Fighters wouldn't be blamed for reacting with concern upon discovering that Adalaide Byrd would be scoring their fight.
Byrd remains one of the most controversial figures in all of combat sports and while fight fans have been aware of the judge's unimpressive track record of scoring bouts for years, Byrd's name hit mainstream headlines last September.
Byrd registered a
bizarrely lopsided decision for Saul 'Canelo' Alvarez despite the fact that most viewers and pundits had Gennady Golovkin winning comprehensively when the two pound-for-pound greats met in Las Vegas.
https://twitter.com/DarrMurphy/status/909275800733732869?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.joe.co.uk%2Fsport%2Fnevada-state-athletic-commission-addresses-judging-of-ggg-vs-canelo-alvarez-142121
A furious reaction followed, with viewers
simply refusing to accept the split draw outcome of one of the biggest boxing events of 2017 because, without a clear winner, Las Vegas received the guarantee of a lucrative rematch and allegations of nefarious goings-on were levelled at the Nevada State Athletic Commission.
Byrd has kept a low profile since her contentious scorecard was registered but she returned to judging duties on Saturday night, when she was tasked with working the UFC 222 card.
Commentator Jon Anik made sure to make everyone aware that Byrd would be one of the judges for the undercard match-up between Cody Stamann and Bryan Caraway.
Anik: I can tell you that one of the three judges for this fight is one Adalaide Byrd, first time judging since that controversial decision in GGG vs. 'Canelo' Alvarez so don't shoot the messenger.
Joe Rogan: We both just had a heart attack. Oh God, she was driving a Ferrari after that fight.
Daniel Cormier: Oh my goodness.
Rogan: She's a nice lady though.
Cormier: She's a great lady. The other day I saw her at The Ultimate Fighter gym.
Rogan: She's a very nice person. So is my mom but I wouldn't want her judging any fights.
Byrd was referenced throughout the final round of that bantamweight bout but it wasn't the only fight for which she was responsible.
And with strange scorecards registered following John Dodson vs. Pedro Munhoz and Mackenzie Dern vs. Ashley Yoder, fight fans didn't hesitate to call her out.
https://twitter.com/MMAFighting/status/970130141933219840
https://twitter.com/MacMallyMMA/status/970132816246669312
https://twitter.com/mookiealexander/status/970129905156370432
https://twitter.com/RobbieBarstool/status/970130816746565632
https://twitter.com/SandhuMMA/status/970130775285911553
https://twitter.com/benfowlkesMMA/status/970094846634442753
https://twitter.com/mmamania/status/970115766778507264
