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Top 4 Most Controversial UFC Decisions of 2024

These UFC decisions had fans and pundits up in arms.

Mathew Riddle

UFC

UFC's 2024 run has come to a close with the conclusion of UFC Tampa on December 14.

While fans saw some spectacular finishes this year, as well as championship titles changing hands plenty of times, there were some dubious results sprinkled into the mix.

MMA Decisions, a platform for sharing scorecards for prominent MMA fights, has shared its most contentious MMA decisions of 2024. Let's take a look at some of the most controversial.

Honorable mentions:

  • Tai Tuivasa's 30-27 scorecard in his loss to Jairzinho Rozenstruik
  • Paulo Costa's 49-46 scorecard in his loss to Sean Strickland

2024's Controversial UFC Decisions

4. Ciryl Gane's Split Decision Over Alexander Volkov at UFC 310

95 percent of media, and 92 percent of fans disagreed with the result.

As the heavyweight landscape changed with the Jones-related logjam in the top ranks, the UFC put on some questionable rematches, such as Sergey Spivak vs. Marcin Tybura 2, and Ciryl Gane vs. Alexander Volkov 2. Their first fight in 2021 was a clear win for Gane, but the rematch was much closer.

Volkov exploited weaknesses in Gane's grappling, and the Frenchman suffered a foot injury early in the fight which stifled his striking. 'Drago' worked at range and the threat of a takedown kept Gane guessing. Despite this, two of the three judges scored the first two rounds for Gane, and he took the split decision.

The result was marred further by Gane leaving the Octagon as Buffer announced him as the winner.

3. Christian Rodriguez's Unanimous Result Over Isaac Dulgarian at UFC on ESPN+ 97

100 percent of media and 89 percent of fans disagreed with the result.

Isaac Dulgarian came into his fight with Christian Rodriguez as a -200 favorite back in March. Then-undefeated, 'The Midwest Choppa' amassed over nine minutes of control time with seven takedowns over 15 minutes.

Rodriguez was controlled for almost all of round one, and the same was true for round two. He pulled it back in round three, but a 29-28 Dulgarian looked to be the result. Every judge gave Dulgarian a 10-8 in round one and Rodriguez a 10-8 in round three. The determining round was the second, where two judges scored it for Rodriguez despite being at the whim of Dulgarian for most of the time.

2. Rinat Fakhretdinov def. Carlos Leal by Unanimous Decision at UFC 308

100 percent of media and 92 percent of fans disagreed with the result.

Fakhretdinov vs. Leal was a slugfest. Leal landed better shots through three rounds, hurting Fakhretdinov several times, but it would go uncredited. An argument could be made for Fakhretdinov round one because of his control time, but it was largely defended by Leal, who pressed Fakhretdinov in the closing minutes with his boxing and clinch work.

This trend only continued for Leal, who remained the fresher fighter in rounds two and three, landing the most substantial strikes of the fight. Officially, Fakhretdinov took a unanimous decision, with one judge giving him all three rounds.

"I don't really know what to say about one judge giving all three rounds to Rinat Fakhretdinov despite all the success for Carlos Leal," Commentator Jon Anik said.

"That's really bad," Paul Felder followed.

1. Julianna Pena's Split Decision over Raquel Pennington at UFC 307

96 percent of media and 85 percent of fans disagreed with this championship result.

24 of 26 media members scored this fight for Pennington, while the other two scored a draw and a 48-47 Pena, respectively.

Pena had success early on with her grappling, but Pennington's conditioning proved effective in the latter rounds, where she landed at will and even dropped Pena with a crisp right hand.

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Mathew Riddle
MATHEW RIDDLE

Mathew is a UK-based combat sports journalist, graphic designer, and SEO expert with over five years of experience in digital marketing and a dedicated four-year track record in MMA journalism. He joined MMAKO in 2023. Mathew's insights have been featured on The Fight Fanatic, Heavy on UFC, Fansided, and Sportskeeda. Reach him at mr@thefightfanatic.com.

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