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Jimmie Rivera Explains Backstage Altercation Following UFC Fight Night Utica Defeat



As far as Jimmie Rivera is concerned, he and Marlon Moraes have no beef.

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The two bantamweights were cordial following Moraes’ head-kick knockout of Rivera in the UFC Fight Night 131 headliner in Utica, N.Y., on Friday night. The former World Series of Fighting champion even went over to console Rivera on his stool moments after the bout ended in a display of sportsmanship. However, Fox Sports 1 did capture footage of Rivera engaged in a brief verbal altercation backstage with what appeared to be Moraes manager, Ali Abelaziz, after the fighters had left the Octagon.

When asked about the incident, Rivera said the issue was between him and Moraes’ management, but that both parties have moved on. Rivera and Moraes have trained together in the past.

“There’s no tension between him [Moraes] and I. There’s no tension with the camps,” Rivera said on FS1. “It’s just his management. His manager keeps running his mouth. It is what it is. We let it go.”

Shortly after the knockout, Moraes’ manager, Abdelaziz sent a tweet of support to Rivera. But the incident seemed to have occur after that message.

“Nothing but respect for [Jimmie] Rivera and his family. Without a doubt one of the best fighters in the world,” Abdelaziz wrote. “Keep your head up champ. You’ll be back stronger.”



Regardless of whether there is still tension between Rivera and Abdelaziz, there is no denying the impressive nature of Moraes’ victory. A left high switch kick landed clean in the bout’s opening moments, sending Rivera to the canvas. From there, Moraes pounced with right hands to seal the victory just 33 seconds into the stanza.

“He just caught me with a good head kick, dropped me and then pounced on me right away and caught me,” Rivera said. “It happens. It’s part of the sport. You’ve just got to get back up and keep working hard.

“I thought I put my arm up high enough to block it, but he just kind of went over it and I got caught.”

Prior to that defeat, Rivera had won 20 consecutive fights, including five in the UFC. His resume includes triumphs over Urijah Faber, Thomas Almeida, Iuri Alcantara, Brian Kelleher and Pedro Munhoz. The Team Tiger Schulmann representative is hoping to make a relatively swift return to the Octagon.

“Just get back on the horse. I had a loss. It happens. It’s part of the sport,” Rivera said. “My next thing is just make sure I get cleared., I’m OK to fight again and fight as fast as a I can this year, sometime hopefully in September, October, November.”

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