Referee Makes 12-6 Elbow Call That May Have Cost Alvarez UFC Title Shot

Eddie Alvarez may have been on his way to victory earlier tonight (Sat., July 28, 2018) at UFC on FOX 30 from inside Scotiabank Saddledome in Calgary, Alberta, Canada, before referee Marc Goddard flagged a 12-6 elbow that “Underground King” landed on the shoulder of fellow lightweight Dustin Poirier.

Alvarez had “Diamond” trapped along the cage in full mount and decided to elbow Poirier’s shoulder from a 12-6 position. Rules state that any form of a 12-6 elbow, not just to the head, is an illegal strike. Goddard made the call, stood the two fighters up, and allowed Poirier to regain momentum on the feet before an eventual TKO win over Alvarez.

It was certainly a difficult call to make, considering the minimal damage the elbow caused and the magnitude of the lightweight main event matchup, but Goddard ultimately blew his whistle.

Poirier, who captured the biggest win of his career tonight, revealed after the fight that the illegal elbow didn’t worry him at all.

“The elbow actually landed on my shoulder,” Poirier said during his post-fight interview. “It didn’t hurt me at all. It felt like a normal elbow, I’m not even sure.”

“After the fight Eddie said, ‘They stood you up though,’ like I won the fight because of that. But don’t throw a 12-6 elbow just like you don’t knee a downed opponent.”

There’s also this untimely video showing Alvarez’s corner signaling him to throw a 12-6 elbow on Poirier:

Adding to the circus is the fact that Alvarez got kneed in the groin during the final moments of the fight but nothing was called.

At the end of the day, Goddard made the proper call because it lies within the MMA rule book. But it’s an eye opener that maybe the rule needs to be changed. Alvarez was in optimal position along the cage, Poirier didn’t even feel a difference with the elbow, and the infraction may have cost “Underground King” a potential UFC lightweight title shot.

Maybe these two guys should fight again and again until a result without controversy occurs.

What say you, Maniacs?