Changed attitude: why Yan and Ankalaev suffered due to refereeing decisions in the UFC

Over the past year, the UFC has hosted a number of important fights involving the Russians, but four of them stand out in particular.

We are talking about the title fights of Islam Makhachev, Magomed Ankalaev and Petr Yan, as well as the fight of the latter with Sean O'Malley for the right to become the first contender for the belt in his category.

Only the lightweight managed to take the upper hand in his battle ahead of schedule, in the other three the winner was determined by the judges.

And in each case, by a majority of votes, they actually gave preference to the rivals of domestic athletes, to the surprise of not only fans, but also journalists and specialists.  

By far the most egregious incident occurred at UFC 282, in the main event of which Ankalaev fought Jan Blachowicz for the vacant light heavyweight title.

The Russian started well, after which he missed too many low kicks and experienced serious problems, but subsequently managed to turn the tide of the confrontation.

However, neither dominance in the championship rounds, nor the fact that two referees gave him the last five minutes with a score of 10:8 helped him to get the upper hand.

The battle ended in a draw, and Magomed was not only spoiled by the statistics, but also deprived of the status of the applicant.

The heated Dana White criticized both opponents for a boring fight, and decided to play the trophy in a duel between Glover Teixeira and Jamal Hill.

And Peter Yan was unlucky twice.

At first, he was not given preference in an equal fight with Sterling, and then the victory was given to the promoted Sean O'Malley.

And although there were reasons for this, two consecutive decisions not in his favor somehow make one think about bias and injustice.

Especially if you remember that the Russian dominated the second confrontation.

It must be understood that each of the domestic fighters is partly to blame for the current situation.

In none of these fights their advantage was overwhelming, both made mistakes and gave the opponents the right to impose a fight.

The same Yan fought Sterling on equal terms in the first round, but outright lost the second and third, allowing the opponent to execute two takedowns at once.

And in the battle with O'Malley, he missed heavy blows twice - first a left straight, and then a knee to the head, and also lost in the number of hits (58:84).

Ankalaev, though constantly moving forward, paid too little attention to Blachowicz's low-kicks, which ultimately not only caused serious damage to his legs, but also forced him to switch to a backup plan - not so spectacular, but effective.

But even these mistakes do not negate the fact that Ankalaev and Jan had a very worthy fight in both fights and had every right to count on victories.

Therefore, as a justification for controversial verdicts, not objective indicators come to mind, but near-sporting moments that could have influenced the jury to one degree or another.

And the point here can be both in a biased attitude towards the Russians against the backdrop of the geopolitical situation in the world, and in another.

For example, Magomed has been criticized before for his unwillingness to win ahead of schedule and effectively knock out opponents.

He was extremely careful in duels with Nikita Krylov, Volkan Ozdemir and Thiago Santos, and he didn’t take much risks with Anthony Smith either.

And who knows how it would have ended if the American had not broken his leg and become an easy target.

However, is this sufficient reason to deliberately take rounds from him?

Big question.

But if Ankalaev partially became a victim of his own style, then Jan - of circumstances.

It is possible that in the rematch with Sterling, both the act of Peter in the first fight and the contrast between them influenced the outcome.

Unlike the Russian, Algemain improved a lot and at times looked noticeably better.

And the desire to additionally punish the Russian for a gross misconduct in March 2021 was also present.

In the case of O'Malley, everything is much simpler: Ruthless met with one of the most hyped and media fighters of the championship, whose ascension to the top is much more beneficial to the leadership.

The examples of Ankalaev and Yan clearly show that in order to count on success, Russian fighters must either completely outnumber their opponents or defeat them ahead of schedule.

The first method was recently chosen by Rinat Fakhretdinov and Arman Tsarukyan, the second by Makhachev and Sergey Pavlovich, who is making his way to the status of the first contender for the title in the heavyweight division with leaps and bounds.

But what can athletes who do not have such wrestling skills and knockout power expect?

Surely some might get the impression that if the Russians are not being squeezed out of the league, then at least they are trying to restrain them.

And this theory has a right to exist.

At home, Americans are much more popular and able to attract attention - especially against the background of the modest Magomed and the laconic Yan.

From a marketing point of view, the latter are not the best candidates for champions, as they are unable to bring the UFC much profit.

And this could also become a factor in determining the victor.

As a result, for several weeks there were rumors about Jan's possible departure from the promotion, after which Ankalaev also announced uncertainty about his future.

Undoubtedly, Magomed's emotional statements were the result of a strange verdict, but the fact remains.

It is unpleasant for athletes to realize that in key fights, referees make decisions based not on their actions in the cage, but on other factors.

The problem is that there is still no worthy alternative to the UFC and is unlikely to appear soon.

And they are unlikely to want to move to less prestigious organizations - Bellator, PFL and ONE FC.

Especially after they have already sat on the throne of the division or got close to it.

Thus, the Russians have no choice but to try to win as confidently and spectacularly as possible.

And it is possible that this is exactly what the UFC is trying to achieve.

At least in the case of Ankalaev, who is capable of demonstrating much more vivid and bloody confrontations.