Tim Elliott has explained why he called Jordan Espinosa a woman beater during their UFC 259 bout.
On the prelims of UFC 259, Elliott and Espinosa were finally set to fight after it had been in the works for months. The two had a sort of rivalry given they used to train together, but it was Elliott who got his hand raised as he dominated Espinosa over three rounds. Although the win was big for Elliott, there was some controversy after microphones picked up Elliott calling Espinoza a woman beater during their bout.
“I didn’t say that for anybody else to hear because I don’t know the whole story. I was messaged on Facebook a long message with some pictures and some Snapchat back-and-forth between Jordan Espinosa and another girl, pictures of her with choke marks on her neck,” Elliott said at the UFC 259 post-fight press conference. “Again, I don’t know the whole story, and it wasn’t something I wanted the whole world to hear. That was supposed to be between him and I. I didn’t know the mic was gonna pick up on it. But it was kind of disturbing, the whole thing.”
As of this writing, the claims Tim Elliott made have not been proven, so they are all allegations. However, for the former UFC flyweight title challenger, he says that was the reason why he wanted to beat up Espinosa so badly.
“I have a daughter. So this is the only fight that I had out of all of my fights that was personal. It was hard for me to maintain my cool. It was hard for me to keep my cardio in check because of it,” Elliott later added. “It’s not something I’m proud of to say that everybody can hear. But again, I’m glad that it’s out there if it’s true.”
Controversy aside, the victory for Tim Elliott extended his winning streak to two, and he will likely get a top-10 opponent next time out.
What do you make of Tim Elliott calling Jordan Espinosa a woman beater?