Michael Chiesa addresses criticism of UFC Atlanta performance against Court McGee: "I'm proud of myself"

Michael Chiesa is pleased with his performance against Court McGee at UFC Atlanta. Chiesa lashed out at his critics by emphasizing on his desire to compete despite being a 37-year-old.

Chiesa made his octagon return in a welterweight contest against McGee in the prelims of UFC Atlanta this past Saturday. It was a dull affair as both fighters did a decent job in their bout which lasted 15 minutes and saw 'Maverick' prevail via unanimous decision.

In a recent appearance on The Ariel Helwani Show, Chiesa hit back at those who slammed him for his average performance, saying:

''This is the first time I didn’t shoot for a takedown. So, yeah, casual fans can go fu*k themselves. I don’t care, you can say all you want to me, I don’t want to see, but it doesn’t even matter. I’m proud of myself. I’m still getting out of my comfort zone at 37 years old, trying new things, just trying to expand myself as a competitor, in terms of what I can do under the lights.''

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Chiesa continued:

''I'm not a knockout artist. I doubt I'll ever get a knockout in my entire career, but the fact that I was able and willing to go out there and stand for 15 minutes, I'm proud of myself, and no one can take that from me."

Check out Michael Chiesa's comments below:

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Chiesa (19-7) extended his winning run to three fights with this victory over McGee. Prior to that, he was coming off submission wins over Max Griffin and Tony Ferguson.

Michael Chiesa plans to take his analyst role full-time

In addition to competing inside the cage, UFC veteran Michael Chiesa also serves as a desk analyst. In the aforementioned interview with Ariel Helwani, Chiesa opened up about his future as an analyst and thanked Jon Anik for helping him develop as a broadcaster.

''I got a lot of broadcasting stuff coming up, July to September... It wasn't a goal of mine when I got in the UFC. But Jon Anik just planted that seed when I was an Ultimate Fighter, and that seed is just grown and it's starting to sprout and dude, I love getting on the other side of the camera and talking fights...I love it almost as much as I love competition...I really pushed my chips all in the middle and gambled on myself with this MMA thing. not just as a competitor, but as a broadcaster."

Check out Michael Chiesa's comments below (3:25:49):

About the author

Swagat is a dynamic MMA writer with a total experience of a little less than a year, which includes time in retail and sports journalism. He holds an MBA degree.

Swagat fell in love with the sport after watching the iconic grudge match between Jon Jones and Daniel Cormier at UFC 182 in early 2015. Nate Diaz holds a special place in his heart for the Stockton native’s entertaining fan-friendly style and ability to deliver exciting fights regardless of the opponent.

In terms of rule changes in MMA, Swagat advocates for making scores public after each round, adding transparency to judging decisions.

Swagat prioritizes accuracy and relevance while writing and conducts thorough research to ensure the content is fresh and reliable.

He enjoys playing football and painting during his free time.

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Edited by Swagat Kumar Jena