White: UFN 26's Gamburyan vs. Miller bout should've been stopped after first

After a confusing end to the first round, a UFC Fight Night 26 bout between featherweights Manny Gamburyan and Cole Miller went to the scorecards. UFC President Dana White, though, doesn’t think it should have ever gotten that far.

The preliminary-card bout, which streamed on Facebook ahead of Saturday’s FOX Sports 1-televised main card at Boston’s TD Garden, hit a bizarre note after Miller (19-8 MMA, 8-6 UFC) tagged Gamburyan (13-7 MMA, 4-5 UFC) with two seemingly legal elbow strikes to the side of the head.

However, when the round ended, Gamburyan grabbed the back of his head, and Miller stood against the cage and helped propped up his opponent and former castmate from “The Ultimate Fighter 5.”

“When he does that elbow, he starts hanging out hugging him,” White said after the fight. “Again, it’s one of those situations (where) you didn’t foul him. Get up. You’re not the doctor. You get up, walk away and go in your corner, and you have the doctor do it.

“First of all, the ref didn’t call a foul. The ref didn’t say he did anything illegal, didn’t call a foul. You know, what are you doing? You’re a nice guy, I get it. (But) beat it. Get out of there. Go to your corner. You didn’t do anything wrong.”

Instead, Miller held around long enough to let Gamburyan regroup. Referee Yves Lavigne and a cageside doctor tended to Gamburyan through the one-minute break after the first round. The fighter winced and clutched the back of his head, but perhaps surprisingly, Gamburyan eventually said he was OK, and the fight was allowed to continue on.

“Cole really f—ed himself,” White said.

Gamburyan quickly regained his wits, and for the remainder of the fight, he relied on frequent takedowns and a smothering top hame to get the decision win via 30-27, 29-28 and 29-28 scores.

Miller, who went 4-1 during a five-year stretch just a few years ago, is now 1-3 in his past four. His inconsistency has hindered any title hopes. But on Saturday, after busting up his opponent’s face, Miller felt he truly deserved the win.

“I thought the decision was way off,” Miller said. “I’m here in Boston trying to box, kick, knee, elbow and play my game, and I thought I would get some love from the judges here in Massachusetts. This is a fight town rich with boxing history. Respect to Manny. He fought his game and got the win. I’ll have to look at the tape, but look at my face and look at his face then tell me who won that fight.”

For complete coverage of UFC Fight Night 26, stay tuned to the UFC Events section of the site.