Sec. 212.11. Deduction of points for fouls; effect of low blow

(a) If a combatant fouls his opponent during a contest or exhibition of professional mixed martial arts, the referee may penalize him by deducting points from his score, whether or not the foul was intentional. Except as otherwise provided by the rules of the commission, the referee may determine the number of points to be deducted in each instance and shall base his determination on the severity of the foul and its effect upon the opponent.

(b) When the referee determines that it is necessary to deduct a point or points because of a foul, he shall warn the offender of the penalty to be assessed.

(c) The referee shall, as soon as is practical after the foul, notify the judges and both combatants of the number of points, if any, to be deducted from the score of the offender.

(d) Any points to be deducted for any foul shall be deducted in the round in which the foul occurred and may not be deducted from the score of a subsequent round.

(e) A combatant may not be declared the winner of a contest or exhibition of professional mixed martial arts on the basis of his or her claim that his or her opponent accidentally fouled him or her by hitting him or her in the groin. A combatant who has been struck with a low blow is allowed up to five minutes to recover from the foul as long as in the ringside doctor’s opinion the combatant may possibly continue on in the contest. If the fighter states that they can continue on before the five minutes of time have expired, the referee shall as soon as practical restart the fight. If the fighter goes over the five minute time allotment, the fight cannot be restarted and the contest must come to an end with the outcome determined by the judges’ scorecards at the round and time in which the fight was stopped.