Bobby Green gives fitting reply to Tony Ferguson's eye poke "excuse" in post-UFC 291 statement
Following his loss to Bobby Green at UFC 291, Tony Ferguson asserted that he believes his opponent intentionally poked his eye during the fight, impairing his vision and affecting the outcome. Despite the referee ruling it accidental, Ferguson cited Green's history of questionable moves, like the eye poke, as evidence for his accusation.
Tony Ferguson says Bobby Green's eye poke caused "significantly impaired" vision in his first statement since #UFC291 pic.twitter.com/SZcyoJNnXL" target="_blank" title="tweet-url" rel="noopener noreferrer">pic.twitter.com/SZcyoJNnXL
Bobby Green returned to winning ways following a three-fight winless streak (1 NC) at UFC 291. Green has now responded to the allegations leveled against him by Ferguson in a recent interview with Ariel Helwani on The MMA Hour.
While saddened by the asterisk on his victory, Green chose not to engage directly with Ferguson's accusations, referring to him as "crazy" and opting not to argue with him. Green stated:
“Tony said I intentionally poked him, and that threw his momentum off. From there, the fight just went my way. I disagree with that, I thought I was doing so much more than that the entire fight… If you argue with a crazy man, you’re probably crazy. I’m not going to argue with him.”
Green added that he has faced similar situations like these in the past. As a fighter, he believes in pushing through these moments and not resorting to excuses:
"Listen bro I got nothing but love for you. I hope that you don't take any of this personally. It's the fight game. I would never try to do something dirty to a legend. I thought it was going to be a dope classic. But, if it's tainted for him like that in his head, it sucks... All of a sudden we need excuse for why things happen."
Catch Bobby Green's comments below (21:00):
Bobby Green disheartened by MMA fans discrediting his jiu-jitsu after UFC 291 victory
Despite his impressive submission victory over Tony Ferguson at UFC 291, Bobby Green finds the focus shifting more towards narratives about Ferguson's perceived decline in his fighting career rather than recognizing 'King's exceptional skills and performance.
Tony Ferguson v Bobby Green #UFC291 ArmTRI SUB W pic.twitter.com/fJ65cAo4B3
This one-sided portrayal has left Green disheartened by the MMA community's response. While Green holds a purple belt in jiu-jitsu, Tony Ferguson, a highly esteemed black belt from 10th Planet Jiu-Jitsu, is widely recognized as one of the best submission artists in the sport.
Bearing that in mind, Bobby Green expressed his disappointment over the overshadowing of his achievements and the lack of acknowledgment for his outstanding abilities inside the octagon.
Speaking in the interview mentioned above, Green stated:
"People are now trying to say that he's done. That he was just washed up. Especially the fact that I tapped him. Now people are discrediting my jiu-jitsu." [Comments at 7:15]