Jacobe Smith remained undefeated at UFC 332, but his latest victory has left fans divided. The Oklahoma native stopped UFC debutant Bruce Whitehead in the first round of their welterweight clash at the Delta Center in Salt Lake City, Utah, but the finish came shortly after Smith landed a brutal low blow that left his opponent visibly hurt.

The foul came during a clinch exchange after both fighters had initially traded strikes. Smith then landed a huge knee directly to Whitehead’s groin, bringing the action to a halt.

Whitehead was visibly writhing in pain as he recovered from the shot. However, the UFC debutant ultimately decided to continue rather than take the opportunity to have the fight ruled a no contest.

That decision proved costly.

Smith immediately closed the distance once the action resumed, took Whitehead to the canvas and began unloading from back mount. Whitehead offered little response to the barrage, prompting the referee to step in and stop the fight at the 1:32 mark of the opening round.

With the victory, Smith improved his professional record to 13-0 and picked up his fourth UFC win. However, the circumstances surrounding the finish quickly became the bigger talking point.

Whitehead had been visibly affected by the groin shot before Smith capitalized on the situation. While the foul itself did not automatically end the fight because Whitehead chose to continue, fans questioned whether the damage from the knee played a role in the subsequent stoppage.

It wasn’t the first time one of Smith’s UFC victories had attracted criticism, either.

Smith previously faced Josiah Harrell at UFC Houston earlier this year and secured another first-round TKO, this time from side control.

That finish also generated controversy, although the focus was largely on referee Kerry Hatley. Smith continued landing strikes while Hatley took time to intervene, resulting in several additional shots after Harrell appeared to be in trouble.

The referee received much of the criticism for the late stoppage, but Smith also faced backlash for continuing to land strikes. Former UFC fighter Matt Brown was among those who questioned whether the extra shots were necessary.

Smith’s latest victory therefore gives him another controversial moment to answer for, even though the low blow at UFC 332 was not an intentional foul established by the commission or officials.

And this isn’t the first time a fighter has continued competing after taking a significant groin shot and ultimately gone on to lose.

Ben Rothwell faced a similar situation against Stefan Struve

In 2019, Ben Rothwell landed a significant low blow on Stefan Struve during their UFC on ESPN 7 heavyweight bout in Washington, D.C.

Struve, who stands at 7 feet and remains the tallest fighter in UFC history, was hit by another low blow in the second round, resulting in Rothwell having a point deducted.

Despite the fouls, Struve chose to continue the fight. Rothwell eventually stopped him at 4:57 of the second round, just three seconds before the end of the round.

The circumstances were different, but the fight provided another example of why a fighter’s decision to continue after a serious foul can have major consequences.

At UFC 332, Whitehead made the same choice. And while that allowed the fight to continue, it also left Smith in position to capitalize.

That didn’t stop fans from questioning the circumstances of the finish.

Fans divided over Jacobe Smith’s controversial finish at UFC 332

One fan summed up the immediate reaction to the low blow by writing, “That hurts even looking at it….#UFC332.”

Another argued that Whitehead should have taken the opportunity to stop the fight.

“I feel like Bruce Whitehead chose to fight on to impress the UFC matchmakers… but bro, they don’t care. Dude should have taken the No Contest. Absolutely no one would have blamed him, and he would have been rebooked against an easier opponent. #UFC332,” the fan noted.

A different fan joined the backlash and commented, “Jacobe Smith finishes Bruce Whitehead in Round 1 at UFC 332. 😳 MTFKR is celebrating like that NASTY LOW BLOW didn’t help him win. 🤡”

It definitely looked like Whitehead was still in considerable discomfort. But it was ultimately the UFC debutant who decided to continue without being fully recovered. Perhaps recognizing that detail, another fan chose to give Jacobe the credit.

The fan wrote, “Tough to compete after a nut shot like that. Not taking anything away from Jacobe.”

Another fan labeled the finish as the worst they had ever seen, “Broooo Jacobe Smith just hit the worst low blow I’ve ever seen in my life this fight is probably over 😳 knee right to the b—s #UFC332.”

Echoing the sentiment of the backlash, another fan wasn’t impressed by Smith’s performance, since he was a huge favorite to win the fight anyway, and also grilled the UFC matchmakers for feeding him a debutant.

The fan wrote, “I like Jacobe Smith but I’m not impressed at all. He beat up a dude who was already diminished from a brutal n—t shot, and he was a -2000 favorite to do it. He needs a step up because this matchmaking was a joke. #UFC332.”

Jacobe Smith remains undefeated, and he scored the fourth win of his UFC career tonight. So, he would definitely need a step up in competition. Most probably, he would get a ranked opponent next for his upcoming outing in the octagon.

For now, Smith leaves UFC 332 with another victory on his record, but also another controversial moment attached to it.