In one of the most controversial fights of UFC 102, Chris Tuchscherer made his UFC debut against Gabriel Gonzaga and immediately suffered a devastating low blow in the opening moments of the bout.  The events of the fight were covered in great detail in this article on TheGarv.com. Tuchscherer was interviewed by MMAJunkie about his thoughts on the fight, and he revealed that an interesting scenario unfolded when he regained his wits after passing out, wrestling with officials after mistaking them for his opponent, writhing on the canvas in agony, and dry-heaving into a bucket.  First, Tuchscherer's comments on the groin kick and the immediate aftermath:

"I was passed out for whatever amount of time it was, and I had come to, and what I remember is that I thought I was on the ground fighting.  That's the part where you kind of see me going wild there. That was me coming to and thinking I was still fighting, and basically whoever was in front of me was who I was going after."

 After this horrendous attack on his manhood and passing out, I wouldn't call it a stretch to say that Tuchscherer may not have enjoyed the ability to process thoughts in a highly logical or crystal-clear fashion, perhaps evidenced by his half-hearted single leg takedown attempt on the doctor.  It was at this time that Tuchscherer began to inquire with the official referee and cageside doctor about the interpretation of the rules as they pertained to the unfortunate incident he had just partaken in.

"I asked the doctor many times what would happen if I can't continue. 'Is it a no-contest? What happens here?' And the doctor and the ref couldn't tell me. They kept passing the buck on to each other out there, so no one could tell me what was going on." "So then the doctor is standing there and asking me if I can continue.  I'm like, 'What happens if I can't continue? I feel like my [testicle] is up inside me.' The doctor said to me, 'Do you want to go in the back and look at it?' I'm thinking to myself, 'What the hell is this guy talking about? Does that mean we go in the back and check it out and come back and fight?' He couldn't tell me what would happen if I couldn't continue. So I'm sitting there thinking the worst. I don't want to take a loss because I can't continue, and you've got all these emotions going on, and it's your first UFC [event]. I'm a tough guy, and I have a stubborn head, but with it being my UFC debut, I didn't want to go out like that.  So basically, I got pissed off and said, 'Let's just do it.'"

While I have been giving Tuchscherer mountains of respect for his toughness and rugged determination to progress, I have not faulted anyone other than Tuchscherer for accepting the responsibility of saying, "yes, I can continue."  I still feel the same; however, I am curious and slightly perturbed at the exclusion of basic information to a fighter in Tuchscherer's position.  The entire purpose of the "referee" is to be "one whom can be referred to for judgment or arbitration".  Therefore, I'm thoroughly baffled as to why the referee was either unable to or had refused to explain the very simple path forward, which is that the contest would end in a "No Contest" as long as the low blow was ruled accidental, or a "DQ" if it was believed to be an intentional foul.  Mr. Tuchscherer should also be well aware of the rules under which he is competing, but obviously the gist of his role involves combat, and he had just lost consciousness after the devastating kick, while the sole existence of the referee is to render judgment according to the rules. I'm not a doctor, but it seems like a fighter who passes out and awakes to grapple the officials might be questionable to continue or make logical decisions about continuing.  I'm not a referee, but it sure seems like he should know the rules and be able to answer a fighter accordingly on a basic question regarding them, especially when so much is at stake for a fighter's health and career during his long-awaited debut in "The Superbowl of MMA".

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