Add another voice to those that think referee Liam Kerrigan made the right call, Saturday night in Atlantic City, when he awarded Ricky Simon the victory over Merab Dvalishvili. The two bantamweights were engaged in a back and fourth war for 14 minutes at UFC Fight Night: Barboza vs. Lee (largely won by Team Serra-Longo’s Dvalishvili), when Simon defended a late takedown with a guillotine. And although Dvalishvili made it to the final bell, Simon was awarded a TKO victory.
Referee Marc Goddard – who was working with the commission that night – backed up Kerrigan’s decision to award Simon the win, saying, “He was actually out.