In combat sports, coaches and corner men have an important job. Their duty is not only to instruct the fighter leading up to the contest but to keep him calm, focused and safe during the battle. Trevor Wittman embodied that role when he protected former champion Nate Marquardt from more damage at the hands of Kelvin Gastelum at UFC 188 on June 13.
Gastelum defeated Marquardt via corner stoppage in the second round of their middleweight fight. Marquardt had taken a vicious beating up to that point, and Wittman stepped in to bring the fight to an end. Steven Marrocco of MMA Junkie reported that Wittman decided to stop the fight with one minute left in the second round.
“Taking needless damage is not good in this sport,” Wittman said. “The damage is when it affects your sharpness and the way you perform, and to see him take punishment, that’s longevity and him having kids.”
Marquardt supported his coach’s decision when the fighter was questioned about how the bout ended. He used his Facebook page to address his performance.
“Now I can say that Trevor did the right thing and protected me because I couldn’t move,” he wrote. “I’m not trying to make an excuse for losing. I don’t really feel that I need an excuse because I did my best with what I had and fought hard when I could.”
Wittman is a shining example of how a corner should act in such a situation. Mark Hunt was in a similar position when Stipe Miocic was battering him for an extended period of time at UFC Fight Night 65 in May. Instead of his corner stopping the fight, Hunt was allowed to continue until referee John Sharp ended the beating in the fifth round.
Multiple media experts expressed that this fight should have been stopped earlier:
As mixed martial arts becomes more mainstream and receives coverage from larger outlets, situations such as these need to be minimalized. The sport is brutal, and violent moments will occur; however, corners and coaches need to play their part in protecting the fighters.
Wittman did his part for Marquardt; hopefully, other coaches will be willing to follow suit if their athlete is caught in a similar situation.
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