UFC 300 featured a landmark women’s strawweight title bout! For the first time in the promotion’s history, two Chinese-born athletes, Yan Xiaonan and Zhang Weili, faced off inside the Octagon for the UFC gold. The fight was an intense affair for 5 rounds but ultimately, Xiaonan was unable to dethrone the champion Weili on the night. 

Nevertheless, controversy surfaced when during the end of the first round, Xiaonan appeared to be still suffering from the effects of a rear-naked choke by the champion. And a moment with her corner was called out by Joe Rogan and the commentary team as being possibly a violation of the rules. But in a recent interview, Xiaonan slammed the entire affair as “big nonsense” as she offered clarification on what exactly happened!

Joe Rogan and the commentary team’s mistake pointed out by Yan Xiaonan 

Yan Xiaonan faced a challenging moment in her recent UFC 300 bout against Zhang Weili. Caught in a deep choke attempt by Weili, Xiaonan appeared to be dazed and out of it as she unsteadily made her way to her feet as the bell rang for the end of the first round. But referee Jason Herzog didn’t stop the fight as he perceived her to still be able to continue.

The controversial moment came as she made her way to the corner and her corner man appeared to press his finger to her nose in an unorthodox attempt to get her wits back about her. This led to the broadcast team with Joe Rogan and Daniel Cormier exclaiming that there might have been “smelling salts” involved in the process.

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However, during a recent appearance on The MMA Hour, ‘Nine’ clarified through an interpreter, “So I didn’t notice what the cutman was doing but the smelling salt things is a big nonsense, nobody put those to let me smell that, nobody used those things to wake me up, no.”

Smelling salts are ammonia-based compounds that are commonly used in sports and medical settings to revive individuals who have fainted or lost consciousness temporarily. They can also be used to help athletes regain alertness and focus during competitions or training sessions. And according to the list shared on X by Erik Magarken, a combat sports regulatory lawyer, smelling salts aren’t sanctioned to be used by the corner team during UFC fights.

While Joe Rogan and the broadcast team later clarified that they were mistaken, the incident also drew a response from a veteran MMA referee who broke down what exactly transpired inside the cage! 

‘Big’ John McCarthy clears the air on Xiaonan’s corner’s action at UFC 300

Former UFC official and one of the men responsible for the unified rules of MMA, John McCarthy has seen it all inside the Octagon. As such, he took the time to address the recent debate that was sparked by Joe Rogan and the UFC’s commentary team regarding the actions of the corner in the Yan Xiaonan and Weili Zhang fight.

Speaking on an episode of the ‘Weighing In’ podcast, he stated, “…you take your finger, you stick it on that area right under the nose and you press hard. And that’s usually what you do with someone that’s been stung by a punch. Okay? It tends to make all those nerve endings know, in the brain starts to focus in on it and they come back.”

Finally, the incident serves as a reminder of the complexities involved in combat sports and the importance of understanding the context behind such contentious moments. As the MMA community continues to evolve, lessons learned from incidents like these contribute to a deeper understanding of the sport and its intricacies.

What are your thoughts on the entire incident and the clarification provided by ‘Big’ John McCarthy? Share them with us in the comments below!