<ul class="summary-list"><li>A <keyword id="992778" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="60" keywordseo="UFC">UFC</keyword> match between <keyword id="10926224" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="eryk-anders">Eryk Anders</keyword> and <keyword id="3004768" type="PERSON" weightage="60" keywordseo="Darren-Stewart">Darren Stewart</keyword> was ruled a no contest Saturday.</li><li>Anders hit Stewart with an illegal knee but it was deemed accidental.</li><li>It happened one week after another fighter.</li></ul>Another illegal knee has marred a <a href="https://www.insider.com/category/ufc" target="_blank" rel="noopener">UFC</a> match and an <keyword id="6403489" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="60" keywordseo="mma">MMA</keyword> analyst said it is a fighter's responsibility to know the rules.A middleweight fight between Eryk Anders and Darren Stewart opened the main card of the behind-closed-doors UFC Fight Night 187 event at the Apex in Las Vegas.The 185-pound bout was abandoned when the British fighter Stewart absorbed a knee strike while he was in a grounded position.Anders was more active than Stewart, with 58 of 79 strike attempts landing for a 73% accuracy rate in the first round, compared to Stewart's return of 21 from 51 strikes (41%).Stewart's fast, powerful strikes seemingly inspired Anders to move away from stand-up exchanges by seeking takedowns, and he succeeded with three of his seven attempts, according to UFC statistics.Anders shellacked Stewart by the fence towards the end of the round with a series of shots that were so unrelenting, Stewart eventually dropped the floor. Anders then threw the illegal knee.It is the second week in a row when an illegal knee has brought an early finish to a fight, and the MMA commentator and former UFC title challenger Dan Hardy said combat athletes should know when opponents are in grounded positions."Just to clarify, a fighter with one knee down is always considered a grounded opponent," <a href="https://twitter.com/danhardymma/status/1370915563971739649" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Hardy tweeted</a>."It is the fighter's responsibility to know this rule," he said.In a further statement, Hardy added: "A grounded fighter is defined as: Any part of the body, other [than the] sole of the feet touching the fighting area floor."To be grounded, the palm of one hand (a flat palm) must be down, and/or any other body part must be touching the fighting area floor."A single knee, arm (not fingers) makes the fighter grounded without having to have any other body part in touch with the fighting area floor. At this time, kicks or knees to the head will not be allowed."The no-contest follows an illegal knee last week that resulted in a disqualification and a UFC championship changing hands.American fighter Aljamain Sterling won the bout when his Petr Yan threw an illegal knee midway through their UFC 259 bantamweight title fight.Sterling was on the canvas after a failed takedown attempt. Despite a warning from the referee, Mark Smith, Yan threw his knee at Sterling.The 31-year-old was deemed unfit to continue and so he was declared the winner, <a href="https://www.insider.com/video-illegal-knee-disqualifies-petr-yan-from-aljamain-sterling-fight-2021-3" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Insider previously reported</a>.<h2>Why Yan's knee was different to Anders'</h2><div type="image" title="Aljamain Sterling knee" height="1000" width="2000" msid="81495465" hostid="261"></div>Marc Ratner, who is in charge of regulatory affairs at the UFC, addressed the press to explain that the difference between last week's disqualification, and this weekend's no contest, is because of intent.Yan intended to throw the illegal knee against Sterling while the latest incident involving Anders and Stewart was accidental, the regulator said."This week, in the referee's opinion, he ruled it accidental," said Ratner in <a href="https://twitter.com/TheSchmozone/status/1370912850164674561" target="_blank" rel="noopener">a statement recorded by The Schmozone podcast</a>."By the rules, if a fight doesn't go two complete rounds it becomes a no contest/ no decision."If the fight had gone into the third round, the judges would have scored that round, the fight couldn't have gone on, and it would have been a technical decision [for whoever had won on the judges' cards]."

Another illegal knee mars a UFC match and an MMA analyst said it is a fighter's responsibility to know rules

