“My UFC fights didn’t involve much ground action, so he’ll definitely try to take it there. But I’ll show him I’m a black belt too,” said Rodolfo Bellato ahead of his UFC Atlanta clash with Paul Craig. And he was spot on—Craig did take the fight to the ground in hopes of snapping his three-fight skid. However, it all went to waste, as the bout was ultimately ruled a no-contest by the officials.

Bellato and Craig were just minutes away from fighting each other at UFC Vegas 106 last month. However, the Brazilian pulled out of the bout due to a case of herpes. Their fight was rescheduled for UFC Atlanta, and there was palpable excitement to finally witness the clash. Despite the wait, the fight ended within the first round.

Why? Well, during the last five seconds of the first round, Bellato was on top of Craig, trying to finish the fight. Craig, on the other hand, was attempting to establish a grappling position. With just three seconds left in the round, ‘BearJew’ threw an upkick that narrowly hit Bellato in the face, sending him to the canvas—a moment that was eerily similar to when Petr Yan threw an illegal knee at a downed Aljamain Sterling the first they fought at UFC 259.

Bellato was rocked by the kick and laid on the canvas. Soon after, the referee stepped in and ruled the bout a no contest. “Due to an accidental foul, and recommendation from our Octagon physician, the bout between Paul Craig and Rodolfo Bellato has been ruled a no contest,” said the official UFC handle. As the anticipated fight ended in an NC, the MMA community rallied on social media to call out both the fighters for the show.

Fans are unhappy with the NC at the UFC Atlanta fight between Paul Craig and Rodolfo Bellato

To start it off, we have Justin Gaethje, who couldn’t believe what he had just witnessed, as the entire situation was truly confusing for everyone. A disappointed Gaethje wrote, “Biggest flop in mma history.” Well, riding at a career record of 12 victories, 2 defeats, and now 1 NC, Bellato was signed under the UFC banner as a standout; however, despite that, he has yet to win a single fight since 2023.

Furthermore, another social media user expressed that the kick barely touched Bellato, “Looked like it barely touched him.”Under the unified MMA rules of UFC, an upkick is not illegal in the UFC; one cannot kick the head of a grounded opponent.

Another social media user brought up the example of the initial fight between Aljamain Sterling and Petr Yan for the bantamweight belt. Yan threw an illegal knee in the fourth round that rocked Sterling, forcing the fight to be stopped. Yan lost the bout by way of disqualification. However, many within the MMA community believed that Sterling exaggerated the impact of the knee — and in response to that, the fan wrote: “That might be worse acting than Aljo did against Yan. Bellato is a bitch for that #UFCAtlanta”

Moreover, another fan was astonished by the upkick as he wrote, “What the f— Bellato just got put out to a upkick by Paul Craig such a crazy reaction when he woke back up.”  Furthermore, another fan stated that Bellato might have just faked to win the fight, “Faked it to get a dq win.” 

Why? Well, Bellato appeared to have been taken out by the upkick, but soon after, he looked at the referee, Kevin MacDonald, before scooting to the cage. As MacDonald checked on him, Bellato briefly grabbed his legs. This impression caught many fans off guard as they called him out for faking it. Last but not the least, the Brazilian finally found some support from a fan, “Crazy, hope Belato is okay. Sucks for him.”

As the fight ended in a no contest, the UFC might look to rebook it at a later date. But will Dana White be merciful enough to give Paul Craig another chance to prove his worth inside the Octagon? We’ll have to wait and see how fate works in his favor.