The UFC Fight Night 239 co-main event was declared a no contest – and moments later pandemonium broke out.
While no punches were thrown, both Bryan Battle and Ange Loosa were restrained by a crowd of promotion and commission officials after they exchanged choice words over the circumstances surrounding the fight’s ending.
The welterweight bout, which took place Saturday at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas, ended after Battle’s right thumb poked Loosa in the left eye. Loosa said he couldn’t see and the fight was waved off. The stoppage came at 1:00 of Round 2.
The sequence peeved Battle (10-2 MMA, 5-1 UFC), who called Loosa (10-3 MMA, 2-1 UFC) a “p*ssy” and added, “I was whooping your ass,” as the two fighters turned to face each other after Bruce Buffer’s announcement. Loosa hurled insults back and repeated, “I’ll f*cking kill you,” toward Battle.
Bryan Battle and Ange Loosa exchanged words after their bout was called a no contest due to a doctor stoppage. #UFCVegas88 pic.twitter.com/JjDM4EKtVn
— ESPN MMA (@espnmma) March 17, 2024
Battle, 29, is the “TUF 29” middleweight winner. He rode back-to-back wins into the matchup Saturday. Loosa, 29, also entered on a two-fight winning streak.
Up-to-the-minute UFC Fight Night 239 results include:
- Bryan Battle vs. Ange Loosa ends in no contest (eye poke) – Round 2, 1:00
- Ovince Saint Preux def. Kennedy Nzechukwu via split decision (29-28, 28-29, 29-28)
- Christian Rodriguez def. Isaac Dulgarian via split decision (28-27, 27-28, 28-27)
- Macy Chiasson def. Pannie Kianzad via submission (rear-naked choke) – Round 1, 3:54
- Gerald Meerschaert def. Bryan Barberena via technical submission (rear-naked choke) – Round 2, 4:23
- Mike Davis def. Natan Levy via submission (arm-triangle choke) – Round 2, 1:43
- Chelsea Chandler def. Josiane Nunes via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
- Jafel Filho def. Ode Osbourne via submission (rear-naked choke) – Round 1, 4:27
- Danny Silva def. Josh Culibao via split decision (29-28, 28-29, 29-28)
- Jaqueline Amorim def. Cory McKenna via submission (armbar) – Round 1, 1:38
- Thiago Moises def. Mitch Ramirez via TKO (leg kicks) – Round 3, 0:15
- Chad Anheliger def. Charalampos Grigoriou via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 30-27)
For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC Fight Night 239.
