Irish welterweight Kiefer Crosbie has hit out Marc Goddard’s ‘ridiculous’ refereeing in his UFC Shanghai bout with Taiyilake Nueraji in China this past weekend.

Crosbie was defeated by first round TKO by his Chinese opponent — moments after the fight was restarted after Crosbie had been hit with a clearly illegal knee, which opened a large gash and which led to a two-point deduction on the scorecards. The Irishman was seen to by cageside doctors but the fight was soon restarted after Crosbie indicated his desire to continue.

However, writing on social media in the aftermath of the contest Crosbie said that the decision to restart the bout shouldn’t have been his and suggested that Goddard’s officiating was not in his own best interests in the fight.

“Yeah take away a point and I’ll carry on. Sound,” Crosbie wrote on Instagram. “’My job is to keep you safe at all times.’”

“How come I didn’t get 5 minutes? 45 seconds I got and couldn’t even see straight or remember what happened.”

He added: “Obviously I was gonna continue because that’s what fighters do but to rush me back in whilst still concussed and confused is f*cking ridiculous. Playing with my life. Ridiculous call.”

Crosbie followed up in the comments, saying: “And dont get wrong I’ve said for years Marc is one of the best referees in the game if not the best. But that was a horrendous decision. I’m concussed and on wobbly legs can barely see straight with blood in my eyes and I’m rushed back into a fight after being partially KO’d by an illegal knee.

“After the fight I asked backstage how come a doctor didn’t come in and assess me, then they told me he did. I don’t remember any of it.”

Neither Goddard nor the UFC have commented on the situation at the time of writing.