"There's no way Calvin won" - Brendan Schaub believes judges 'got it right' in Calvin Kattar vs. Josh Emmett fight
Brendan Schaub is convinced that Calvin Kattar lost his fight against Josh Emmett at UFC Austin. According to the former UFC fighter, the judges were right to score the split decision in favor of Emmett.
#UFCAustin Official Scorecard: Calvin Kattar vs Josh Emmett (@JoshEmmettUFC)
All Tonight's Scorecards: ufc.com/news/official-… https://t.co/3pzPT9vJ33
Schaub had initially planned on forming a narrative that sided with Kattar winning the closely contested bout. However, having watched the fight thrice, the TUF alum is convinced that Emmett outdid his opponent in the key area that is most relevant to judges – damage.
In the latest edition of The Schaub Show, 'Big Brown' said:
"Even though I know the outcome, I went in going, 'Oh I'm gonna watch this and I bet I can find a narrative where Calvin won. I'm gonna come on the show on Monday and argue it for Calvin and try to change the narrative.' Watched the fight three times, there's no way Calvin won."
Schaub added:
"I mean at best you have him [Kattar] winning two rounds... But outside that I don't see it and I hate saying that. I was hoping to argue for Calvin and as much as I love him, I can't. They got it right on this one."
Watch the latest episode of The Schaub Show below:
Josh Emmett scored a statement-making win over Calvin Kattar in the main event of UFC Austin last Saturday to put himself in a promising position in the featherweight division.
With the 145-pound title set to be contested next month between Alexander Volkanovski and Max Holloway, Emmett will be eyeing the victor when he returns to the octagon.
"I thought I was edging him out" - Calvin Kattar disagrees with split decision loss to Josh Emmett
The UFC Austin headliner was certainly tough to score as Calvin Kattar's volume and Josh Emmett's power contributed to the closely contested rounds. While the New England Cartel product worked behind his signature jab, Emmett exploded with fight-ending shots that constantly forced Kattar to remain on the backfoot.
Kattar believes he did enough to earn a decision win. The Massachusetts native apparently refused to engage in a slugfest that his opponent called for in the final frame, believing he was ahead on the scorecards.
The 34-year-old told Megan Olivi after the fight:
"There was never a point where I thought I could sit back but I thought I was edging him out definitely. Especially the longer the fight went. Fifth round, I thought I took it. I know he wanted me to stand in the center and bang but I mean that would be cool if I wasn’t up in the fight maybe. I thought I was landing the better shots but I’m not a judge. So it went the way it did but I thought I did enough to win the fight."
Watch Calvin Kattar's interview with Megan Olivi below: