UFC on ESPN 11 witnessed a controversial episode as the fight between Austin Hubbard and Max Rohskopf came to a halt from the stool.

While Max refused to talk to ESPN, his manager, Brian Butler, revealed probable causes behind the calls for the stoppage.

Max had accepted the fight on a five-day notice as he replaced Joe Solecki. However, short-term acceptance caused fatigue to take over the promotional newcomer. Moreover, a supposed turf toe injury hindered Max’s performance. Butler said,

“Max suffered from fatigue due to the short-notice weight cut combined with a pre-existing turf toe injury and was not able to overcome both. Didn’t think the turf toe would become an issue, but combined with the fatigue, he just could not keep going. He is going to take some time off to heal up.”

Cornerman refused to call the fight to a halt even after repeated calls by Max Rohskopf

At the end of round two, as soon as the fighters retired to their respective corners, Max told his cornerman that he can’t continue. However, Robert Drysdale refused to call the fight to a halt. In fact, after every sentence of his coach, Max reiterated that he did not want to continue. Yet, Drysdale seemed adamant about sending the young fighter back in.

Apparently, Drysdale was trying to motivate his fighter to abstain from quitting. In conversation with ESPN he said,

“I stand by what I did. I expect excellence from the people I train because I love them. He wasn’t seriously hurt, and I felt he needed a mental push. I would expect the same from my coach… That is the job of a coach, to push their fighters physically, technically, and mentally. I did my job, and I have no regrets because I believe Max has [the] potential to be one of the greats.”[quotes from ESPN]

NSAC to look into the matter

Even though Drysdale refused to call the fight to a halt, NSAC chief inspector Charvez Foger came in to do the job.

Moreover, the Executive Director at Nevada State Athletic Commission, Bob Bennett, also commented on the event. He said,

“We might want to take disciplinary action on them. That doesn’t sound like they are looking out for a fighter.”

He said that the commission will look into the matter and decide whether any disciplinary action is to be taken accordingly.

Do you think Drysdale deserves to stand trial for trying to send his fighter back again? Share your views in the comments section!