... even though referee Yves LaVigne made a big boo-boo and stopped it too early:
"No hard feelings to Yves LaVigne, but it was just one of those things where it turned out being a bad situation for everybody. When a fighter rolls over like that, and stops moving ... I talked to Mac and he said he was just going to coast and relax and chill out. In my mind, he was going out. I had so much energy, it was the first round, I could have squeezed forever. I just kept adjusting and adjusting. It's just unfortunate we can't be put back in that same precarious position. It's unfortunate for everybody. I wanted the vindication with the win.... I think it would have went the same way without the controversy if it would have just kept going. It's sad to see. I indicated to the ref that I thought he was out because I felt him stop fighting the choke. It was like a kid waiting for Christmas -- I couldn't wait to get off Mac and celebrate. I was almost going to start crying because I was so happy. And then I look up at the screen and see him contesting it.... So then I thought maybe it was a little premature.... It's just a weird deal, you know?"
A disappointed, and admittedly overzealous, Matt Wiman talks about what might have been if he was able to hang onto a tight guillotine choke that he put on Mac Danzig in their lightweight fight last night at UFC 115. "Handsome" had The Ultimate Fighter (TUF) 6 winner all wrapped up and in deep trouble with lots of time remaining in the first round. Perhaps aware of this, Danzig positioned himself to try and ride out the storm, but in doing so, apparently gave Wiman and the referee the indication that he was on his way to La-La-Land. Instant replay, as well as Danzig's immediate reaction once the action was halted, proved otherwise. Unfortunately, once the call was made to stop the fight, there was no going back. Should an instant rematch be booked or should both fighters be allowed to move on with their careers, knowing that it may "have went the same way" even if it wasn't stopped when it was?
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