Overview
- At UFC Vegas 110, referee Mark Smith halted Ante Delija vs. Waldo Cortes-Acosta for an eye poke, used instant replay, restarted the fight, and Cortes-Acosta scored a knockout at 3:59 of Round 1.
- Delija issued a five-point statement claiming he was robbed, arguing the stoppage signal, replay timing, and restart procedure violated rules.
- Broadcast analysts Daniel Cormier and Michael Bisping questioned the decision to restart, calling the sequence unprecedented under current guidance.
- Cortes-Acosta said he felt a finger enter his eye, chose to continue with severely limited vision, then called out champion Tom Aspinall and later reported worsening eye symptoms.
- The controversy followed UFC 321’s no-contest when Ciryl Gane accidentally poked Aspinall in both eyes, with Aspinall undergoing hospital evaluation as the UFC plans a Gane rematch pending medical clearance.