Matt Serra revealed on Monday that he was the one responsible for yelling celebratory obscenities after Anderson Silva broke his leg against Chris Weidman at UFC 168.
The infamous video clip, which surfaced a couple of days after the UFC 168 main event on Break.com, replays the horrific ending in the middleweight championship bout with the audio from Weidman’s corner turned up.
Silva goes to throw a leg kick, and Weidman immediately checks the kick with his knee, breaking Silva’s tibia and fibula in his left leg. The former UFC champ falls to the canvas almost instantly, cradling his leg and screaming in agony.
While Silva is plastered on his backside, someone from Weidman’s corner can clearly be heard in the video saying, “Good, F*** him.”
The story picked up enough steam in the mainstream media to warrant a response from Weidman’s corner. In speaking with Ariel Helwani on The MMA Hour, Serra took the time to clear the air and set the story straight:
I heard the thing, and then at first, I was like, ‘Oh, what did [Ray] Longo say?’ Then I was like, ‘Oh man, f***, that was me.’ …None of us saw what happened. We saw [Silva] just drop, and I didn’t see Chris throw strikes.
…For two months, me and Longo are talking every night, ‘Alright listen man, he does this, he does these shenanigans. This is where he’s going to f*** him. This is where the kid’s going to f*** him. This is where Chris is going to get him. If he gets him here on the floor, I swear this is where he’s going to f*** the guy.’ This is how we talk. I hate to say it, but I’m being honest with you. …As far as Chris, we even tell him the mentality and all the mystique of this guy, ‘No, f*** him dude. He’s stepping into the cage with you.’
To be fair, the vast majority of fans were completely unaware of the severity of Silva’s injury until the post-fight replay.
There was clearly a lot of confusion immediately following the finish. It wasn’t until the UFC cued up the replay booth that a chorus of oohs and ahhs echoed throughout the MGM Grand Garden Arena.
Unfortunately for Weidman, Serra yelling obscenities at one of the most beloved fighters in MMA history isn’t doing the young champ any favors.
Those still unwilling to give Weidman the credit he rightfully deserves for defeating Silva twice in a row have now turned to calling him arrogant and disrespectful.
It truly is a sad turn of events considering the fact that Weidman has been nothing but respectful towards Silva throughout this entire ordeal.
Before Serra’s appearance on The MMA Hour, Weidman was also a guest on the show, where he continued to proclaim Silva as the greatest fighter in MMA history.
At the end of the day, people make mistakes. Even though Serra made an honest mistake, he still owned up to the incident and took the initiative to apologize to Silva’s family for his comments during the fight:
I didn’t see it until the next day on how that thing broke. We’re not heartless pricks, we’re not bad sportsmen. He’s got kids, he’s got people who love him. The first thing I did when I knew it was me is I got [Silva’s manager] Ed Soares number, and I gave him a call. If I hurt anybody’s feelings, of course Anderson’s kids, his wife and everything, I do apologize. That definitely did not come out of a bad place or negative place.
Serra has always been a straight shooter, and he has remained generally respectful towards just about every fighter he’s come in contact with.
It’ll be interesting to see how his apology plays out in the court of public opinion.
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