MMA: When a coach is forced to rescue his fighter from a submission and an incompetent referee

Cornerman to the rescue

On February 17th, 2017, Asha Roka, an Indian fighter, was opposing Hannah Kampf. From the start of the fight, Asha managed to put her opponent into a headlock, seriously hurting her.

Completely unable to continue to fight, the referee did not intervene, and it was then necessary to wait for the intervention of one of Kampf’s coaches for the fight to stop. A scene which you can see in the video above.

This footage comes from the Super Fight League and confirms for the umpteenth time that the training of amateur MMA referees should not be taken lightly. In every mixed martial arts fight, fighters put their lives in danger, and it is the referee's job to ensure that athletes do not suffer unnecessary, avoidable damage.

In the case of submission, many referees intervene only when the contestant gives up, by tapping out, or simply by showing their abandonment to the referee. However, when caught up in a submission, it is not uncommon for fighters not to feel they are on the verge of going unconscious, and not have the time to give up.

In this precise case, if the referee does not pay attention to the attitude of the fighter, and lets the submission last, the damage can be irreversible for the submitted athlete. For this reason, the training of amateur MMA referees should not be neglected under any circumstances. Even at the highest level, it is not uncommon to see many late stops by referees.