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UFC star Renato Moicano has reacted to Dan Miragliotta’s controversial call during his loss to Tom Nolan, after suffering a third-round TKO on Saturday.
Moicano banked the first round in Las Vegas with some relentless grappling, and there was more of the same in round two, until Miragliotta surprisingly decided to separate the pair and stand them up.
Moments later, Nolan dropped Moicano, and the Australian prospect went on to finish “Money” in the third round.
“I was a little frustrated with the referee standing the fight up,” Moicano told MMA Fighting. “I was a little frustrated, and frustration is a bad thing. But that’s it, it’s over. What can I do? There’s nothing I can do about it.
“It caught me by surprise. When he said, ‘Stand up,’ I don’t remember him giving any warnings. And even if he had given a warning… I saw a lot of people saying that’s in the rules – that it’s a new rule. I’ve never heard of that. I’ve never heard of anyone being stood up from mount or from someone’s back.
“It was the first time I’d ever seen it. I was surprised, but I decided to keep going because I thought, ‘Man, what can I do?’ I thought about complaining, but then I told myself: ‘Listen, focus on the fight.’ But I clearly lost my focus.
“I was clearly frustrated, and I got caught with some shots afterwards. I came back for the third round and I wasn’t in a good place, but that’s it. There’s not much else to say. It was the wrong decision, but it’s not going to change anything. I lost, that’s it.”
Moicano, 37, also said he would not officially appeal the result or request that Miragliotta not officiate his future bouts.
“I want him to go f*** himself, him and everyone else,” Moicano said. “[But] I don’t give a s***.
“The next person I need to blame is myself; I should have finished that guy, that’s the truth. I’m better than that guy, but he defended well, he had good defence. I’m not going to blame the referee.
“Even though, like I said, that change frustrated me, there’s nothing I can do about it. I’m not going to file any complaint. I just need to focus on improving myself for my next fights.”
The result marked a sixth straight win for Nolan, 26, while Moicano is 3-3 in his last six outings. That run included a title-fight loss for Moicano, after he stepped up on one day’s notice to challenge Islam Makhachev.
The Russian, who now holds the welterweight belt, was lightweight champion at the time, and he was scheduled to defend his title against Arman Tsarukyan. However, Tsarukyan withdrew due to a back injury, and Moicano ultimately lost via first-round submission.
