Midnight Mania! Former UFC fighter Igor Severino breaks silence after infamous bite: 'Give me a chance'

Welcome to Midnight Mania!

UFC Vegas 89 concluded last weekend (Saturday, March 23, 2024) from the UFC Apex in Las Vegas, Nevada, with a night of mostly pretty standard fights. While the main event and co-main event were a bit boring, the rest of the card featured some great finishes, as well as standout performances from Peyton Talbot and Yusef Zalal.

Without a doubt, the biggest storyline of the night came from “Qualifying.” In an unexpected fashion, the early flyweight bout between Igor Severino and Andre Lima started off very well with back-and-forth kickboxing action. Lima took an early lead, but Severino suddenly decided to bite his opponent and became very obsessed with the fight.

The battle was over in an instant. Severino was unceremoniously disqualified and removed from the promotion later that night. The Nevada State Athletic Commission (NSAC) has placed a hold on his wallet, and he will likely face a suspension in addition to his release from the UFC. For a true prospect who is only 20 years old, it's a devastating turn of events all stemming from one terrible decision.

After much of a week, Severino broke his silence in an interview with MMA Junkie. In his first interview since the incident, Severino spoke on quite a number of topics, but his main message was one of regret and apology.

“I come from a poor family,” Severino said. “I've been working ever since I was little. I left home as a teenager and came here to train. And to see all this go away like this… , that's not a part of me. It's not who I am as a person. It's not who I am as a fighter. I just feel so bad. I get so emotional and sad about it.

“My dream turned into a nightmare overnight. I'm so sorry to my opponents: (Lima), Dana (who is white), the Nevada State Athletic Commission, Sean Shelby, who spoke to me after the game. I apologize to Mick (Maynard), everyone in the organization and the fans. I apologize to everyone who was watching on TV. They didn't deserve to see that.”

Much of Severino's regret stems from the fact that he doesn't remember making the decision to bite Lima. The Brazilian said he suffered a serious elbow injury in Lima during his first match and doesn't remember much after that. Since then, he has faced a lot of hate and threats against him and his family online.

In this whole situation, it was Rima who showed me unexpected kindness. The compatriot asked for mercy and asked the UFC to give Severino a second chance.

“He had the right to criticize me, he had the right to ride the wave of this moment. He is reaching out to me,” Severino said in response to Lima's support. “He says he doesn't want to cut me. He says he's going to offer me a rematch and he can't keep going like this. I can't tell you how much admiration and respect I've gotten from him. That's hard to describe. To a man who has treated me so honorably and so graciously, I just wish him the best. The truth is, I don't want to fight him again. If you ever need a sparring partner for a match, you can always call me and I'll be happy to help.”

There's still hope for Severino. This is a business of short memories and second chances. UFC CEO Dana White hates a fighter and will eventually induct him into the Hall of Fame. Heavyweight pioneer Gilbert Iver has bitten people, attacked referees, and lost three fights by disqualification, but he still made his UFC debut in 2010.

Severino himself is hoping for such an opportunity.

He concluded: “I know things are pretty bad for me right now, and I want people to see me for who I am, and to know that's not who I am as a fighter or as a person. . Let me have a career again. … Give me a chance to come back and find myself again. Let me show you the real me.”

insomnia

Sean Strickland reacts to the rumors about Drycus du Plessis vs. Israel Adesanya at UFC 305:

Tai Tuivasa enters the marijuana business!

When Georges St-Pierre speaks, wise men listen. “Rush” knows a thing or two about fighting.

With a flyweight title fight booked, Muhamad Mokaev wants Kai Kara-France next.

Featherweight action added to Apex in June:

MMA Twitter believes Cyril Gane vs. Marcin Tybura will take place in France based on the current heavyweight matchup.

This feels staged, but I choose to believe it isn't.

Slip, Rip, KO Clip

I have to agree with the Twitter caption. “This is a very clean job!” Great hip pivot.

It turns out that weirdly shuffling towards your opponent without throwing a punch is not the ideal way to start a fight.

Shooting even deeper into an already cramped guillotine probably isn't the best decision either, but at least Park has an excuse to be shaken up first.

random land

There is no fall damage in this game.

Midnight Music: Grunge, 1994

Sleep mania! More martial arts crazes are always on the way.