The sizable gap between Jamahal Hill’s arm injury and referee Al Guinee’s intervention in UFC 263’s pay-per-view opener had UFC President Dana White shaking his head.
“When an arm is flopping around like this and going both ways, you should probably stop the fight,” White told reporters after the event at Gila River Arena in Glendale, Ariz.
White said his feelings about the result were tempered by the warm reception provided by the Arizona Boxing and MMA Commission, which opened its arms to the promotion as it held its third full-capacity event.
“I don’t want to sh*t on Arizona, they’ve been so good to us,” he said. “But that’s a rough one. I heard this guy’s a jiu-jitsu black belt.”
White was among several UFC fighters and MMA observers wondering aloud about the referee’s credentials after the stoppage. Craig’s slick jiu-jitsu helped him catch Hill in an armbar after pulling guard and attempting another arm and shoulder lock. Hill’s left arm was trapped as Craig rolled to his stomach and then locked his opponent in a triangle in addition to the armbar.
As Craig wound up with a few punches, Hill’s arm flopped lifelessly for several seconds. Then Guinee intervened to stop the bout at the 1:59 mark of the first round.
Hill was immediately transported to an area hospital. His manager later passed along word from a coach that the arm was not broken as feared but was instead badly dislocated.
White was shocked the injury wasn’t worse.
“They popped it back it in and the guy has full range of motion,” he said. “That’s nuts.”
Asked whether a complaint to the commission was in order, White demurred. But he didn’t hesitate to call back one of his favorite targets in the world of MMA officiating.
“Arizona Mazzagatti,” joked White, referring to former UFC referee Steve Mazzagatti, who was widely known for several late stoppages and missed calls. “It makes sense then.”
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