Corey Anderson made quite a statement at UFC 244 with a first-round knockout against highly touted prospect Johnny Walker on the preliminary card.
A fired-up Anderson erupted in celebration following the emphatic victory and afterwards he issued an ultimatum to the UFC to either offer him a title shot, which he believes he has earned, or to release him from his contract and allow him to fight elsewhere.
Anderson had previously expressed his frustration with the UFC after he claims he was told he didn’t move the needle enough to warrant a shot at the belt or an offer to face a bigger named opponent.
Following the close of the event, UFC president Dana White addressed Anderson’s victory as well as his pre-fight concerns that he was somehow being set up for failure against a prospect like Walker.
“So he came in here very angry this week. All these conspiracy theories, we hate him, we this, that and everything else, all this crybaby bullsh*t,” White said at the UFC 244 post-fight press conference. “We’re trying to get him beat. We can’t get you beat. You can either win or you can’t. We like Walker better or whatever the stuff he was saying.
“No, some guys move faster than others, you’re telling us what you deserve. Show us what you deserve. Tonight you showed us. Got it. Message received. Now we know.”
White didn’t directly reference Anderson’s comments about his popularity but he couldn’t help but notice the reaction the former Ultimate Fighter winner received on Friday versus the ovation that occurred following his knockout win.
“You guys were there, were you not at the weigh-ins? Not one person clapped for him at the weigh-ins,” White said. “Walker got a pretty big pop when he came out. I’ll bet people will notice him next time, won’t they?
“You came out and you showed everybody. You did something. Now we’ll move on.”
As far as Anderson’s demands to fight for the title or to release him from his contract, White wasn’t ready to promise him anything just yet.
What White can say for certain is that Anderson needed a statement performance and that is exactly what he delivered at UFC 244.
“I’m not saying you’re getting a title shot next or whatever. [Dominick] Reyes won, too, impressively. We’ll figure out what’s next for you and when your contract is up, if you still don’t want to be here, you can do whatever you want to do,” White said. “In the mean time, take the fights that we offer you. Pretty simple.
“We’re not trying to get you beat. We’re not trying to get anybody beat. If you think you deserve a shot at the title, how am I going to get you beat with the No. 11 or 14th-ranked guy in the world or whatever he was tonight, if you deserve a title shot?”
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