‘That stoppage sucked’: Pros react to Luke Riley’s controversial UFC 329 knockout

Luke Riley is leaving UFC 329 with a knockout victory on his record, but his fellow fighters aren’t in agreement with the stoppage call.

Referee Kerry Hatley stepped in for the save to close out Riley’s featherweight fight against Kai Kamaka III on Saturday’s preliminary card, stopping the fight 3:03 into Round 1 with Riley battering a retreating Kamaka. Though Kamaka was visibly dazed, he appeared to be trying to clinch Riley when the bout was waved off, which drew a number of negative reactions from pros on social media.

Fellow featherweight Billy Quarantillo said, plainly, “That stoppage sucked.” UFC fighters Josh Hokit, Jamahal Hill, and Matt Frevola also wondered why Hatley didn’t give Kamaka more time to recover.

It was a big win for Riley, who improved to 14-0 as a pro and 3-0 in the UFC with the win, while Kamaka will be left disappointed as he falls to 1-1 in his second stint with the promotion.

Check out how pros reacted to the disappointing finish below.