NSAC's Keither Kizer on Lawal-Larkin Stoppage: 'I had no issues.'

MMA Fighting's Ariel Helwani has presented a new and interesting wrinkle to the drama surrounding referee Kim Winslow's stoppage of Lawal vs. Larkin last Saturday night. From the piece:

Referee Kim Winslow received a fair share of criticism for her work at Saturday night's Strikeforce event in Las Vegas, most notably from Muhammed Lawal, but Nevada State Athletic Commission executive director Keith Kizer did not feel the criticism was warranted.

"I had no issues with the stoppage," Kizer wrote to MMAFighting.com on Monday when asked for a response to Lawal's post-fight comments about the referee.

Kizer's support of Winslow comes on the heels of Lawal's interview at the post-fight press conference, during which he offered rather a forceful critique of her work. Again, from Helwani's piece:

"The commission," Lawal said at the post-fight press conference, "they need to do something with (Winslow). Let her take a fight or something and give her a bad ref. Let her fight Cyborg or something. Let her fight 'Cyborg' and then let's do a late stoppage of her. Because I watched her almost get Jan Finney killed by 'Cyborg.' I think the tables need to be turned. Put me in there as a ref and I'll just do a terrible job like her."

There are a few issues here, none of them pleasant. For starters, I can't say I'm especially thrilled with Lawal's rhetoric. For him to declare that Winslow deserves to be put in a fight where he himself will do an intentionally "terrible job" refereeing suggests a level of malice on Winslow's part last weekend that simply wasn't there. I only hope his statement was merely the product of an emotional evening and that he soon abandons this vindictive stance. Furthermore, I can't help but think that his insistence on fighter safety is a little ironic considering that his victory last September over Roger Gracie was precipitated in large part by an unintentional but nevertheless illegal headbutt. If he continues to campaign so passionately against Winslow, I think it's only fair that he campaign likewise for that victory over Gracie to be turned into a no-contest.

SBN coverage of Strikeforce: Rockhold vs. Jardine

None of this, of course, should be seen as support for Winslow's decision-making during that fight. Though I don't think her actions were as criminal as some would suggest, I disagree with Kizer and feel that it absolutely was a late stoppage. Given Kizer's advocacy, however, it's uncertain how likely Winslow is to make notes for improvement, though I would hope that she does. What's more, her rationale, that she wanted to give Lorenz Larkin every opportunity to bounce back, is far too common among referees and should be abandoned post haste, especially since it's a privilege not afforded to referees under the Unified Rules.

As MMA Nation's Luke Thomas has noted, the Unified Rules, though disturbingly imprecise, skew heavily towards caution. As such, everyone might remind themselves that a referee's responsibility is not to facilitate the fight, but to keep it in check. This approach will likely make referees (even more) unpopular with live crowds craving constant, sustained action, but that's certainly no worse an occupational hazard than the breaking, bruising, straining, and bleeding endured by mixed martial artists.