A UFC referee said he's to blame for allowing a late stoppage in which the loser suffered broken bones and missing teeth

• A UFC referee has said if anybody's to blame for an apparently late stoppage Wednesday, it's him.
• Glover Teixeira gave Anthony Smith a prolonged beating at the VyStar Veterans Memorial Arena in Jacksonville mid-week.
• The bout was waved off in the fifth round but not before Smith suffered broken bones and missing teeth.
• "There is only one person to blame," Jason Herzog said in a statement posted on Twitter on Friday. "Me."
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A UFC referee appears to accept the blame for seemingly allowing a late stoppage in which the loser suffered broken bones and missing teeth in a Fight Night event Wednesday.

Glover Teixeira, 40, rolled back the years in Jacksonville, Florida that night, resoundingly defeating his 31-year-old opponent Anthony Smith with brutal striking.

Footage inside the UFC Octagon showed Smith hand a tooth to the referee Jason Herzog, Teixeira can repeatedly be heard apologizing, insisting it's "part of the job," and later said his fist hurt from all the punching.

Alongside his missing teeth, Smith also suffered a broken nose and broken orbital bone. The beatdown was so thorough, MMA fighters on Twitter were apoplectic that the bout was allowed to go on, rather than called off, and the UFC president Dana White told reporters post-fight that it was "tough to watch" cage side.

While some criticized Smith's trainers for not throwing in the white towel and pulling the fighter out of the contest, Herzog posted a statement on Twitter that said there's only one person to blame — him.

This sport of MMA is beautiful, it's pure. And an incredible teacher. Some lessons are harsher than others.

"I've seen a lot of opinions about what should have happened, who was at fault. But let me be clear, there is only one person to blame. Me."

—Jason Herzog (@JasonHerzogMMA) May 15, 2020

Regardless of the controversy surrounding a late stoppage, Smith texted the ESPN MMA reporter Ariel Helwani and said he was fine with actions his corner and the referee took.

"I'm good with the decisions the referee and my corner made," Smith said. "When the ref made it clear he needed to see something or he was gonna stop it, I did what I had to do to stay in the fight.

"I come out of battle with my shield or I come out on it. That's my rule. Period."

Read more:

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A 31-year-old American exchanged 513 strikes with his UFC opponent, winning a brutal and bloody 15-minute battle

The veteran UFC fighter who knocked an American's teeth out said he knew he was doing damage because his fist hurt from all the punching

UFC boss Dana White said it was 'tough to watch' a fighter get beaten so bad he was left with broken bones and missing teeth

The UFC showed a leg injury so bad you could see the shin bone underneath, and a commentator gave an awkward giggle

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