The Professional Fighters League’s official Twitter account recently uploaded an old video of a referee accidentally engaged in wrestling during a Professional Fighters League match from last year. Astonishing reactions were expressed by MMA fans who missed the incident earlier.
The incident happened during a PFL 9 playoff match on August 20, 2022, in London’s Copperbox Arena. For a place in Europe, Ali Taleb (8-0) faced Darius Mafi (3-1-0). Ali submitted his British opponent by technical submission with a guillotine choke just two minutes into the first round.
👏 for ref's takedown defense pic.twitter.com/lfFO4CelHM
— PFL (@PFLMMA) March 16, 2023
How did MMA fans respond to the referee’s takedown defense?
When referee Gary Copeland attempted to stop the bout because Mafi was already down on the mat, the Briton unintentionally grabbed the official and began to battle him for a takedown, which caught everyone’s attention. Below are a few humorous responses from MMA fans.
“And this is the difference between pro fighters and your average 60-year-old referee.. not much of one.” Brad Morris said.
A user sarcastically said the referee forgot his role for a moment and turned into a fighter as he said, “the things they’ve been through, and gradually forget who they are.”
Rompenubes made a hilarious comment by saying, “the first fighter being submitted twice in the same fight.”
John Doe said, “He got double rival in a game.” indicating that Mafi had to fight both the referee and Ali in the same fight.
“Auto Pilot indeed! Lord help us to pick our fights right in times of distress/extreme pain!!!!” said Sandy.
The @PFLMMA has announced the inaugural schedule for the PFL Europe Season #PFLEurope #PFLMMA #PFL #MMA #MMATwitter pic.twitter.com/5G4NSSXVu6
— Jason Hagholm (@JHagholm1) January 12, 2023
Terrell found a different way of seeing the whole incident as according to him, “He was trying to tap out, but the ref didn’t called it that’s why he did that.”
“Two Kings on a ring” a user commented.
Mike Hak said, “first the athlete tried to kill him and then the ref wanted to finish?”
“Bro got the air knock out his brain that he went into a tag team match.” another user commented.
25th overall pick: Ali Taleb (8-0). UAE Warriors bantamweight champion, now new PFL fighter. Picked by @beefcake_180. pic.twitter.com/OjDFlWqPQ2
— Shawn Bitter (@mmawizzard) December 30, 2022
What do you think about the incident? Don’t forget to share your reaction with us in the comment section.
