At UFC 235, former UFC welterweight champ Robbie Lawler was tasked with welcoming former ONE and Bellator champ Ben Askren to the Octagon.

In the opening seconds of the first round it looked as though Lawler would spoil Askren’s debut, as he executed a beautiful slam and nearly finished the wrestler with a storm of ground strikes. Miraculously, however, Askren was able to weather this storm and lock up a bulldog choke for the victory.

The only problem was that Robbie Lawler didn’t seem to be unconcious — referee Herb Dean only though he was.

In the UFC 235 edition of the popular UFC-produced series The Thrill and the Agony we can hear what Lawler and Dean said to each other in the moments after this controversial stoppage.

As you can see, Robbie Lawler moves from profanity-ridden fury to complete understanding in a matter of seconds. It’s really something to behold.

Here’s a transcript of the pair’s exchange (via BloodyElbow):

Right after the stoppage, there was some understandable frustration and confusion:

Lawler: “What the [expletive] are you doing?!”

Dean: “I thought you…”

Lawler: “I didn’t. What the [expletive]?!”

Within seconds, though, Robbie Lawler had moved on to acceptance and understanding.

Dean: [Inaudible]

Lawler: “I know. It’s alright.”

Lawler then actually called Dean back over to forgive him.

Lawler: “Herb. Herb. Hey. Hey, don’t [expletive] worry about it. You’re a [expletive] hell of a ref.

Dean: “No, man. No. I don’t understand how, like… I saw your arm (go) limp, I grabbed it. But I didn’t know.”

Lawler: “and then I gave you a thumbs up.”

Dean: “I didn’t know. I didn’t see you give me a thumbs up.”

Lawler: “It happens man. If [expletive] happens.”

What did you think of the stoppage in the UFC 235 fight between Ben Askren and Robbie Lawler?

This article first appeared on BJPENN.COM on 3/5/2019.