‘Dreadful’ – Fight Fans Slam Referee Mark Smith Following Tatsuro Taira TKO Win Over Brandon Moreno At UFC 323

December 6, 2025

in UFC

Reading Time: 3 mins read

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Despite yet another referee controversy, Tatsuro Taira may have positioned himself to finally get a crack at flyweight gold, becoming the first man to finish former two-time flyweight champion Brandon Moreno at UFC 323.

Moreno was in control for most of the first round, executing a tight triangle on Taira for what felt like the longest time — in spite of Taira looking to take the fight to the ground. He appeared to have a fully locked-in triangle armbar and triangle choke, but Taira defended and was able to slip out of the hold in the closing seconds.

Taira used his speed to slip away from Moreno’s strikes in the second round. He then was able to score a takedown, and this time it was him who was troubling the former champ.

Taira flattened out Moreno and rained down blows. As Moreno appeared to be building his base, however, referee Mark Smith waved off the fight, giving Taira the win in a key flyweight battle.

Tatsuro Taira Finishes Brandon Moreno At UFC 323

Mark Smith has been DREADFUL tonight. Fucked up in the Barber fight, fucked up in the Moreno fight. Horrible tonight, horrible for some time. And we'll see no consequences. #UFC323

— Rodrigo Del Campo González (@RodDelCampo) December 7, 2025

Hmm. I kinda agree with DC & Rogan about that stoppage.I'm not massively upset about it, but not at great night reffing from Mark Smith tonight. Just a bit more time. Dude needs to take some time off as a ref cause he's all over the place. #UFC323

— Jason Hartley (@jasonthehart) December 7, 2025

Mark Smith man…alright lmao. That probably wasn’t getting better, but talk about jumping the gun

— Tampa Bay Dricus Rays (@dexgranderson) December 7, 2025

Investigate Mark Smith… that’s fucking Brandon Moreno, you don’t stop that

— Zayy (@IZayy05) December 7, 2025

‘Dreadful’ – Fight Fans Slam Referee Mark Smith Following Tatsuro Taira TKO Win Over Brandon Moreno At UFC 323

Literally can’t bet on MMA when you have Mark Smith refereeing. They need to announce refereeing assignments before the fights so we can totally avoid Mark Smith fights. #UFC323

— FreeUFCbetPicks (@FreeUFCbetPicks) December 7, 2025

Taira has now won back-to-back fights after his first professional MMA loss, coming against Brandon Royval. He is 8-1 since arriving in the UFC in 2022.

Moreno has lost three of five now, stretching back to him losing the flyweight title to Alexandre Pantoja at UFC 290.

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