Miragliotta gives ref’s viewpoint on Daley-Koscheck mess
Mike Chiappetta: You’ve been refereeing for over a decade. Have you ever seen a competitor hit another after the bell…
Mike Chiappetta: You’ve been refereeing for over a decade. Have you ever seen a competitor hit another after the bell like that before?
Dan Miragliotta: Never. That was the first time ever. I’ve seen it in boxing, but not in MMA.
MC: What was your reaction to it?
DM: I was shocked. I thought [Daley] was going to hug him. I thought it was over with. You’ve seen it before where guys hated each other, spoken poorly about each other, but when the fight is over, they still get up and give each other a hug and it’s over with. Because of the trash talk, I was trying to be on my toes during the touching of the gloves and after the final bell. I tried to stay close to him. When Daley reached for him, I thought he was going to hug him. I was wrong. He caught me off-guard.
MC: Did you see any anger in Daley’s face those last few seconds?
DM: I saw frustration. He couldn’t stop Josh from taking him down and controlling him on the ground. From what I heard of the pre-fight interviews, they both said they were going to make this a standup battle, and it wasn’t that way. Josh played his cards right and did what he had to do to win the fight. Daley was frustrated that it didn’t go his way. He’s a great fighter. Dana said many times the kid had such good potential. And honestly he’s always been respectful to me. I’ve met him a couple times and he’s always been nice and respectful. I was very shocked.
MC: What did you say to Daley when you pulled him away from Koscheck after the punch, and what did he respond to you?
DM: I said, ‘What are you doing? You’re a pro fighter. What are you thinking?’ He didn’t answer me, so I said it again. I was restraining him. He said, ‘I didn’t hear the bell.’ That was it. That’s all he said. Everybody else heard the bell.