What is the difference between a split draw and a majority draw?
By Josh Betar
Every fan of combat sports loves nothing more than seeing two skilled combatants competing against one another to determine a victor. In MMA, the victor can be determined in a variety of ways whether that victory comes by way of a brutal knockout, a skilfully executed submission, or by the three cage-side judges declaring a winner. When this happens the referee will raise the winner's arm high in the air signifying his/her victory.
However, there are occasions where a winner isn’t announced and the two combatants are left in limbo trying to gather their emotions after their grueling contest has been declared a draw. In this scenario the referee will hold each fighter's arm in the air to signify that neither fighter has won the bout, leaving the two fighters and fans feeling somewhat underwhelmed. In Mixed Martial Arts, there are two types of draws. A split draw and a majority draw.
What is a majority draw?
First of all, let’s look at a majority draw. A majority draw occurs when one judge scores the bout in favour of fighter X and the two remaining judges at cage side score the bout even between the two fighters. A notable example of this was at UFC 284 in Perth, Western Australia.
Light heavyweights Jimmy Crute and Alonzo Menifield competed in a grueling, three-round back-and-forth war. When it came to decision time, it was ruled a majority draw. One judge scored the bout 29-27 in favor of Crute, while the other two judges scored the bout 28-28 thus resulting in a majority draw.
What is a split draw?
A spilt draw occurs when only one out of the three judges at cage side scores the bout a draw, while the two remaining judges score the bout in favor of either fighter X or fighter Y. A notable example of this was occurred at Noche UFC, which produced one of the best women's title fights in recent memory.
Alexa Grasso and Valentina Shevchenko squared off in their much-anticipated rematch for the undisputed UFC women's flyweight title. After five rounds had concluded the judges scored the bout a split draw. One judge scored the bout 48-47 in favor of the champion, Grasso. The second judge scored the bout 48-47 in favor of the challenger, Shevchenko. The third judge scored the bout 47-47, thus declaring the contest a split draw, with Grasso retaining her title.
While most times there will be a conclusive outcome with a winner being declared, there are unfortunately times when a draw occurs. Although quite rare, they can happen and ultimately leave both the fighters and fans without the outcome they were hoping for. Hopefully, now you will have a better understanding of what a split draw and a majority draw actually mean.
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