Hector Lombard Plans to Appeal UFC 222 Disqualification Loss to C.B. Dollaway

The left-hand counter that Hector Lombard landed just seconds after the horn against C.B. Dollaway at UFC 222 cost him dearly.

A dazed Dollaway was taken from the Octagon on a stretcher, and as a result, Lombard was handed a disqualification defeat. In the aftermath of the ruling, there was plenty of debate on both sides as to whether Lombard was in the wrong. UFC President Dana White said at the post-fight press conference that the final ruling was correct.

“When you watch the replay, you clearly see the referee yell ‘Stop.’ He yells ‘Stop,’ and then half a second later Lombard throws that last punch that knocks him out,” White said. “It was the right call.”

Lombard disagrees, and the former Bellator MMA champion announced via Instagram that he plans to appeal the decision.

“He was in guard and ready all the time! And he was protecting himself all [the] time! Me and my team are gonna appeal the decision!” Lombard wrote.

On Monday, both Lombard and his management confirmed that decision with MMAjunkie.com. In order to win his appeal with the Nevada Athletic Commission, Lombard must prove one of the following: a scoring error has been committed, proof of collusion, or a misapplication of the rules by the referee. The third option will most likely be Lombard’s path.

Lombard’s manager, Narcis Mujkic, told MMAjunkie that they hope to have the loss overturned in part because a disqualification means that the fighter would need to appear before the commission to get another license.

“There are other examples of punches after the bell,” Mujkic said. “Hector was doing a combination and had muscle memory and was doing what he had to do.”

If the verdict stands, Lombard will be winless in his last six UFC bouts dating back to a UFC 183 triumph over Joshua Burkman that was later overturned to a no contest due to a failed drug test. Lombard hasn’t been victorious in UFC competition since outpointing Jake Shields at UFC 171 in March 2014.