John McCarthy explains why referee was right to stop fight after Kevin Holland snapped opponent's arm: "It does not matter if the fighter did not tap"

Veteran referee John McCarthy has defended the decision by Herb Dean to stop the fight between Kevin Holland and Michal Oleksiejczuk at UFC Fight Night 205, despite Oleksiejczuk not tapping out.

The first-round bout ended with a controversial finish, as Holland secured an arm bar on Oleksiejczuk. While Oleksiejczuk refused to tap, replays showed his arm hyperextending in a way that suggested a possible dislocation or break. Referee Dean intervened and stopped the fight, awarding Holland the win via technical submission.

Oleksiejczuk immediately protested the stoppage, but McCarthy, a retired MMA referee with extensive experience, believes Dean made the right call.

In a social media post, McCarthy stated:

"What’s up Alan. As a Professional Fighter the referee should allow the fighter all the opportunity to extricate themselves from the submission. But if the referee sees a dislocation or a break of the limb, the fight is over. It does not matter if the fighter did not tap. When you look at records and you see Winner by “Technical Submission Armbar” it is telling you that the losing fighter allowed the limb to be broken or dislocated. If you see it with a choke it is telling you that the fighter went unconscious from the sub without tapping"

Check out John McCarthy's post below:

---

Kevin Holland explains the armbar finish on Michał Oleksiejczuk

Kevin Holland secured a dramatic submission victory over Michał Oleksiejczuk at UFC 302, but it wasn't without its tense moments. In a post-fight interview, Holland shed light on his thought process during the submission attempt.

Holland explained that after initially applying the armbar, he heard a pop. However, Oleksiejczuk's resilience forced him to crank the submission further, fearing it wouldn't be enough.

"When I first put him in the armbar, I heard the pop. After that, it wasn't popping again, and I was like, 'I'm gonna have to go full blown break.' So, I kept trying like a chihuahua scoot, you know what I mean? Get myself underneath there, and then he had a good pull after that. But the guy's tough as hell, he hit me with a good shot."

Check out Kevin Holland's comments below: