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City Kickboxing have confirmed that Brad Riddell did not "wave off" his fight against Rafael Fiziev after being hurt in the final round.
Last Saturday night in the co-main event of UFC Vegas 44, Brad Riddell and Rafael Fiziev went to war in a classic lightweight contest. It was billed as a battle between two men who, if they play their cards right, could easily be future title contenders at 155 pounds.
In the end it played out as many expected with both warriors throwing everything they had at the other in an attempt to get their hand raised. When it was all said and done, though, it was Rafael Fiziev who secured the victory with a nasty spinning wheel kick finish.
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It rocked Brad Riddell to the point where he seemed to make a gesture with his hands just before the referee stopped the fight, indicating to some that he may have tried to get it waved off due to how hurt he was. City Kickboxing, however, were quick to dismiss that idea.
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In an Instagram post, the gym wrote:
"FYI for those that mistakenly think @bradquakeriddell called this fight off with some strange hand gesture, you couldn’t be more wrong- In close to 100 fights he has never been TKO’d or KO’d until this fight. He would never call a fight off ever, that’s what coaches & corners are there for. It is not in Brad’s DNA to call a fight off. A Brilliant kick separated Brads conscious brain from his body, checkmate. Toughest sport on earth!"
Is this the first time Brad Riddell has lost in MMA?
CKB noted in their Instagram post that Brad Riddell hadn't been TKO'd or KO'd up until this fight and that appears to be true. In terms of his mixed martial arts career, it was actually only the second time he'd tasted defeat, dropping his overall professional record to 10-2.
His only other loss came at the hands of Abel Brites back in July 2018. That night, he was submitted via armbar and his record dropped to 3-1.
He proceeded to win seven straight, including four in the UFC, which would seem to indicate that this isn't the last we've seen of him at the elite level.
