One of the most famous quotes in all of MMA, if not the most famous quote, is “Never leave it in the hands of the judges.”
It’s a quote so synonymous with the sport that UFC President Dana White put it up on the wall at the old Ultimate Fighter gym. Which isn’t incredibly surprising when we understand that he’s essentially the one that popularized it.
A common problem people have had with that quote on top of its clear meaning is that judging and decisions are a part of the sport and what helps make it a sport. A decision literally the most historically common outcome that a fight can have. Fighters should be able to leave their fates up to the judges rather than feeling pressured into having to change their whole gameplans or fighting styles because of created public perceptions – whether right or wrong.
The implications of the quote are that of the judges simply being untrustworthy to do their job properly. However, shouldn’t they be?
Everyone makes mistakes here and there. No one is perfect no matter what their area of expertise is. But when it comes to MMA judging in particular, no one is vilified more for screwing up than a judge and praised less for being accurate.
Without judging and decisions, we’re taking away the sporting aspect of MMA which almost killed it before it got going during its infant years where they didn’t exist.
The MMA judging chair is quite possibly the most consistently hottest seat across all sports. It’s easy for those judging the judges to forget that those handing in their scorecards were selected to do their job for a reason and had to train to achieve it.
Lengthy training courses need to be taken to become a judge in MMA and the process is a whole lot more rigorous than many surely assume. There’s a wealth of knowledge to be absorbed in such a diverse activity.
According to retired former UFC title challenger Frank Trigg, who now referees, commentates, and judges around the world, it took him a year to get fully licensed. He said for most it takes about two years but in his case, he wanted to be done as quickly as possible and it still took 365 days at the least.
While they’re often the magnets of vile community backlash, that surely plays a part in why we don’t hear too much from them and their sides of things publicly. Because of that, it got us at MyMMANews curious.
What would judges say are the common fan misconceptions about judging? What is the hardest part about judging? Do they ever feel any sort of pressure as a judge? Why do they judge in the first place?
Well, we reached out to several of MMA’s most notable judges and asked all of them the same four questions. Those who ended up responding were Dave Hagen, Ben Cartlidge, and David Lethaby.
Continued: Hottest seat in the house: The ever-criticized MMA judge
