Here's to Joe Lauzon's cornerman for protecting his fighter at UFC 223

As sure as we can count on boo birds in a tactical battle, we can be sure fighters will take far more punishment than they should in the cage.

Just two months ago, we saw one of the more egregious examples of that MMA cliche when Priscilla Cachoeira was brutalized by Valentina Shevchenko for almost two full rounds before a rear-naked choke brought a merciful end to the fight.

That’s why we want to give a special salute to Joe Lauzon cornerman Steve Maze, who saw that his fighter was overwhelmed by Chris Gruetzemacher and took action.

Lauzon (27-15 MMA, 14-12 UFC) had started strong, pushing back Gruetzemacher (14-3 MMA, 2-2 UFC) with hard punches and elbows in the early going of their pay-per-view bout at Barclays Center. But when Gruetzemacher weathered the storm, it quickly became apparent that Lauzon no longer had the ability to keep up.

Rather than let Lauzon come out for a third round and an inevitable onslaught, Maze, who serves as Lauzon’s boxing coach, took his fighter’s head in his hands and very calmly told him that his night was over.

Lauzon didn’t argue.

Lauzon remains one of the most experienced and toughest combatants in the octagon. It’s apparent he’s on the downslope of a long and decorated career. But because of Maze, he doesn’t have to shorten the time he has left by absorbing shots that he didn’t need to take. Gruetzemacher gets the TKO win, and Lauzon lives to fight another day – or hang them up.

So here’s to you, Maze, for doing the right thing. Corners around the world, take note.

For more on UFC 223, check out the UFC Rumors section of the site.

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