Lightweight prospect Nurullo Aliev remained undefeated in his octagon debut at UFC Fight Night 220 , but it didn’t come without an odd bit of controversy. Aliev (9-0 MMA, 1-0 UFC) was deducted a point by referee Mark Smith for biting Rafael Alves (20-12 MMA, 1-3 UFC) in the opening round at the UFC Apex, but it didn’t stop him from getting his hand raised by majority decision with scores of 29-27, 29-27 and 28-28. During an exchange on the mat where Alves was in bottom position, he attempted to push away the head of Aliev. His fingers went in the direction of the mouth, though, then moments later Alves winced and complained to the referee that he’d been bitten. After a halt in the action, Smith consulted the Nevada State Athletic Commission to look at the replay. There was no conclusive evidence of the bite on the footage because of the angle, but Smith said he inspected visible bite marks of Alves’ finger.
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