<ul class="summary-list"><li><keyword id="13997207" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="chidi-njokuani" source="Orion">Chidi Njokuani</keyword> lands one of the nastiest elbows of the <keyword id="11922275" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="ufc" source="Orion">UFC</keyword>'s year so far.</li><li>The move knocked Dusko Todorovic out so bad it didn't look like he knew where he was.</li></ul>LAS VEGAS — A <a href="https://www.insider.com/category/ufc" target="_blank" rel="noopener">UFC</a> fighter looked like he didn't know where he was after getting hit with one of the sickest elbow strikes of the year.Chidi Njokuani, an American-Nigerian with extraordinary kickboxing skills, made a name for himself competing in Bellator <keyword id="11922276" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="mma" source="Orion">MMA</keyword> through the 2010s but earned a full-time UFC contract after impressing <a href="https://www.insider.com/category/dana-white" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Dana White</a> at a Contender Series event in 2021.He scored a 16-second knockout on his UFC debut as he pulverized Marc-Andre Barriault with ease at a UFC Fight Night event in February.On his Octagon return Saturday, at the Apex in Las Vegas, Njokuani once again impressed with his striking skillset as one swift elbow to the face left the 33-year-old's opponent Dusko Todorovic knocked down and out.Njokuani landed 19 of his 23 strikes for an absurd 83% accuracy rate, and worked particularly well from the clinch, which was a position that spelled the beginning of the end for Todorovic.Watch Njokuani's nasty knockout right here:<blockquote class="twitter-tweet blockquote" data-lang="en" data-cards="" data-conversation="">—ESPN MMA (@espnmma) <a href="https://twitter.com/mims/statuses/1528171362363260929">May 22, 2022</a></blockquote>Reacting to the finish on Twitter, heavy-hitting heavyweight Francis Ngannou — the UFC's champion in that division — said: "That was brutal."<blockquote class="twitter-tweet blockquote" data-lang="en" data-cards="" data-conversation="">—Francis Ngannou (@francis_ngannou) <a href="https://twitter.com/mims/statuses/1528169928704024578">May 22, 2022</a></blockquote>UFC boss White said simply: "Now you know."<blockquote class="twitter-tweet blockquote" data-lang="en" data-cards="" data-conversation="">—danawhite (@danawhite) <a href="https://twitter.com/mims/statuses/1528169815113756672">May 22, 2022</a></blockquote>Victory advanced Njokuani's pro MMA record to 22 wins (14 knockouts, one submission, and seven decisions) against seven losses.Nicknamed "Chidi Bang Bang," Njokuani is undefeated in UFC competition, has now won three in a row, and is one to watch in the middleweight division.Elsewhere on the main card, Jun Yong Park edged Eryk Anders, Tabatha Ricci out-pointed Polyana Viana, and Michel Pereira earned a split decision over Santiago Ponzinibbio.The UFC prelims were entertaining as <a href="https://www.insider.com/photos-and-video-show-how-tough-ufc-competition-can-be-2022-5" target="_blank" rel="noopener">they featured a grotesquely swollen shin, the sound of brutal blows, and an MMA prospect on the rise</a>.UFC takes a week-long hiatus before returning June 4 with a UFC Fight Night event at the Apex in Las Vegas.Alexander Volkov meets Jairzinho Rozenstruik in the main event.

A UFC fighter looked like he didn't know where he was after getting hit with one of the year's nastiest elbows

<ul class="summary-list"><li>Teak tough <keyword id="13997613" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="holly-holm" source="Orion">Holly Holm</keyword> survived a second-round submission attempt that made her face red.</li><li>Holm lasted the five-round distance but protested the result when her opponent was named as winner.</li></ul>LAS VEGAS — <keyword id="13997614" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="ketlen-vieira" source="Orion">Ketlen Vieira</keyword> looked like she was squeezing <a href="https://www.insider.com/category/holly-holm" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Holly Holm</a> with a rear-naked choke that was so tight the American's face was reddening by the second.It is a testament to Holm's toughness that she was able to gut it out let alone escape the second-round submission attempt before surviving the full five rounds of a <a href="https://www.insider.com/category/ufc" target="_blank" rel="noopener">UFC</a> bantamweight fight Saturday at the Apex in Las Vegas.Holm didn't look comfortable at all in the second round, but fought commendably for the rest of a fight that was difficult to score.Holm landed 188 of her 263 total strikes — significantly more than Vieira's 122 from 190, though the Brazilian scored more damage, including a brilliant spinning elbow, and secured a takedown from her seven attempts.The second-round chokehold was no doubt the main talking point of the actual match, but that highlight was overshadowed by narrow scores which yielded a controversial win for Vieira.It was a win Holm immediately pushed back on during her post-fight interview."I thought I won the fight," said Holm. "I gave her round two, and I feel like I won all the rest of the rounds. I always feel like I can do more and be more perfect, but I thought I won the fight. I don't feel like it was a question."Vieira, meanwhile, believes the judges may have looked at Holm's tactics in a negative light."I came here to knock her down," Vieira said. "She came here to stall. She's the 'Preacher's Daughter,' but I had the glory of God here."Added Vieira: "She's a great boxer, and because of that my camp was planned for me to actually grab onto her."But she came [to grapple] tonight and that was confusing to us. But I knew that God was gonna help me on this night."<h2>Earlier in the show, one <keyword id="11922275" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="ufc" source="Orion">UFC</keyword> fighter scored a sickening elbow strike knockout</h2><div type="image" title="Holly Holm felt robbed when the results were announced and Ketlen Vieira had won by split decision." height="1348" width="2000" msid="91718786" hostid="261"></div>Victory advanced Vieira's pro <keyword id="11922276" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="mma" source="Orion">MMA</keyword> record to 13 wins (two knockouts, four submissions, and seven decisions) against two losses.Earlier on the card, a UFC fighter looked like he didn't know where he was after <a href="https://www.insider.com/watch-chidi-njokuani-land-one-of-the-nastiest-ufc-elbows-2022-5" target="_blank" rel="noopener">getting hit with Chidi Njokuani's elbow in one of the nastiest knockouts</a> of the year.Elsewhere on the main card, Jun Yong Park edged Eryk Anders, Tabatha Ricci out-pointed Polyana Viana, and Michel Pereira earned a split decision over Santiago Ponzinibbio.The UFC prelims were entertaining as <a href="https://www.insider.com/photos-and-video-show-how-tough-ufc-competition-can-be-2022-5" target="_blank" rel="noopener">they featured a grotesquely swollen shin, the sound of brutal blows, and an MMA prospect on the rise</a>.UFC takes a week-long hiatus before returning June 4 with a UFC Fight Night event at the Apex in Las Vegas. Alexander Volkov will meet Jairzinho Rozenstruik in the main event.

You Searched For "eryk anders" and got 3 results

Another illegal knee mars a UFC match and an MMA analyst said it is a fighter's responsibility to know rules

Alan Dawson

A UFC fighter looked like he didn't know where he was after getting hit with one of the year's nastiest elbows

Alan Dawson

40-year-old fighter Holly Holm's toughness was on display when she escaped a horrible choke in round 2

Alan Dawson