Nurullo Aliev recently lost a point for a rare foul in the first fight of UFC Fight Night 220.
Nurullo Aliev commits a rare foul
Aliev became the first fighter from Tajikistan to compete in the UFC at Vegas 70. He made his debut after a successful appearance on the Contender Series, taking on gritty veteran Rafael Alves in the first fight of the night. However, the first round would see a pause called to action, when Alves alleged that Aliev bit his finger.
It was noted that the replay was inconclusive, as Alves was trying to lift up the chin of Aliev when the bite apparently occurred, causing an angle to not be visible of the moment. A veteran referee Mark Smith insisted that he saw bite marks on the finger of Alves, taking a point from the undefeated prospect.
In the end, the point deduction meant very little, as Nurullo Aliev would still earn a majority decision win over Rafael Alves. Of course, that did nothing to stop the flood of reactions from fans and fighters alike, with mixed opinions on how the situation was handled.
“‘I see a mark’ If I put my finger in your mouth you will see a mark as well. Are you sure he actually bite him?,” Marcel Dorff tweeted, before adding, “Clown sh*t by Tognoni and Smith. ‘I can see a mark’ They are not even sure Aliev bite him or Alves put his fingers in Aliev’s mouth…but ‘I can see a mark’”
Jillian DeCoursey tweeted, “He obviously bit down cause there’s a mark. But I don’t wanna judge him too harshly because without a view we can’t see if Alves put his hand in the mouth or what. But it was clearly a bite and I agree with the point deduction.”
“Biting should honestly be an automatic DQ,” suggested Adam Martin.
“Oh we biting now ?” wrote Jason Williams.
“Power Bite coming soon,” joked Jedi I. Goodman.
“‘I can’t wait for the UFC fights tonight!’ The fights:” chimed in MacMally, sharing the iconic “Charlie Bit My Finger” video.
Lol the ref mark smith is a joke for taking a point for “biting” smh #UFC #Aliev pic.twitter.com/PbkaRKAR8p
— Faz Ali (@fawwazali92) February 25, 2023
