Pros react after Gleison Tibau upsets Rory MacDonald at PFL 5

Multiple MMA fighters reacted on social media after Gleison Tibau pulled off an upset win over Rory MacDonald at PFL 5 last night.

The two men battled it out as part of the final push towards the welterweight playoffs in the PFL. The overwhelming expectation heading into the bout was that MacDonald would blow the doors off of Tibau and while it wasn’t quite so convincing, many did believe he was the one who should have his hand raised.

Then, in a stunning twist of fate, the judges awarded the contest to Tibau via split decision – sending MMA Twitter into meltdown.

If judges make decisions like this they should be banned permanently!

— Funky (@Benaskren) June 18, 2021

https://twitter.com/GilbertDurinho/status/1405726863440371713

Wow crazy judging

— Belal Muhammad (@bullyb170) June 18, 2021

Turned on TV saw this fight between tibau and Rory McDonald, Rory was straight robbed

— Jeremy Stephens (@LiLHeathenMMA) June 18, 2021

Rory MacDonald clearly defeated Gleison Tibau on the Global Scorecard.

There's never been a point differential this big on Verdict where the opposite fighter has won.#2021PFL5 pic.twitter.com/YEPAMdlmDe

— Verdict (@VerdictMMA) June 18, 2021

WTF!! HOW DAFUQ DID THOSE JUDGES SCORE IT FOR TIBAU?

— Chamatkar Sandhu (@SandhuMMA) June 18, 2021

It’s safe to say that while some may have been able to squint and award Tibau one round, others were convinced that Rory took all three – making the idea of a 29-28 Tibau scorecard almost impossible.

The strangest part is that due to the manner in which the PFL playoff structure works, Tibau didn’t make it into the top four whereas MacDonald did thanks to his previous win in the competition.

These reactions serve as just a small look into the chaos that was Twitter last night when, rightly, fans were legitimately questioning the sanctity of the sport and the future of MMA judging.

Nobody can definitively say whether or not this is going to harm the long term prospects of MacDonald in this season’s PFL but one thing we can say with confidence is this – PFL needs to take a serious look at how this fight was judged because if they don’t, the uproar will only continue.

Do you think Gleison Tibau should’ve walked away as the winner of this fight? What do you think the next best move is from here for Rory MacDonald in his MMA career? Let us know your thoughts on this controversy down in the comments, BJPENN Nation!