In his main card bout this past weekend at UFC 125, light-heavyweight Thiago Silva (15-2) has taken some criticism for slapping his opponent Brandon Vera about the head in the third round of their fight.
Silva wound up earning a unanimous decision victory in his first fight after almost a year.
Vera not only ended up with a third straight UFC loss but a badly broken nose which occurred shortly after Silva’s head slaps.
During the post fight press conference Silva explained his actions.
“Brandon was saying in interviews that he was going to beat me, that he’d do this or that. All I said was tell him to try and beat me,” he says.
“I threw some slaps just to get him to lose focus so I could get the submission,” he explains.
On the fight, Silva feels he had a good showing, although he still needs to evolve.
“I trained a lot for this fight. For someone who’s been out for a year, I feel I had a good appearance, but I’m here to improve too. I can improve.”
Regarding his future in the organization, he’s ready for whatever comes.
“I’m not here to pick my opponents. It’s not my decision, it’s the UFC’s, but I’m here to fight the best,” he says in closing.
HT: Graciemag.com