UFC 247 Judge Joe Solis Had Relationship With Trevon Giles Camp

The controversial judging that took place at UFC 247: Jones vs Reyes has another layer of complexity added that is leaving fans scratching their heads.

Much of the buzz was around the scoring by Joe Soliz. In the Jones vs Reyes fight, Soliz scored the fight 49-46 in favor of Jones a fight that was very close. Jones ultimately won the fight via unanimous decision. The bigger shock occurred during the Trevon Giles vs James Krause bout. Soliz somehow scored the 1st round for Trevon Giles. A round in which Krause dominated Giles on the ground for over 4 minutes and numerous submission attempts. Krause’s manager Jason House says that they will appeal the decision.

Aaron Bronteter of TSN Sports reported that Joe Soliz had ties with members of Trevon Giles camp. Could this connection have swayed the decision in favor of Giles and made a bigger case for a James Krause victory?

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If this isn’t the most frustrating shit for me in the world I don’t know what… how is this not a conflict of interest? Training at someone’s gym for 10+ years and receiving a black belt from the coach corner my opponent. I no way am I mad I lost the fight, it was close. 1 was mine, 2 was his, and 3 was a toss up. But round 3 was given to me on 2/3 cards. It was round 1 they scored for him. After a take down and almost 4 minutes of back control, not to mention almost finishing the RNC, I don’t know how they would give that round to him. This sport has been around for too long to not start making changes. I know the Texas State Athletic Commission wont do a damn thing about my fight. They never do but I hope the @ufc, @danawhite, and the state commissions can come together to actually make the judging for OUR sport, not boxing and hold the people doing these jobs accountable. This is a disgrace to our sport. Not just my fight but multiple examples of incompetence from the same judge. So frustrated to even read this shit… and remember I lost half my purse because of this guy.

A post shared by James Krause (@thejameskrause) on Feb 18, 2020 at 4:01pm PST

Soliz was associated with Elite MMA where Trevon Giles trains. Soliz ironically was also trained under Eric Williams, who is Giles’s head coach.

“I received my black belt in 2008 under Eric Williams at Elite MMA. I left Elite in 2010 and received my 1st, 2nd and 3rd-degree belt under Octavio Couto.”

In speaking with TSN, Soliz also mentioned that he has not spoken or been associated with Elite MMA in over 8 years.

Eric Williams, the coach of Giles was in the corner during UFC 247 however he does not have any concerns about the controversy that has come about.

“I’ve known Joe for years and haven’t talked to him in over a year or 2 years. The problem is that it’s a small world and you get people crossing paths. Whenever you can, prevent it, but I don’t worry about it.”

The UFC is yet to make a comment on the news.