UFC 207 results: Controversial illegal – or legal? – knee sends Tim Means-Alex Oliveira to no-contest

LAS VEGAS – A promising bout between Tim Means and Alex Oliveira turned into a debate over knees to a downed opponent.

Although Means (26-7-1 MMA, 8-4 UFC) clearly launched a pair of them against Oliveira (16-3-1 MMA, 5-2 UFC), whose knee was on the mat, the Nevada State Athletic Commission ruled the blows accidental and declared the bout a no-contest.

The welterweight bout opened up the preliminary card of today’s UFC 207 event at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. It streamed on UFC Fight Pass ahead of additional prelims on FS1 and the main card on pay-per-view.

The action was stopped at the 3:33 mark of the opening frame in an unfortunate start to the banner pay-per-view card. Oliveira was unable to continue after he was hit with the pair of shots, forcing officials to confer cageside and decide what just happened.

Both Means and UFC VP of Regulatory Affairs Marc Ratner believed the blows were legal given Oliveira only had one knee on the mat. But according to the current Unified Rules of MMA, an opponent with anything other than the soles of his feet on the mat is, in fact, a downed opponent, making strikes like the ones Means delivered illegal.

Thus, the fighters move on without clear resolution to the fight after strong action early on. A bouncy Oliveira caught Means with a pair of wild hooks and then dropped him with a spinning back kick, forcing a scramble against the fence. Means used a kimura to reverse position and get his own takedown. By his understanding of the rules, he perfectly timed the knees as Oliveira righted himself. Unfortunately, the official stance differed.

Means declared the blows legal and pleaded with the UFC to see it the same way. But the result sends him back to the drawing board after a pair of wins, while Oliveira treads water in a return to welterweight after stopping Will Brooks in a catchweight bout in his previous outing.

Up-to-the-minute UFC 207 results include:

• Tim Means vs. Alex Oliveira ruled no-contest (accidental knee) – Round 1, 3:33

For complete coverage UFC 207, check out the UFC Events section of the site.

(MMAjunkie’s John Morgan contributed to this report on site in Las Vegas.)