Interview with “Big” John McCarty

The past several weeks have brought controversial outcomes to several major bouts. At the center of the controversy at both EliteXC: Primetime and also at UFC 85 a week later was New Jersey-based referee Dan Miragliotta.

Herb Dean also found himself in the spotlight after deducting two points from Nathan Marquardt during UFC 85 bout vs. Thales Leites. Leites was declared the winner, but Marquardt would have won on the scorecards had it not been for the deductions.

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Great article... Big John is very articulate... especially when critiquing the other refs.
And I agree with him that they should bring back the "kneeing a downed opponent"... as John says, it not only provides an offensive advantage but also a defensive advantage, so it would not skew the fight and make it one-sided. Instead it would provide for more action on the ground.

big john should def be the next inductee into hall of fame.

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Posted by bigbubbano23

big john should def be the next inductee into hall of fame.

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I had mixed feelings about the Marquardt fight until after this article. I didn't know that the pile driver was illegal, and no mention was made of that during the broadcast. So, while I think the elbow penalty was a poor call, the non call of the pile driver was equally as poor. All-in-all, Marquardt would have taken a second penalty either way, and certainly didn't do himself any favors in that fight. You gotta give the clear victory to Leites at that point.

I really wish Big John would end up on a bigger national stage as a commentator. I'd love to see him as a regular on Inside MMA with Bas, or even the new ESPN weekly internet show.

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Posted by bigbubbano23

big john should def be the next inductee into hall of fame.

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Props


Have to agree wholeheartedly with that statement.
It's a terrible loss to the UFC that Big John isn't reffing anymore.


I wonder if there's any chance of a return........?