Ante Delija nonetheless needs to know what occurred in his struggle with Waldo Cortes-Acosta at UFC Vegas 110.
The official ending of Saturday’s heavyweight co-main occasion will go down as a knockout win for Cortes-Acosta, however that end result solely got here after a complicated foul controversy that came about after it seemed like Delija had ended the struggle with a flurry of strikes. Three minutes into the opening spherical, Delija was battering Cortes-Acosta with strikes and referee Mark Smith stepped in to cease the struggle. Nonetheless, Cortes-Acosta complained of an eye fixed poke and after a video overview that clearly confirmed he was fouled, Smith gave him the choice to proceed and moments later the struggle resumed.
On Sunday, Delija posted a five-point assertion to Instagram Tales, expressing his fury at Smith and the fee’s choice:
Delija added the next:
I ask for nothing extra, simply honesty.
I don’t run from defeat,
I respect each opponent and each end result.
However not when guidelines are damaged and I’m robbed.
Not on this manner.
The game hasn’t seen this but!!!
MMA Combating’s Guilherme Cruz reached out to Delija’s administration to substantiate the interpretation of Delija’s publish, which was initially written in Croatian.
Making the sequence that rather more controversial is the truth that it got here seven days after Delija’s teammate Tom Aspinall was additionally concerned in eye poke drama. Aspinall defended his heavyweight title towards Ciryl Gane at UFC 321, however the bout led to a no-contest when Gane poked each of Aspinall’s eyes and the champion was unable to proceed.
Amid criticism of Aspinall’s lack of ability to proceed with the competition, Delija defended his buddy, saying (through a Croatian translator), “I actually don’t perceive. I had 33 fights and I by no means poked any person within the eye, and I do imagine the punishment for that needs to be extreme.”
The end result was significantly heartbreaking for Delija, who made a profitable UFC debut this previous September in his thirty second professional bout, knocking out longtime contender Marcin Tybura within a spherical. Delija, a one-time PFL event champion, on his solution to a 2-0 report contained in the octagon earlier than his foul led to a chaotic disappointment.
