Going into the final round of the welterweight bout between Kevin Holland and Uros Medic at UFC 334, the American would have felt confident about his chances after what he had shown in the opening two rounds. However, when Bruce Buffer stepped forward to announce the judges’ decision, the result left everyone confused. Despite the initial scores appearing to indicate a Holland victory, the fight was officially declared a majority draw.

The confusion began when Buffer read out the scorecards as 30-27, 29-27, and 28-28. Those scores would have given the American a majority decision victory. However, the official result was read out as a majority draw, leaving the commentary team struggling to understand what had happened.

It was later established that Buffer had misread the scores. The actual scorecards were 29-27 in favor of Medic and two identical 28-28 draws. In other words, not a single judge had scored the fight in Holland’s favor overall, despite the American’s strong opening round and the point deduction Medic received.

“How is that a draw… It just doesn’t make sense,” Joe Rogan said right after the result was announced.

“A draw does not make sense … How do we get to a draw here? [Kevin Holland] so clearly won that fight,” Daniel Cormier agreed.

The controversy was particularly surprising because Medic had already been penalized for the low kick in the second round.

The Serbian landed an initial low blow, forcing referee Marc Goddard to pause the action and give Holland time to recover. After the fight resumed, Medic connected with another strike below the belt, prompting Goddard to deduct a point from him.

However, the point deduction did not translate into a round victory for Holland on the judges’ scorecards. And that was where the real controversy began.

Holland had started the fight strongly, knocking Medic down and coming close to securing a submission with a D’Arce choke late in the opening round. The Serbian managed to survive the submission attempts and make it back to his feet, but the American had done enough to make a strong case for winning the round.

Medic, however, found his footing in the second. Despite the interruptions caused by the fouls, he landed some clean strikes, including a hard right hand. Holland also managed to secure a takedown after the restart, but Medic worked his way back up and continued to compete.

The third round saw the Serbian find more success on the feet. Medic landed a series of punches and caught Holland with a knee to the head, forcing the American off balance. Holland had his own moments, including stretches of control against the cage, but Medic’s late offense appeared to make an impression on the judges.

When the scorecards were finally clarified, it became evident that the disagreement was not simply about the point deduction. The judges had fundamentally different views of the opening round, and their scoring ultimately produced a majority draw.

Fans question the majority draw decision at UFC 334

The commentary panel of Daniel Cormier, Joe Rogan, and John Anik were visibly surprised by the result. Once the actual scorecards became clear, the focus shifted from Buffer’s initial misreading to how the judges had scored the individual rounds.

The most contentious card belonged to David Bruce, who scored all three rounds in Medic’s favor. His original 30-27 score was reduced to 29-27 after the one-point deduction in the second round. That meant Bruce believed Medic had won every round, even after being penalized for the low kick.

Mike Bell and Chris Lee, meanwhile, both scored the opening round for Holland and the next two for Medic. Their second-round scores effectively became 9-9 after Goddard deducted the point from Medic. With Holland taking the first round and Medic winning the third, the two judges ended up with identical 28-28 scorecards.

That breakdown explains how the majority draw came about, but it did little to settle the debate over whether Medic deserved to win the opening round. Holland had scored a knockdown and threatened with a D’Arce choke, making Bruce’s decision to award the round to the Serbian particularly difficult for many viewers to understand.

The official statistics also gave Holland a strong argument. The American landed more total strikes and significant strikes, secured two takedowns compared to Medic’s zero, and had the more threatening submission attempts. However, those numbers do not automatically determine a round’s winner. Under the unified rules, judges are expected to prioritize effective striking and grappling rather than simply count the overall statistics.

Even so, the result leaves Holland with plenty of reason to feel hard done by. He had survived repeated fouls, threatened a finish in the opening round, and still walked away without a victory. The decision is also likely to draw attention from UFC CEO Dana White, who is known for his blunt reactions to controversial judging decisions at post-fight press conferences.