Everyone can relax; Ihor Potieria did not disrespect Shogun Rua. (Thank God)
Potieria picked up by far the biggest win of his career last night (Sat., Jan. 21, 2023) at UFC 283 from inside Jeunesse Arena in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, when he finished Mauricio ‘Shogun’ Rua in the first round, sending him in retirement. (Watch highlights!)
His post-fight celebration quickly overshadowed the win over the Brazilian legend. After finishing Rua with strikes, Potieria did a dance that made the internet and Shogun fans furious.
Watch below:
Bro finished a legend in his hometown and hit an emote
— ??????????? (@TheArtOfWar6) January 22, 2023
At first glance, it looked like it was disrespectful; however, he later explained in his post-fight interview with the media that it was all respect, and he even danced again.
“I’m about to show you this dance again,” Potieria told the media. “So make sure that you film it and that your camera is not shaking. But really, my nickname is a duelist, and that was a duel. I took out my gun, but I did not fire [at Shogun]. I fired into the air because I respect my opponent, so I told him respect.”
Ihor Poteira says he’s a duelist and was showing Shogun respect with his post fight dance by not shooting him. Then he repeated the dance. pic.twitter.com/ObZz8dMB4n
— Oscar Willis (@oscarswillis) January 22, 2023
The victory over Rua was Potieria’s first UFC win and put him back into the win column after losing his debut via knockout.
For complete UFC 283 results and coverage click here.