Should an inexperienced ref be a cause for concern for UFC on FOX 2?
Rob Madrigal will be the only local referee utilized for tommorrow night’s UFC on FOX 2 event in Chicago. The…
Rob Madrigal will be the only local referee utilized for tommorrow night’s UFC on FOX 2 event in Chicago. The local referee has only officiated in 13 professional bouts in his two year career. Madrigal is scheduled to oversee the Demian Maia vs. Chris Weidman bout.
The latest controversy leading up to tomorrow’s second-ever UFC on Fox bout isn’t about the contenders’ verbal smackdowns; it centers on the only Chicago-area official slated to ref the three-card event, Rob Madrigal.
There are questions as to whether Madrigal, set to ref at least one preliminary bout, has the experience to be officiating an event of this size.
Association of Boxing Commissions president Tim Lueckenhoff told The Tribune yesterday that using someone with Madrigal’s pro experience in the UFC is “definitely, definitely” a safety risk. Per the Trib:
“You can’t allow that,” said Leukenhoff, who heads Missouri’s Office of Athletics. “You want to give guys experience but you don’t want to give experience on a world stage.”