As a sports fan I generally do not care which team wins a game, or in this case, which fighter wins a match, etc. However, after watching the Ultimate Fighting Championships for quite some years now, it has become blatantly obvious to me (and others, including former UFC fighters) that the matches are rigged in order to maximize profits and keep a certain "fighter" at the top of the ranks.

It first became apparent to me that something was wrong in the UFC in 2012 when Chael Sonnen threw a spinning backfist that was not only uncharacteristic of him to do, but he threw it as if he were swinging for a 7ft tall giant, of which Anderson Silva most certainly isn't. After missing the backfist he winds up on his ass and sits there as if saying "well, throw your punch!" And so it happens and the match is stopped.  The match was built up as a big match, etc, and it just seemed like something was off.

Then there's Tito Ortiz and his loss to Forest Griffin by split decision which had all the makings of a clearly bought out judging booth. A match in which Tito clearly won (and I happen to be a fan of Forest Griffin) was given to Forest.  

There have been several other fights, from odd stoppages from the referee's to fighters just looking as if they were purposely throwing a match down the drain. This brings me to tonight's event: UFC 189, in Las Vegas Nevada (as if that doesn't already scream rigged). 

The entire card was absolutely great until the main event. Connor McGregor is by far one of the most talented men to ever set foot into the Octagon. His opponent tonight, Chad Mendes, is easily of the same caliber. This fight was clearly rigged, if by no one else than the referee and UFC President Dana White. Why? For a few reasons, and I'll lay them out below:

1.) Illegal Elbows: Chad Mendes had Connor on the mat and was going to town. Connor starts throwing elbows that are defined by the Unified Rules of MMA to be illegal. In fact, Mendes says to referee Herb Dean at one point "Those elbows are illegal!" Herb Deans response: "Keep fighting."

2.) Early stoppage: In MMA it is not uncommon to see a guy get rattled, fall to the ground, and cover up to regain his composure. In fact, it is actually very common, and a quick search on YouTube would show just how common it actually is. However, referee Herb Dean (Of whom I feel needs to be independently investigated for fixing fights) has a tendency to always call a match when there's no need to stop the fight. He does this ESPECIALLY in big name fights when something is on the line, and I don't mean a title. I am talking about the hype that surrounds McGregor. If Connor loses this fight to Chad Mendes, then all the hype surrounding how great he is, immediately goes into the trash bin. 

Why? Because the man Connor was fighting has lost to the champion Jose Aldo two times. So if Connor can't beat this guy then it is a safe bet that he couldn't beat the champion. But, UFC can't have that! They NEED Connor to win so that they can bring in all that money from the Irish fans! So why do I say this fight was stopped too soon? 

In the second round of this interim title fight, Chad Mendes was absolutely beating Connor to a pulp. So much so that I was kind of surprised that Dean hadn't stopped the match. I would soon find out why. With approximately 10 seconds left in the second round, Connor hit Mendes and knocked him to the ground. Mendes IMMEDIATELY covered up (which is standard for a fighter) to avoid being hit more. From the time he got hit and fell to the floor was approximately 5 seconds, leaving five seconds left in the round.

Connor hits Mendes two times and Herb Dean jumps in and calls the fight, with three seconds left in the round! This was clearly a rigged fight! Mendes was blocking himself as he should, he wasn't hurt, and he wasn't defenseless. By Unified Rules in MMA, the match should only be stopped if "one competitor stops defending him or herself from their opponent; or if fighter is defenseless and is in clear danger of being harmed." 

Chad Mendes was neither of those things. In fact, in a typical UFC match, you'll see a guy get knocked to the ground and pounced on, and at least 7 to 10 seconds goes by before a referee stops the match, and that's only if the guys hands fold and he isn't making a move to defend himself. Chad Mendes was certainly defending himself and this stoppage made it even more apparent to anyone with any sense that this fight was fixed. 

Aside from guys like Tito Ortiz that thought their match was clearly paid off, there are guys like Jason "Mayhem" Miller that have went on record and said UFC is rigged and are robbing people of money.

I am asking you to investigate the President of Ultimate Fighting Championships, Dana White, and his organization, for fixing fights. It has become very obvious that the only sport in America that is more rigged than "professional wrestling" is UFC.