The next Nevada Athletic Commission hearing is scheduled for Aug. 13, however, don’t expect referee Steve Mazagatti’s performance in the Rousimar Palhares vs. Jake Shields World Series of Fighting welterweight title fight on Aug. 1 to be publicly addressed.
“I have discussed the challenges referee Mazzagatti encountered,” NAC executive director Bob Bennett told MMAFighting.com via e-mail, “and we will continue to move forward.”
Mazzagatti was criticized for his decision to not penalize Palhares during the fight after the Brazilian repeatedly eye gouged Shields. The veteran referee was also criticized for his positioning at the end of the fight, which may have led to Palhares holding onto his Kimura submission a beat or two longer than need be.
Of course, this isn’t the first time Mazagatti has been the subject of criticism following a fight. Long a target of UFC president Dana White, the Nevada-based referee has repeatedly made questionable decisions or been slow to react throughout his officiating career, and he has been assigned to less UFC cards in Las Vegas since Bennett replaced Keith Kizer as executive director of the NAC in April 2014.
Among many other topics (including Anderson Silva), the commission is expected to address Palhares’ offenses throughout the fight, as well as Shields’ post-fight punch after tapping to the Kimura. WSOF has stripped Palhares of the welterweight title and suspended him indefinitely, and the NAC also temporarily suspended both Shields and Palhares following the fight.
UFC Fight Pass will stream the hearing live to its subscribers on Thursday.