Orlando Ramirez-USA TODAY Sports
Mexican fans didn’t appreciate the uneventful outcome of the UFC Mexico headliner between Yair Rodriguez and Jeremy Stephens.
UFC Mexico’s headliner fight between Yair Rodriguez and Jeremy Stephens didn’t go as planned for both fighters. An accidental eye poke from “El Pantera” inside 15 seconds of action left “Li’l Heathen” unable to open his eye, leading to a No Contest verdict.
To his credit, Herb Dean did all he could to keep the fight going, urging doctors to give Stephens a chance to open his eyes and recover. But after five minutes of inaction, the veteran referee called a stop to the fight.
Known as a fighting country, the Mexican fans in attendance were not pleased about the anti-climactic outcome. As Stephens was walking out of the arena, he was showered by beer and popcorn from the crowd.
The commotion was caught on video by reporter Eric Gomez.
Fans in Mexico City pelt Jeremy Stephens with beer and popcorn after fight is called. @espnmma @marc_raimondi pic.twitter.com/cxv2MlhljC
— Eric Gomez (@EricGomez86) September 22, 2019
¡Enloquecen los mexicanos!
Jeremy Stephens se queja de un piquete de ojos de @panteraufc y suspenden la pelea, así que el público le lanza de todo al estadounidense
@DMartinezCANCHA pic.twitter.com/1ne9c9XpsN
— CANCHA (@reformacancha) September 22, 2019
Stephens (28-16, with 1 NC and 21 wins by stoppage) entered Saturday night’s headliner with two consecutive losses, against Jose Aldo and Zabit Magomedsharipov, respectively. Rodriguez (11-2, with 1 NC and six wins by stoppage), meanwhile, scored a highlight reel knockout victory against “The Korean Zombie” Chan Sung Jung in November 2018.