Video: Antonio Silva protests TKO stoppage loss in MMA return
Antonio Silva believes his return to MMA competition after a four-year hiatus ended prematurely.
“BigFoot” took on Quentin Domingos at Megadan Fighting 9 on Sunday in Serbia, his first mixed martial arts bout since a TKO loss to Vitaly Minakov at Fight Nights Global 68 in June 2017.
The former UFC heavyweight and Domingos began exchanging shots when Silva fell to the mat. As Silva got back to his feet trying to defends, the referee immediately stepped in and called a stop to the fight at around the 90 second mark of the second round. Silva instantly protested the stoppage.
Check out the video of the closing sequence below:
Quentin Domingos TKO's Bigfoot Silva in R2. Was just getting good imo #Megdan9 pic.twitter.com/j826CJDQNB
— caposa (@Grabaka_Hitman) June 13, 2021
It was the sixth straight defeat for Silva, who also suffered a pair of losses for Glory and BKFC between MMA appearances.
Following the result, Silva took to Instagram to explain his side of the fight and why he felt the referee made a bad call.
“Why [did] the referee stop the fight,” Silva asked. “You train hard for months and abdicate from things like food, fun and sometimes even family to be 100 percent for a fight, and a referee comes and ruins all the hard work you’ve done day after day. Losing or winning is part [of the sport] but unfortunately some people don’t know or understand the sport they are part of.
“I was sent this video that gives you an idea that there was no reason for the referee to stop the fight.”
The 41-year-old ended his UFC tenure with TKO losses to Mark Hunt, Stefan Struve and Roy Nelson. Silva’s last victory took place at UFC 190 in August 2015 when he stopped Soa Palelei with punches in the second round.