Today Andrei Orlovsky is one of the current UFC star veterans. On October 30, the famous fighter will have another fight in the promotion against the Brazilian Marcos Rogerio de Lima, where he will try to extend his winning streak.

For more than twenty years of his career, the athlete managed to fight more than 50 fights according to the rules of mixed martial arts and boasts significant achievements, including the UFC championship belt. But there were also dark times in Orlovsky’s career, which included, in particular, his fight with Anthony Johnson.

Andrei was defeated due to the grossest mistake of the referee.

“He’s a great athlete”

Belarusian mixed martial arts fighter Andrei Orlovsky became one of the first immigrants from the post-Soviet space who managed to win the UFC champion title back in the middle of the 2000s. But due to disagreements with the management of the promotion regarding the contract, Pitbull decided to try himself in other fighting organizations.

In 2013, Orlovsky collaborated with WSOF, now known as PFL. At the second numbered tournament, Andrey got an opponent with American Anthony Johnson, who also played in the UFC.

The Belarusian was considered the favorite of this fight. He had to face a fighter who had no experience in the heavyweight division before. But Johnson really wanted this fight with Andrey, despite all the risks.

Anthony Johnson / Photo: © Jeff Bottari / Contributor / UFC / Gettyimages.com

– I would like a fight with Orlovsky if it was offered to me. I said I want to move up to heavyweight to try my hand there. I’m serious. I don’t know yet if I want to stay there, but I’m eager to try. I would definitely fight him if I had the chance. He is an excellent sportsman,” said the American.

After organizing the fight, the American began to seriously prepare, gaining weight and showing off his sparring partners to the public. Alistair Overeem, Matt Mitrione, Rashad Evans, Michael Johnson and others helped him in the preparatory camp.

Fatal miscalculation of the judge

The fighters spent the first minutes of the fight in reconnaissance. Orlovsky tried to get an opponent with single jabs, Johnson occasionally tried to throw deuces. But not a single athlete managed to achieve a significant advantage. Toward the end of the starting round, the rivals went to the fight, but even then no one managed to excel.

The most interesting thing happened in the last seconds of this segment. Johnson hit Andrei well, after which Pitbull fell to the canvas. The American, of course, rushed to finish off the opponent. He managed to inflict several strong blows to the head from the back. One of them led to a severe double fracture of Orlovsky’s jaw. But later it turned out that before the moment of finishing, a signal for a break should have sounded, but he was a few seconds late.

– These ten seconds, whether you like it or not – you count in your head. Looks like the round is about to end. I turned my head, they say, where is the gong? And ended up on his ass with a broken jaw. And that’s all, ”Orlovsky recalled that episode.

Despite a severe injury and bleeding in his mouth, Andrei did not withdraw from the fight. In the second round, Johnson went ahead to finish off Pitbull, but the Belarusian adequately held the heavy blows of the American, not forgetting to respond. True, one of Andrey’s blows hit the American in the groin, but it was not strong – the opponent quickly recovered. The fighters spent the end of the segment on the ground, but in this fight they looked faded in the fight.

In the third round, Orlovsky already looked more cheerful than the tired Anthony. The American only occasionally hit, more often trying to pin the Belarusian to the net without any active actions. The judges deservedly gave this segment to Andrei. But too much has been missed before. In the end, Johnson won by unanimous decision. All three referees scored 29–28 in favor of the American.

Andrey Orlovsky / Photo: © Douglas P. DeFelice / Contributor / Getty Images Sport / Gettyimages.ru

“The man who kept track of time is to blame”

Orlovsky later, without hesitation, named the episode that occurred at the end of the first round as the main reason for his defeat, blaming the timekeeper judge for everything, who did not give a signal in time.

– To be honest, in the second and third rounds, every blow to the chest, neck, head felt like an electric shock. But I really wanted to win. I think the person who kept track of time is to blame for this, ”Orlovsky said a few months after the battle.

The timekeeper’s confusion led to severe injury: the Belarusian fighter had to undergo a difficult operation. It’s good that Andrei got an excellent doctor who helped him overcome the consequences of the injury and eventually even became a friend of the fighter. After the fight, Orlovsky even wanted to go to court because of the harm caused to his health, but did not find a lawyer who was ready to take on this difficult case.

It is good that the athlete’s jaw healed without serious health consequences. Orlovsky missed six months, and then triumphantly returned to mixed martial arts and the UFC, where he still pleases the audience with his performances.