Rivera’s management responds over knee
The fight between Jorge Rivera and Michael Bisping at UFC 127: Penn vs. Fitch was incredibly controversial, from the illegal…
The fight between Jorge Rivera and Michael Bisping at UFC 127: Penn vs. Fitch was incredibly controversial, from the illegal knee in the first round, to the pre-fight smack talk, to the post-fight antics from Bisping. Namely, spitting on Rivera’s corner and telling Rivera, “Loser, go home”.
Rivera’s management, Alchemist MMA, responds below:
“For the Jorge Rivera – Michael Bisping fight – the knee was illegal and flush on the face. But instead of taking a dive and possibly the win, Jorge fought on. Bisping tagged Jorge while BOTH of his knees were on the canvas. He wasn’t the same afterward but fought on anyway. How many fighters would be able to fight on after that?
“The stoppage was quick, but we won’t fight it. He won. That’s all there is to it. But for all his talk of being a professional, Bisping spit on Rivera’s coaches when the fight was over. How can you claim to be a professional after that?”
While Bisping earned a second-round TKO in the matchup, Rivera’s camp believes his actions during and after the fight were anything but admirable. Bisping says they should just get over it.
“He was very, very insulting towards me – very insulting,” Bisping said at the UFC 127 post-event press conference. “He was mocking me on the Internet. He was saying all kinds of things, making stupid videos talking about myself and my family – all kinds of stuff. I bit my tongue and said nothing, but it just kind of blew up inside me, and I blew up a little bit. I apologize for that.
“I shouldn’t behave like that, but I think he just needs to accept he got beat and get over it.”
“He definitely motivated me. “It made me train harder. Trash-talk is part of the game. You’ve got to take that on chin sometimes, which I should have done a little bet better.
“I did let it get to me a little too much. As I said, I apologize for that, but I’m an emotional guy, and I wear my heart on my sleeve. Everything that comes out of my mouth I mean from the heart.”
“The knee certainly wasn’t on purpose. You get excited in the heat of the fight. He was getting up off the ground. I had him in a Thai clinch. I was waiting to time it to knee him in the head. I got a little over-excited and pulled the trigger too early. It happens quite a lot. It’s a fast-moving sport.
“I certainly didn’t mean to do it, and I was very glad that the fight was able to continue. No one wants to see a fight won or lost in that fashion.”
In an interview with MMAFighting.com’s Ariel Helwani, Bisping offereed both escuse and apology:
” I was spitting on the floor to him to let him know what I thought of him. I apologize for that, I’d never want to act like that, and I apologize for losing my cool. He talked a lot of things, he said a lot of things, he mocked me for the world to see.”
“And I tried to bite my tongue and take the higher ground, but once I started letting my fists fly it’s like the floodgates of emotion opened and it all came boiling out. I said something and I was spitting on the floor to let him know what I thought of him. I didn’t mean to spit though, so I do apologize.”