The Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation informed Dustin Poirier the no-contest declared in his UFC 211 bout against Eddie Alvarez will stand.

But Poirier’s rep is not giving up and argues the Texas commission is trying to sweep a bad decision under the rug.

“It’s so bizarre to me that they’re trying to railroad him without anybody knowing,” Poirier’s manager Robert Roveta told MMAjunkie.

In a letter sent May 31 to Roveta, obtained via public records request by MMAjunkie, TDLR Executive Director Brian Francis wrote that referee Herb Dean’s call was “consistent with the rules and laws and therefore did not affect the outcome of the bout.”

Dean called the bout a no-contest, ruling Alvarez (28-5 MMA, 3-2 UFC) did not intentionally land three illegal knees to the downed Poirier (21-5 MMA, 13-4 UFC) in the May 13 bout, which was regulated by the TDLR’s combative sports division and took place at American Airlines Center in Dallas.

Francis cited the TDLR’s statute on accidental injuries, which states a no-contest must be ruled if a competitor is accidentally injured in the first four rounds of bout.

“Although the referee determined that Mr. Alvarez committed a foul, the referee also determined that the foul was accidental and occurred in the first round … of the bout,” he wrote.

Roveta, however, said he did not receive the TDLR’s denial and was shocked to hear the commission had done so prior to receiving his formal appeal, which, according to the documents obtained via records request, he filed June 7 – one week after the denial.

“I never received the response on May 31,” Roveta said. “I had multiple conversations via telephone and email letting them know we were drafting a formal appeal and requesting as much information as possible on their appeals process and expected timelines.”

The TDLR disputes that claim, however. Susan Stanford, the regulator’s public information officer, said the TDLR treated an email sent by Roveta on May 15 as a complaint that triggered the investigation and subsequent denial.

“This decision was made on that first email complaint,” she said. “He filed a complaint immediately after the fight, and that’s what we responded to.”

Stanford added the TDLR is currently preparing a response to Poirier’s June 7 appeal, in which Roveta and attorney Rob Cardenas lay out the case for the bout’s decision to be overturned.

In the appeal, Roveta and Cardenas actually anticipate the argument Francis makes in the initial denial, countering the rule about accidental injuries is “inapplicable” because it doesn’t address intent.

“Mr. Poirier was not ‘accidentally injured,'” the appeal states. “This was not akin to an inadvertent eye-poke; rather, Mr. Alvarez intended to land knees to the head of Mr. Poirier. He succeeded in doing so. The resulting injury was not an accident.”

Citing the rules in place that night, they argue Dean made a bad call, not relying on the previous version of the unified rules, which allows a fighter to be considered downed merely by touching the canvas, the position Poirier was in when he took two of the three illegal shots.

“Since Texas has not adopted and/or implemented the changes to the unified rules, all three knees were illegal,” stated the appeal, which can be read here. “After being struck by illegal knees to the head, Mr. Poirier was unable to continue. Under existing Texas rules, codes and law, all three knees were illegal, and therefore a disqualification of Mr. Alvarez was warranted.”

The appeal also argues Dean acted improperly by consulting UFC executive Marc Ratner prior to declaring the no-contest, stating, “Mr. Poirier submits that Herb Dean went beyond his authority in first conferring with the promoter and then instituting his own subjective interpretation of what Mr. Alvarez may have heard and/or seen.”

Poirier’s reps want the no-contest overturned to a disqualification win, noting the UFC lightweight missed out on a $65,000 win bonus, suffered a concussion, and was denied the chance to move up the rankings with the uncertain result.

“This Commission has an opportunity to right a wrong and render a decision, which comports and complies with the rules and code governing UFC 211,” stated Poirier’s appeal. “This Commission has an opportunity to enforce (its) rules in order to send a message of clarity and consistency to the fight industry. Without enforcement, the industry runs the risk of having fighters violate the rules with no fear of repercussion.

“If a fighter is allowed to end a fight via an illegal tactic and/or foul and simply receive a No Contest, the integrity of the sport, along with its promoters and its governing commissions, will be forever jeopardized. There are rules governing this sport and there are ramifications for violating those rules. There has to be an enforcement of those rules. This Commission has an important opportunity in this case to do just that.”

After hearing of the initial denial, Roveta said he simply wants the commission to review the appeal before making a final decision.

“How can they make a decision without reviewing the appeal?” he said.

Reached for comment on Wednesday, Poirier said he wants a rematch with Alvarez whether or not his appeal is successful.

For complete coverage of UFC 211, check out the UFC Events section of the site.