Octagon control

Octagon control is the judging criterion that rewards the fighter dictating where the fight happens: cutting off the cage, forcing the opponent to retreat, and imposing position rather than reacting to it. It is also the most abused term in MMA scoring, because control looks like aggression to some judges and like effective ring generalship to others. A fighter can walk an opponent down all round and lose the exchanges, yet still be handed the round for controlling the cage. The scoring debate is chronicled at MMA Fighting.