Even the best in the business slip up sometimes. Take American Kickboxing coach Javier Mendez, for instance. One of MMA’s most decorated coaches, Mendez learned that lesson the hard way.
The key is to zip your mouth about matchups until the UFC makes it official.
Apparently, during what seemed like a casual interview, Mendez accidentally let some sensitive info slip about a fight that was still under wraps. And let’s just say, Dana White and the UFC brass weren’t too thrilled about it. What followed was a serious scolding.
So what exactly happened? During an episode of his podcast, Mendez noted that a journalist had asked him what he made of a particular fight.
Mendez figured that since the journalist was asking him, it was probably confirmed by the UFC and therefore, he shared his thoughts.
Little did he know then that the fight was not actually announced, and he had accidentally spilled the beans. This led to the UFC brass calling the manager in question and blasting him because Mendez had messed up.
Since then, Mendez has taken a different approach towards speaking about fights that have not been announced by the UFC.
“I find it better for me, not to jump the gun even if someone is telling me this is what is going on. Better to shut up and wait for the UFC to announce what is going on then I will say something.”, he noted, asserting that even if he knew what was going on, he still wouldn’t say a word anymore.
But that’s only for yet-to-be-booked fights. He is still more than happy to break down previous performances.
Mendez reveals the reason Merab won
Mendez believes that Merab Dvalishvili beat Umar Nurmagomedov more with gamesmanship than pure fighting skill. Back at UFC 311, Dvalishvili defended his title by outworking Nurmagomedov over 25 minutes, winning on the scorecards 48-47, 48-47, and 49-46.
Even though Nurmagomedov later revealed he broke his hand in the first round, Mendez thought the real difference came down to how Dvalishvili carried himself.
On his Javier & Mo podcast, Mendez said he felt Umar actually won three of the five rounds but lost the fifth because Dvalishvili showedboated and looked fresher, giving off the impression that he was dominating.
“He acted like the victor while Umar looked tired,” Mendez said. “I can see how the judges got swayed.”
The stats were close—Dvalishvili landed just seven more strikes and secured a few extra takedowns. Still, it was enough for the win. Dvalishvili is now set for a rematch with Sean O’Malley at UFC 316, while Umar continues to recover from his broken hand.
The Nurmagomedov scion is now expected to raise his quality if he wishes to win against Merab in the future. Because, despite the obvious injury and Mendez’s assessment, it was evident that he was fading in that last round, unable to pull off takedowns on the Georgian champion.
And as Merab continues to raise his game with newer, fresher challenges, his game is expected to evolve. Now, Umar is still touted to fight for the title in the near future. But boy, does he have his work cut out or him.
