"I thought about punching Pete Sampras, it would have been nice to hit him" - When Marcelo Rios and American legend almost came to blows at exhibition
Pete Sampras was at odds with former tennis pro Marcelo Rios, who once said he'd love to "punch" the American. The incident occurred during an exhibition match in Chile.
Rios made history in March 1998 as the first Latin American man to reach the No. 1 ranking in the world. He won 18 singles titles, including five Masters Series titles, but injuries led to his retirement in 2004 without securing a Grand Slam victory.
The former Australian Open finalist was known for having a difficult relationship with his colleagues, which he openly admitted. Among those he clashed with was Sampras, whose 102-week streak as World No. 1 he ended in 1998. This only added to the tension between the two, who never shared a great rapport in the locker room.
Things took a turn in 2008 when Marcelo Ríos invited Pete Sampras for an exhibition match in Santiago, Chile, to celebrate his rise to the top of the ATP rankings. The former won the match in a tight third-set tiebreak with a score of 3-6, 6-3, 7-6(7), but the real drama unfolded afterwards, as the two ended up in a heated altercation in the locker room.
During a 2008 interview on the Chilean TV show Podemos Hablar on Chilevision, Ríos said that Sampras was angry with him because he couldn't accept losing the match. He expressed that the 14-time Major champion's behavior was so frustrating that it made him want to "punch" him.
"He got angry because he lost. I thought about hitting him, I thought about punching him, but someone stopped us," the Chilean said.
"What happened is that, at the beginning, in the exhibition, there are times when you arrange the matches; you win the first set, I win the second and the third we play hand to hand. Then, when he calls me in the dressing room and tells me that Pete Sampras doesn’t lose, I tell him ‘but you are not Pete Sampras anymore’, that’s it," he added.
The Chilean continued:
"But it would have been nice to punch him. To get into a fight with Sampras… that has a story, it would have been nice to hit him. He got away with it."
Pete Sampras after losing to Marcelo Rios: "It was the last time that he wins against me"
Pete Sampras was full of praise for Marcelo Rios following his exhibition match loss to him in Chile in 2008.
In a playful tone, Sampras told the media he "let Rios win" because he was the hometown hero, adding with a smile that it would be the "last time" the Chilean would beat him.
"It was the last time that (Rios) wins [against] me. I was a good [guest] to the host and I let him win as the local," Sampras said.
The American icon added:
"Absolutely, just being here is a pleasure for me. I hope to be back some day for another exhibition or on the Veterans tour, it would be cool. We will see. But I repeat, it is the last time he (Rios) wins over me."