The grudge match between UFC bantamweight contenders Marlon Moraes and Jimmie Rivera didn’t last all that long last night (Fri., June 1, 2018) at UFC Fight Night 131 from inside Adirondack Bank Center in Utica, N.Y., as Moraes put a stop to “El Terror” with a 33-second head kick knockout (highlights here).
Following the quick main event, Moraes’ manager, Ali Abdelaziz, took to Twitter to show his respect for Rivera (shown below). Remember, Rivera told MMAjunkie prior to UFC Utica that his beef didn’t necessarily lie with Moraes, but instead Abdelaziz, who reportedly called Rivera’s wife a derogatory name during an encounter in Las Vegas.
Nothing but respect for Jimmy Rivera and his family. Without a doubt one of the best fighters in the world. Keep your head up champ. You’ll be back stronger.
— Ali Abdelaziz (@AliAbdelaziz00) June 2, 2018
While all seemed good between the two camps following the in-cage action and Abdelaziz’s social media outreach, the bad blood boiled over once again during an altercation backstage. In the above video (courtesy of UFC), Rivera’s wife is caught having words with a man appearing to be Abdelaziz. The two seem to bicker back and forth before being held back.
Usually this type of beef is squashed between camps following a fight between two fighters, especially a bout that ends in decisive fashion like Moraes’ head kick finish of Rivera, but this bad blood seems to run deep.
“I don’t respect him as a person, because I think he was doing everything he could not to fight Marlon,” Abdelaziz told MMAjunkie earlier this year. “But at the end of the day, I got what Marlon wanted. Marlon wanted this fight, and the reason Marlon wanted this fight is Rivera is one of the best fighters in the world.”
Somethings are just never settled. This seems to be one of them.
For complete UFC Utica results and coverage click here.