On MMA: Where is Carwin’s belt?

The following is a re-print my of my weekly “On MMA” column in The Eagle Tribune

If Saturday’s fight followed precedence, Shane Carwin would be walking around with the UFC heavyweight belt around his waist.

He’s not, but he should be.

And I blame the Nevada State Athletic commission.

Referee Josh Rosenthal called a great fight at UFC 116 last Saturday, not stopping the fight despite a first-round barrage by Carwin that saw 57 punches crash into champion Brock Lesnar’s skull.

Lesnar wasn’t mounting any offense, but he was active in defending himself. There was no reason for the fight to be stopped.

But that’s not what we’ve grown accustomed to with Nevada officials. If the fight were called with the precedence set by nearly every other official under the governing body, Carwin would have taken the fight via first round TKO.