Joe Schilling is standing by his belief that he was not in the wrong during a recent bar incident.
In late June, footage surfaced of Schilling, a Bellator veteran, knocking out a bar patron. Many took to social media to share their take on Schilling’s actions. The fighter said he was simply acting in self-defense. Schilling also claimed the patron was being obnoxious and racist.
“The busboy, who happens to be black, walks by, and this idiot bumps into him and screams out, ‘Me and broke [N-word], we don’t get along,’” Schilling claimed. “The busboy was seriously offended but doesn’t want to lose his job.”
Schilling then said the patron immediately apologized when bumping into him. The Bellator and Glory Kickboxing veteran said he nodded his head to acknowledge the patron. He said things went off the rails when the patron yelled at him and flexed shortly after. It was then that Schilling retaliated by knocking him out.
During an interview with Helen Yee, Schilling doubled down on defending his actions (h/t LowKickMMA.com).
“I can’t really speak about what happened that night. I think the witness testimonies out there, a lot of people aren’t covering it, the guy’s personal track record and criminal history is out there but nobody seems to be talking about it.
“No charges have been filed whatsoever, and it’s just a lot of media speculation at this point. I did nothing wrong, and I stand by that.”
Schilling hasn’t been in an MMA bout since October 2019. He suffered a third-round knockout loss to Tony Johnson.
