Joanne Wood says she was kneed “in the balls” three times, questions lack of time out

Joanne Wood won a split decision victory against Luana Carolina at UFC 286 in London, England. However, her victory was marred by her complaints of being kneed three times in the groin by Carolina and not receiving an extra break time to recover.

After the event, Wood was asked about an illegal knee that she almost landed while Carolina was on the ground. However, she revealed that Carolina had kneed her three times in the groin area, and referee Herb Dean overlooked it. Wood expressed her disappointment with Dean’s decision not to give her a 5-minute break time to recover.

During the  press conference, Wood lamented the fact that she did not receive an extra time to recover. She felt the need to use the toilet and wondered why the referee did not give her the time to recover.

“Hey, listen, let’s — She kneed me in the balls three times in there. I even looked at Herb Dean. He looked back. And I was like, ‘No. Don’t get any of that.’ But yeah, I mean, why did we not get five minutes? And I felt like I was going to do the toilet.” Wood said during UFC 286  press conference.

The former kickboxing champion regretted Dean’s decision, but doesn’t really see it as a big problem.

“But yeah, I come from Muay Thai, and that was one of my things. I always looked for that — As you were going down, to kick them in the face. I mean, pre-drills would be great for me. In the gym, ask anyone that’s trained with me. I’m always like, throwing it or thinking about it, and then be like, ‘Oh, sorry.’” Wood said.

With her recent win, Joanne Wood is excited to return to the octagon as soon as possible. She expressed her desire to run it back with Lauren Murphy. The two exchanged blows in June 2021 where Murphy came out as the victor via a split decision.

The rules and regulations in MMA are the same for men and women. Any strikes to the groin area are considered illegal, and if a martial artist lands such a blow, they can face penalties, such as losing a point or even disqualification.