Trivia: The 10-10 Round

Did you know that it is possible for a round to be judged 10-10? This was an interesting point of debate brought up in thread on MMAMania.com.

10-10 rounds are very rare, and few fans can point to an example. But they are possible. There is a section in the Unified Rules that deals specifically with 10-10 rounds.

Here is the verbiage from the
New Jersey State Athletic Control Board - MMA Unified Rules:

13:46-24A.13 Judging

(a) All bouts will be evaluated and scored by three judges.

(b) The 10-Point Must System will be the standard system of scoring a bout. Under the 10-Point Must Scoring System, 10 points must be awarded to the winner of the round and nine points or less must be awarded to the loser, except for a rare even round, which is scored (10-10).

And also further down in the same section on Judging:

(j) The following objective scoring criteria shall be utilized by the judges when scoring a round;

1. A round is to be scored as a 10-10 Round when both contestants appear to be fighting evenly and neither contestant shows clear dominance in a round;

2. A round is to be scored as a 10-9 Round when a contestant wins by a close margin, landing the greater number of effective legal strikes, grappling and other maneuvers;

3. A round is to be scored as a 10-8 Round when a contestant overwhelmingly dominates by striking or grappling in a round.

4. A round is to be scored as a 10-7 Round when a contestant totally dominates by striking or grappling in a round.