chance.
Bustamante and his corner were naturally furious, but thankfully, the Brazilian had the last laugh.
Remaining calm, he continued to dominate Lindland in the second round, and in the third, floored him and applied a tight guillotine choke.
It forced a bloody Lindland to tap out and this time, McCarthy stopped the fight for good.
Both Bustamante and Lindland have long been forgotten by most UFC fans, but mention the “phantom tap-out”, and this fight still immediately comes to mind.
#5 Carlos Newton vs. Matt Hughes – UFC Welterweight title, UFC 34
A true UFC legend, Matt Hughes is widely recognized as one of the greatest welterweights in UFC history.
The native of Hillsborough, Illinois, held the UFC welterweight title twice and made seven successful title defenses.
However, it’s easy to forget that he initially won the title in a highly controversial manner.
Hughes went to war with champion Carlos Newton at UFC 34, and the fight proved to be an instant classic. After two rounds of action, it looked like Hughes was in trouble.
Newton – a submission expert – locked on a tight triangle choke, and it looked like Hughes’ title challenge was dead in the water. Hughes, though, had other ideas.
He lifted Newton into the air with the triangle choke still locked on, and walked him over towards the fence.
Newton leaned his arms on the fence while still using his legs to choke Hughes, and moments later, the challenger’s legs gave out.
Hughes fell to the ground, apparently unconscious – but in doing so, he slammed Newton to the ground, knocking the champion out too.
For a moment at least, nobody could tell quite what’d happened – until Hughes regained consciousness before Newton and was declared the winner and new champion.
The finish was so controversial and unique that WWE ended up ripping it off months later for a match between The Undertaker and Kurt Angle.
Meanwhile, due to the controversial nature of his title win, Hughes was quickly forced to rematch Newton less than a year later. This time he left no doubt, stopping ‘The Ronin’ via TKO to cement himself as the UFC’s best welterweight.
