Truth #1: Rich Franklin was robbed of a win, a chance to win, and a fair fight with Dan Henderson (UFC 93: Franklin vs. Henderson). Now, am I saying Henderson cheated? Absolutely!! Was it on purpose? Who knows? For this fight, I will give a brief account of the cheating, round by round.

R1: Hendo (Henderson) headbutts Ace (Franklin) and opens up a 2 inch gash on his forehead; blood everywhere, and the ref does nothing. Hendo headbutts Ace again and opens up a second gash; again, blood everywhere, and the ref still does nothing. Then, Hendo gets a takedown and wins the round. What?!?!?!

R2: Hendo gets a takedown and wins the round. As if it is really hard to take a guy down who has 4 inches of cuts on his head and has blood streaming into his eyes from illegal headbutts.

R3: Ace is on the comeback. He comes through with great strikes, Hendo looks to be tired, and Rich is going for the KO. Hendo then gives Ace a swift shot to the groin that would make an elephant pass out. Rich is in the fetal position still bleeding from his headbutt cuts, and, again, the ref does nothing. Ace, who possibly has the biggest heart in MMA, gets up and finishes the round. Hendo gets a takedown then pokes Ace in the eye. Great job, Dan!

Hendo wins the fight by decision.

Are you freakin' kidding me?  That was one of the worst ref jobs I have ever seen in my career, and I have seen a lot of fights. At worst, the fight should have been a NC (No Contest) and an immediate rematch should have been set. At best, this fight should have been a DQ (Disqualification) win for Rich.

This is the truth, my friends. What ref in his right mind allows that to happen? How does Dan Henderson walk around with his head held high and include that as one of his victories? Why did the athletic commission not go back and overturn the fight? I will tell you how, poor interpretation of the rules. It is clear in the Unified MMA Rules that Dan cheated 4 times in that fight (2 headbutts, 1 groin shot, and 1 eye poke), so why was nothing done?

Human error is the answer. I see this happen day in and day out in this sport, and it should infuriate you as much as it does me!

I have an MMA homework assignment for all of you. There are two other fights with huge injustices that I want all of you to review and give me YOUR opinion on.

Fight 1: Nate Diaz vs. Clay Guida (UFC 94: St-Pierre vs. Penn 2)
Fight 2: Sheron Leggot vs. Anthony Pettis (Gladiators Fighting Series: Fight Club)

Both of these fights were officiated poorly, and the loser was given the victory because of it.

Until next time, I'm right, you're wrong, the truth matters, and Ron Faircloth smells funny.

Chris Geraghty has been an announcer for MMA, kickboxing, and boxing for over 8 years. He has ring announced for such Wisconsin shows as Madtown Throwdown, Freestyle Combat Challenge, and will soon be announcing Gladiators in Milwaukee. Follow him at www.TheRingAnnouncer.com, & www.myspace.com/TheRingAnnouncer .

Comments (9)

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The Ring Announcer said:

	... I have given names to the two homework a*signment fights. Fight 1: Hug It Out. Fight 2: Hometown Hero
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May 19, 2009
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Dom said:

	... goddamn, i kind of fastforwarded through that hendo/franklin fight and i didn't realize just how bad rich got f**ked. too bad.
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May 19, 2009
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IMPORTANT said:

	... HDnet is being canceled by time warner. As a WI mma blog you guys should form some type of petition. (I didnt read this article, didnt feel like emailing) No HDnet means no HDnet fights, sengoku, dream etc. http://www.multichannel.com/article/232772- Updated_Time_Warner_Cable_Dropping_HDNet_Channels_Natio nwide_May_31.php?q=hdnet
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May 19, 2009
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MikeHansen said:

	... anywhere i can watch these fights?
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May 21, 2009
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The Ring Announcer said:

	... Ace vs Hendo http://www.mmalinker.com/xExternal.php?vidid=12620 Diaz vs Guida http://www.mmalinker.com/xExternal.php?vidid=12681 WCS has the Rob Roy vs Pettis vid on this site in the video section.
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May 21, 2009
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Kaz said:

	... Chris you are dead wrong on the Pettis/Leggett fight.
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May 23, 2009
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300 said:

	... nate diaz was robbed
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May 24, 2009
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Unbreakable Heavy Hitter said:

... Chris man you are so right with your call on them fights.THE videos don't lie I have to sit my feelings to the side and just look as if I was a movie critic or a judge there at the fight. I call it like I see it and I see bullshit. The two fights were good fights, but the right people didn't win, but thats the problem when you let the fight go to the judges, you put it in someones elses hands. And then we have conversations like the one we are discussing now.

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May 24, 2009
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The Ring Announcer said:

... Kaz, I have seen too many bad calls in my day and the Pettis vs. Leggot fight ranks right up there. Not only do the rules as stated give leggot the win, but dont even allow for Pettis to win even 1 round. And if I recall, they gave him the win bu UD. Highway robbery my friend. Moving your hips around in guard to try and set up submissions does not constitute a 10 round in any rule book, and thats as all the offense he had in that fight.

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May 25, 2009
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