One of the most well known referees in MMA, “Big” John McCarthy has announced a training course that he hopes will improve MMA refereeing and judging.
John McCarthy has retired from officiating professional MMA bouts, but is still widely regarded as one of the best referees in MMA.
Now, McCarthy wants to give back to the sport with the launch of the 2020 addition of his COMMAND Course, which trains MMA referees and judges.
“It’s time to announce the once a year COMMAND Course. If you have watched MMA and think you could be part of improving the quality of Referees or Judges, here is your chance to prove you have what it takes. Go to http://mmareferee.com for details”
There have been some recent referee and judge calls in MMA that have caused a lot of controversy. Joe Rogan was in attendance for UFC 247 in Houston, Texas earlier this month. He blasted the “incompetent judging” throughout the night. Last weekend’s UFC Norfolk event seen one of the worst referee calls in recent memory, when the bout between Magomed Ankalaev vs. Ion Cutelaba was seemingly stopped prematurely. John McCarthy called it a “horrendous” call.
McCarthy also blamed the athletic commission for failing to do anything about the poor refereeing or judge calls. McCarthy is now taking things into his own hands and hopes to create some positive change with his re-launched COMMAND Course.
According to their official website, McCarthy and fellow MMA referee Jerin Valel are offering a 2-3 day course that is nationally recognized.
“COMMAND is an ABC (Association of Boxing Commissions) nationally recognized training and certification schooling program for mixed martial arts referees and judges. While each State/Province has their own set of rules and standards, the COMMAND course is well known by most commissions and in some cases a mandatory course for their officials.”
This article first appeared on CLOSEDGUARDMEDIA.com on 2nd March, 2020.
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