Hector Lombard disqualified for illegal strikes as opponent tapped

A perplexing turn of events occurred in the main card opening bout at Gamebred Bareknuckle MMA 6 featuring UFC veteran Hector Lombard. Lombard seemed to secure an effortless stoppage victory.

The former Bellator champion and UFC middleweight engaged in bareknuckle MMA against seasoned bareknuckler Chris Sarro at Mississippi Coast Coliseum in Biloxi, Miss. Lombard swiftly took down Sarro in the first round and began dominating on the ground.

Sarro surrendered his back, and Lombard started unleashing punches to the head. Sarro, face-down on the canvas, shielded himself the best he could and ultimately tapped after a few punches landed. Lombard motioned to the referee, indicating that Sarro was tapping due to the punches. The referee allowed two more punches from Lombard before intervening.

After standing up, Lombard seemed dismayed that the referee did not acknowledge his opponent’s tapping. What appeared to be a submission due to strikes ultimately turned out to be different when the official decision was announced. Lombard was disqualified for illegal strikes to the back of the head at 1:09 of Round 1.

Witness the video of the stoppage below.

Inside the cage, Lombard and others appeared baffled by the outcome. However, Lombard did not seem upset but rather more concerned for Sarro, who required stretcher assistance to exit the cage.

This marks the second consecutive MMA bout for Lombard that ended due to illegal strikes. In his last MMA appearance (with gloves) at Eagle FC 47 in May 2022, Lombard’s fight against former teammate Thiago Silva was declared a no contest due to an illegal knee to the head while Lombard was down.

Story originally appeared on MMA Junkie