(Paul Daley disgraces the Octagon with a sucker punch on Josh Koscheck well after the final bell sounds)
Okay, you’ve heard the good, now for the ugly… Saturday’s co-main event featured a number one contender bout which promised the winner a coaching slot on next season’s The Ultimate Fighter, opposite welterweight champion Georges St Pierre. Wrestling phenom Josh Koscheck ceased the opportunity, dragging British slugger Paul Daley to the ground and grappling his way to a unanimous decision victory.
He then cemented his role as “heel” in the post fight interview, promising the Montreal crowed that their beloved Canadiens would lose to the Penguins in the NHL Eastern Conference semi-finals and that he’d go on to take the belt from Canadian athlete of the year, Georges St Pierre. None of this news is particularly shocking as Koscheck has been a dick ever since he first emerged onto the scene in TUF 1. He’s rude, unapologetic, and doesn’t give a shit if you like his bleach blond jew-fro or not. What did shock was Paul Daley’s sucker punch after the fight had ended (above). That’s assault, homie.
UFC president Dana White acted firmly, stating Daley would never fight in the organization again. Daley released this statement via a UK newspaper:
“I’ve had a long flight home to consider my actions and regret the mistake I made on Saturday. I would like to apologise to the UFC and the Athletic Commission for what I’ve done as well as all the fans and sponsors that support me.
I would also like to offer my sincerest apologies to Josh Koscheck who did not deserve the cheap shot I threw. He did what he needed to do in order to win the fight and get the job done, and I foolishly reacted to the situation.
There is no excuse for my actions and I know what I did was very unprofessional. I was immensely frustrated by a collection of things that took place throughout the fight as well as leading up to it, but I’m certainly not trying to condone or excuse my actions.
Josh implemented his game plan perfectly taking me down and staying on top of me for the majority of the fight. I was also frustrated about him claiming (and acting like) I knee’d him in the head on the ground when it was clear for all to see in the video replay that I didn’t connect at all with the knee I threw.
Then finally, the verbal abuse Josh hit me with in the final 30 seconds of the fight simply pushed me over the edge and my frustrations came out as I knew I’d lost the fight, was unhappy with my own performance and had then been ridiculed by my opponent to top things off.
This is certainly no excuse for my actions; I fully deserve to be punished for what I did and hope that everyone I have disappointed can forgive my rash decision. I feel very disappointed in myself for losing my cool and hope that I am able to address my temperament and bounce back from this low point in my career.
I feel ashamed and embarrassed by what I did and hope that together my team and I can get through this issue. It will be a long road back from where I am now to earning the trust and respect of the UFC and the MMA fans that have supported me for so long, I know I’ve let you all down but I’m determined to make it up to you all.”
If Daley’s unable to return to the Octagon he might as well start flipping burgers because the competition’s going out the door. Ariel Helwani interviews Koscheck after the big win below.
