(j) The following objective scoring criteria shall be utilized by the judges when scoring a round, and is provided as a general non-exclusive guideline for purposes of illustration:

1. (1) a round is to be scored as a 10-10 round when both contestants appear to be fighting evenly and neither contestant shows clear dominance in a round;
2. (2) a round is to be scored as a 10-9 round when one contestant wins by a close margin, landing the greater number of effective legal strikes, grappling and other maneuvers;
3. (3) a round is to be scored as a 10-8 round when one contestant overwhelmingly dominates (wins by a large margin) by striking or grappling in a round;
4. (4) a round is to be scored as a 10-7 round when one contestant totally dominates by striking or grappling in a round.

(k) Judges shall use a sliding scale and recognize the length of time the fighters are either standing or on the ground, as follows:

1. (1) if the mixed martial artists spent a majority of a round on the canvas, then:

   1. (i) effective grappling is weighed first; and
   2. (ii) effective striking is then weighed;

2. (2) if the mixed martial artists spent a majority of a round standing, then:

   1. (i) effective striking is weighed first; and
   2. (ii) effective grappling is then weighed; and
3. (3) if a round ends with a relatively even amount of standing and canvas fighting, striking and grappling are weighed equally.