Lauzon vs. Ray varied score explained
Stevie Ray beat Joe Lauzon via Majority Decision, but the scores were all over the place.
UFC performance bonus leader Joe Lauzon fought up and coming Stevie Ray on the main card of UFC Fight Night 108 Saturday night. Ray won via Majority Decision, but the scores were all over the place. One judge had the fight even, one had Lauzon down one round, and one had Lauzon down two rounds.
Lauzon dominated the first round, taking Ray down, holding him there, bloodying him with fists and elbows, taking his back, and coming close with a choke. Ray came back in the second, winning it via strikes. In between the second and third rounds Lauzon told his corner he was exhausted. In the third, Ray continued his standing attack, with a tired Lauzon less able to mount an offense than he had in the second.
Many expected a draw, with Lauzon winning the first round 10-8 and Ray winning 2 and 3 via 10-9. However, when the scores were read it was 29-28, 29-27, 28-28.
Commentator Brian Stann said he wished he could get a look at the judge’s scorecards. Here they are:
Here's the scorecard for Joe Lauzon vs. Stevie Ray #UFCNashville pic.twitter.com/DYVtvQk6lX
— Damon Martin (@DamonMartin) April 23, 2017
There was agreement only in the second round, which was 10-9 on all three judge’s scorecards. Two of the judges, Dave Tirelli and Chris Lee, saw Round 1 as a 10-8 for Lauzon, while Jeff Mullen saw it 10-9. Then in Round 3 Lee and Mullen saw it 10-8 for Ray, while Tirelli saw it 10-9. And that is how there were three rounds, three judges, and three different scores.
The bottom line with unusual decisions is as UFC president Dana White frequently intones, “Don’t leave it in the hands of the judges.”
