The UFC has been subject to a lot of controversies, from fighter pay to playing favorites with certain stars. But one of the biggest issues that has faced significant criticism is related to the judging and scoring of the fights. Many experts, analysts, fighters, and even Dana White have called out this issue on more occasions than one, but it didn’t garner enough attention until now. It appears that some legislative changes are on the way.

Beginning August 4, 2025, the Association of Boxing Commissions is set to cast their votes on a major overhaul of the Unified Rules of MMA in New Orleans. The updates, put together by California SAC exec Andy Foster and seasoned ref John McCarthy, are all about bumping “damage” to the top of the scoring list and laying down clear rules for 10-8 rounds—making sure judges stick to consistent and transparent standards.

If you’re wondering what the main factor for scoring is, well, it’s how much damage a fighter has inflicted on his opponent. But things are going to change, and a draft has already been made and changes have been proposed, and guess what? Andy Foster also revealed that many people have worked on the draft of the new rule, including MMA veteran referee ‘Big’ John McCarthy.

“This document [old rule set] provides clarification for how the judges are scoring and gives greater emphasis to ‘damage’ as the No. 1 scoring criteria,” Andy Foster told ‘Sportsnet.com’. “Thanks to the Committee and especially ‘Big’ John McCarthy in drafting this.” Moreover, the proposed draft will now place an emphasis on “effective striking and grappling,” which is what the sport is all about. Fans of Dana White’s UFC will witness that in the coming days when the change is made official.

The explanation of the proposed changes states: “Legal blows that have immediate or cumulative impact with the potential to contribute towards the end of the match, with the IMMEDIATE weighing in more heavily than the cumulative impact. Successful execution of takedowns, submission attempts, reversals, and the achievement of advantageous positions that produce immediate or cumulative impact with the potential to contribute to the end of the match, with the IMMEDIATE weighing more heavily than the cumulative impact.”

Scoring issues have led many fans to deem fights as robberies, with Dana White prominently voicing out his confusion with the judges’ scores in one instance back in 2020. Remember the Jon Jones vs Dominick Reyes fight, where people thought the challenger won? The UFC CEO was also among the bunch who sided with Reyes. But if we take a look at a more recent issue with scoring, it was when a judge misinterpreted a 10-8 score. Let’s take a look.

Dana White once lashed out at a 10-8 score from a judge

In the second fight between Valentina Shevchenko and Alexa Grasso at the first edition of Noche UFC in 2023, there was controversy. The fight was pretty close, and it ended in a draw. Two judges scored the fight 48-47, with one favoring Grasso and the other favoring Shevchenko. But when the sudden death moment came, the whole Ma community seemed shocked, with the third judge, Mike Bell, scoring the fight 47-47, giving the Mexican star the 5th round win with a 10-8 score.

Many people took issue with the 10-8 score because, even though they think Alexa Grasso won the round, they didn’t think she was dominant enough to get that score. Dana White blasted the judge later in the press conference, claiming, “That’s not a 10-8, but the 5th round is a 10-8? It literally makes no sense.” He added, “You have to understand too, I’m not defending anything, these people are human, they make mistakes, but this one is total bulls–t.”

These rule changes are rolling out during some heated discussions about contentious fight results—like the hotly debated Jon Jones vs. Dominick Reyes decision at UFC 247 in 2020 and the questionable 10‑8 fifth round in Shevchenko vs. Grasso II at Noche UFC 2023, which even drew some public backlash from UFC President Dana White. With the mix of detailed rule updates and some high-profile scoring controversies, the sport seems ready for some serious changes.

The fight scoring criteria we use today got the green light nearly a decade back, all the way in 2016. Looks like the moment for a shake-up has arrived, with the sport being more technical and competitive than ever before. What’s your take on the proposed changes? Are we gonna see better and fairer fights out there? Drop your thoughts in the comments below!