One of the toughest blows MMA can hand a fighter is a split-decision loss—and UFC strawweight Cortney Casey has been dealt this fate in back-to-back contests. 

The result can leave fighters wondering if they should have done more, forcing them to analyze—and over-analyze—what they could have changed. 

Making matters more difficult for Casey, her back-to-back split-decision losses came against top-10-ranked opponents. Should the scorecards tilt in her favor in those contests, she's in title contention instead of sniffing the chopping block. 

Worse yet, most members of the media scored at least one of the two fights for Casey and, in some cases, both.

Although Casey looks toward the future with a bout this weekend vs. Angela Hill at UFC Fight Night 135 in Lincoln, she does have a reason to think the last two were taken away from her, and it’s something that’ll shape how she handles Hill. 

“Both of their names [Felice Herrig and Michelle Waterson] weighed a lot heavier than mine did,” Casey explained. “That can always play a part.”

Despite being in the top 15 herself, Casey feels the other fighters she’s bowed out to had a larger presence in the media and promotion. This fact, she feels, even affects the judges. 

“I do think [names] weigh a little bit heavier," Casey said. "It shouldn’t be that way, but I definitely think when it does go to the scorecards... You go in knowing Michelle Waterson, and, 'oh, Felice Herrig,' you’ve seen them before and their name pops out more than mine does. Same with Angela Hill.”

Casey believes some of this is due to the other fighters’ presence on social media—something she actively avoids.

“I don’t get involved in a lot of that social media drama or stuff like that that Angela Hill gets in,” Casey said. “I don’t input my two cents into every little thing that I can.”

And even though it may well have cost her two fights, don’t expect Casey to change any time soon. 

“It doesn’t bother me. It sucks that it goes that way, but I’m going to be true to who I am," Casey said. "I’m not going to go out of my way to do anything else. I just train and stay humble—just be me.”

However, don’t mistake this claim as an excuse not to make improvements. Casey continues to look back at what happened in the cage to see how she can make it so the judges can’t mess it up. 

“We looked back at the film, and it looks like we’re losing just little moments here or there,” Casey said. “Our main thing is to clean up those moments and make bigger impacts in each round.”