UFC President Dana White was angry with Clay Guida after he faked his retirement following a fight and used the moment to deliver several happy birthday messages during the UFC Kansas City event.
UFC president Dana White expressed his anger after fighter Clay Guida tricked viewers by faking his retirement during the UFC Kansas City event. After losing to Rafa Garcia, Guida removed his gloves and stayed inside the octagon. Commentator Daniel Cormier approached him, expecting to hear about Guida’s retirement plans. However, Guida revealed that he tricked everyone and said, “There ain’t no way I’m walking away yet. I want to congratulate this young man Rafa Garcia…” The fighter then went on to deliver several birthday messages, which included one to his mother.
Guida’s stunt at the live event did not sit well with Dana White. The UFC president expressed his frustration during the post-fight press conference. White, who considers Guida a nice guy, was angered by the fighter’s stunt. He deemed it inappropriate for Guida to fake his retirement to say “happy birthday to somebody.” According to the UFC president, “We’re running a live event here, you know what I mean? That was not good.”
The incident caused a stir among the audience and prompted negative reactions on social media. Guida’s actions sparked a debate in the MMA community about whether such stunts were appropriate during a live event. Guida’s fake retirement was met with mixed reactions, with some fans feeling it was inconsiderate to the viewers who had tuned in to watch the event live. Nonetheless, some people regarded Guida’s move as a harmless prank.
Guida’s fake retirement act had an unintended consequence. It detracted from the attention his opponent Rafa Garcia had earned from his victory. Garcia won his first UFC fight in dominant fashion and it was overshadowed by Guida’s theatrics. Despite the backlash, Guida’s stunt has become a topic of discussion among MMA and UFC enthusiasts.