“Giving the French fighter the wins” - Referee controversially calls off fight after possible low blow at UFC Paris, triggers outcry on Twitter

Nothing is more disappointing for the fight fans than an unceremonious ending to a fight and that’s exactly what happened at the UFC Paris event on September 3. The fight between William Gomis and Yanis Ghemmouri came to an abrupt end due to the referee’s questionable decision. MMA Twitter did not agree with the outcome and brutally trolled the official in the comments section.

French fighters William Gomis and Yanis Ghemmouri battled it out for three rounds in a fairly even featherweight contest that seemed to be tilting in Gomis’ direction. In round three, Gomis landed two body kicks on his compatriot. The strike seemed to have hurt the 28-year-old.

However, he protested that the kick landed on his groin. Referee Loic Pora immediately called off the fight, awarding a TKO win to William Gomis. Replays showed that the kick landed on the belt line but the decision was already made.

Watch the video below:

MMA fans did not take the absurd stoppage likely and brutally trolled referee Loic Pora online. Here are some of the reactions that caught our attention:

“Ref had his money on Gomis by TKO in round 3,” @AirNeinstin joked.

“They’re literally openly giving just the French fighters the wins,” @JackJ55276 commented, not realizing that both men belonged to France.

MMA Twitter reacts to UFC Paris stoppage

UFC Paris stoppage did not align with unified MMA rules

The unified MMA rules state that the referee has to call time when a fighter has been struck with a low blow. Upon determination of the foul, the fighter is given five-minute time to recover. If he fails to do so, the fighter who committed a low blow is declared the loser by disqualification. However, this protocol was not followed by referee Loic Pora at UFC Paris when he stopped the fight prematurely.