When it comes to the UFC, sometimes the most difficult thing to obtain is an opportunity to demonstrate your abilities.
Most mma fighters spend their prime year competing on the local scene, hoping that the perfect fight at the right moment will give them their one big break.
So what do you do when you finally have your moment and are ready to show the world your skills, only to have your debut be marred by controversy?
I’m referring to Westin Wilson’s first UFC fight versus Joanderson Brito, in which Westin lost to a tko stoppage due to ground and pound.
Now, losing in the UFC is nothing new; it happens to a lot of competitors, but what if the loss is partly due to a fighter clutching the fence?
This is the scenario Westin Wilson finds himself in with his bout against Joanderson Brito on Saturday, January 7, 2023 on the preliminary event of UFC bout Night: Strickland vs. Magomedov.
So, when it comes to fighting, sometimes you only get one chance to secure a takedown or a submission, and it appears that is what Weston was attempting to do. He was working on a heel hook and in doing so, he was executing a sweep in order to take down Joanderson in order to better lock in the heel hook.
So, what happens if you start to execute your takedown, as Westin appears to have done, and Joanderson clutches the fence? Westin tries for it again, and Anderson clutches the fence once more before the ref slaps the hand from the cage.
Joanderson Brito seizes the chance, which quickly leads to a ground and pound stoppage of Westin Wison.
So now, in his UFC debut, he has a loss, and it was a controversial one. With the mma fighter’s career being so short, and it doesn’t take much for a fighter to be released from the promotion, can Weston afford for refs to be less aggressive in keeping fights from breaking the rules, which could result in fighters losing the match?
Time will tell, so let us see what happens next.
