UFC Vegas 98 judge skewered online, Dmitry Bivol's ex-wife celebrates loss, Conor McGregor reveals new opponent: MMA News Roundup
Saturday, Oct. 12, turned out to be a day for questionable combat sports decisions, both in UFC and boxing. Elsewhere, Conor McGregor teased a new date and opponent for his MMA return.
Sportskeeda MMA is back with today's top combat sports news updates. Read on to find out more.
Sal D'Amato under fire again for UFC Vegas 98 judging
Sal D'Amato is among the more controversial MMA judges in recent history. Over the years, he has garnered a reputation for putting out unreasonable scorecards, often costing a fighter the outcome they deserve.
During Saturday's UFC Vegas 98, D'Amato was the dissenting judge in three out of the four split decisions, including the main event fight between Brandon Royval and Tatsuro Taira.
UFC fans took to social media to blast the veteran judge, with some calling for his removal from the sport altogether. One fan wrote, "Split decision??? Fire Sal D'Amato immediately. The nerve of this f***ing idiot." Another said, "We gotta do something about Sal D'Amato. Dude is terrible."
A third commented, "Society has moved past the need for Sal D'Amato."
Read more comments here.
In previous instances, fighters openly criticized D'Amato's scoring and overall ability to judge an MMA fight.
Dmitry Bivol's ex-wife celebrates boxer's loss to Artur Beterbiev
Dmitry Bivol's estranged wife Ekaterina, with whom he separated last year, was visibly overjoyed about the boxer's loss to Artur Beterbiev on Saturday evening.
After Beterbiev edged past Bivol in a controversial majority decision, Ekaterina celebrated her ex-husband's loss on social media.
Take a look at Ekaterina Bivol's live reaction to the result being read out:
The couple's split sparked a lot of controversy as their divorce was marred with allegations of domestic violence and financial negligence against Bivol.
Conor McGregor reveals new fight date, venue, and opponent
Conor McGregor made a surprise revelation while attending Saturday's BKFC event in Marbella, Spain. He told Bloody Elbow's Donagh Corby that he is going to fight Dan Hooker in his UFC return. The fight will take place on Feb. 1 next year in Saudi Arabia.
The Irishman didn't share any more details, except labeling Hooker "a nice guy." The two met briefly during the event earlier in the night.
Watch Conor McGregor's comments below: