Although yesterday’s (Sat., October 21, 2017) UFC Fight Night 118 from the Ergo Arena in Gdansk, Poland, may have been short on palpable buzz, the card did feature some antics from UFC lightweight champion Conor McGregor.
‘The Notorious’ appeared cageside to root for friend and training partner Artem Lobov, who met Andre Fili in the feature prelim bout in Gdansk. His tutelage could be heard from afar, and the brash Irish champ became even more animated by approaching the cage to give his instruction.
That was when referee Marc Goddard scolded McGregor by firmly telling him, “What’s gotten into you, Conor? Be professional.” He stepped back and settled himself as Lobov ultimately lost to Fili by decision. The day after, Goddard told MMA Fighting ‘The Notorious’ was essentially acting as a fourth cornerman and could have influenced the fight’s outcome:
“The reason I interjected is because Artem gets a fourth cornerman cage side giving instruction. That’s not allowed. Imagine had Conor talked him through a fight-ending sequence. Then what?
“Conor was basically acting like a fourth cornerman. Walking around the cage side wherever and whenever he wanted. When Fili took down Artem, Conor was right there. That’s simply not fair and not allowed. I won’t have it. He can’t do as he pleases.”
Goddard remained firm in his stance, clarifying that McGregor could have yelled as loudly as he wanted until he approached the cage. In his eyes, what he did was unfair, so Goddard made a steadfast call quickly to uphold the integrity of the match-up:
“If Conor had stood up, stayed at his seat, then he could have shouted till his hearts content. That’s what he’s supposed to do. But what he simply cannot do, what he is not allowed to do, is approach the cage at any point and as I say act as the fourth corner. That’s unfair and unjust. Anyone who knows me will tell you I’ve done this forever, in any country in any situation. My integrity is not wavered and neither is the rules. We can’t allow that. I simply had to act.”
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