Alexander K. Lee is an editor for MMA Fighting who has been covering combat sports since 2014.

Awful officiating cast a pall over a submission finish in Kazakhstan this past weekend.

At a Dala Fighting Championship event in Astana on Saturday, Kazakh bantamweight Zhuman Zhumabekov locked in a Von Flue choke after executing a powerful slam and clearly had the fight wrapped up halfway into the opening round.

His opponent Abhilash Raut clearly goes limp with his eyes rolling back, but the bout was not waved off at that point due to the negligence of referee Baurzhan Zhumanov. Seemingly oblivious to Raut's condition, Baurzhan Zhumanov actually appeared to call for Zhumabekov to continue to work on the ground, putting it on Zhumabekov to release the hold so the referee could see what had happened.

Watch the disturbing clip below.

An attentive Zhumabekov immediately looks to tend to Raut following the finish. Fortunately, Raut was able to stand on his own power and be part of the post-fight proceedings as he raised Zhumabekov's hand and embraced him.

Watch the full fight, including the aftermath, below.