The People Vs. Peoples
LOS ANGELES – Referee and judge Cecil Peoples has no doubts he scored the main event of Lyoto Machida vs….
LOS ANGELES – Referee and judge Cecil Peoples has no doubts he scored the main event of Lyoto Machida vs. Mauricio Rua correctly, though he admits he struggled with the first round of the fight.
Minutes after the judges’ decision announced Machida the winner at UFC 104, boos showered Los Angeles’ Staples Center. Reporters collectively scratched their heads. On the Wikipedia entry for the card, someone slipped fixed fight beside the decision for Machida.
UFC president Dana White thought Rua won and greenlighted an immediate rematch.
Peoples, 61, has often been the target of fan outcry for his judging, or lack thereof. He attributes the attacks to his kickboxing background and a memorable name (which is always announced last, he claims).
The fans and all the naysayers, I don’t worry about, he said. I don’t back down because it’s not popular.
Peoples said Tuesday he has not reviewed last Saturday’s fight, nor the statistics compiled in its wake that overwhelmingly gave the decision to Rua (he has done so only once, after Georges St. Pierre at UFC 58). He maintains that in a close fight, quality of damage is king.
My thing is, Rua did hit him more, said Peoples. But Machida hit him harder, especially in the early rounds.