When middleweight champion Anderson Silva TKO’d No. 1 contender Chael Sonnen at the 1:55 mark of the second round of UFC 148, he shocked the world once again and thought he shut his foe up for good.
After analyzing the tape of the fight, Sonnen’s camp will appeal the decision.
While there were some questions about Silva holding Sonnen’s shorts and putting extra lubricant on his skin, the major infraction being talked about was the knee to the face that ultimately led to the TKO finish.
There is no questioning that The Spider did catch the No. 1 contender in the face while he was down with his knee, but the referee deemed it as an incidental shot.
While the Sonnen camp has the right to appeal, the word of the referee is final.
Sonnen’s coach Scott McQuarry today told MMAjunkie.com about what Silva did wrong and what grounds they will be appealing:
Obviously, there were minor infractions of grabbing shorts and greasing himself up, but the knee to the face … I’ve looked at it from numerous angles. I can see where it hit his face. It did slide down to his chest. But that should be considered a no-contest. What I’m looking for is a rematch.
Sonnen’s team knows they won’t get the call reversed, so they are doing the best they can to keep their fighter at the top of the heap. The absolute worst case scenario is that the team loses the appeal.
If there is a chance that appealing this case could get Sonnen a rematch—even if it’s one percent—it’s the responsibility of his coaches and his trainers to make that happen. In this case, there may actually be valid points to the argument.
While I still see this fight as being decided the way it should have, looking at it objectively and looking for the illegal knee, there may be a case. There is no way this fight will ever be ruled a no-contest, but Sonnen’s camp owes him the effort of trying.
Nothing will come of this appeal, and Sonnen will be forced to earn his way back to the top of the middleweight division. At 35 years old, there is no doubt that the road back to glory will be tough.
Good thing Sonnen’s one of the toughest fighters in the world.
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