Waldo Cortes-Acosta took on a really harmful striker within the heavyweight division and gave him his first skilled loss whereas having a dominant exhibiting. But, regardless of getting the job performed, some are throwing criticism his manner.
This previous Saturday on the primary card of UFC on ESPN 56, Cortes-Acosta (12-1 MMA, 5-1 UFC) defeated Olympic medalist in taekwondo Robelis Despaigne in a transparent unanimous determination that learn 30-27 on two judges scorecards and 30-26 on one other. Cortes-Acosta blended his wrestling with placing protection to defeat the embellished striker Despaigne (5-1 MMA, 1-1 UFC), who’s 6-foot-7 and has the longest wingspan within the promotion.
Many, together with UFC CEO Dana White, wished to see a heavyweight placing slugfest, which Cortes-Acosta finds to be an unfair expectation.
“They’re unfair as a result of that is MMA,” Cortes-Acosta stated across the public criticism of his efficiency, talking with MMA Junkie in Spanish. “This can be a mixture of martial arts the place you do placing and kicking, however you additionally go to the bottom. There’s lots to this.
“So criticizing me in that method, it takes away what MMA is admittedly about. There’s boxing, Lomachenko was preventing this weekend. If you would like simply boxing, go watch him. We’re mixing every part up, and meaning the bottom sport as effectively.”
Should you observe Cortes-Acosta on social media, you recognize he’s not one to draw back from fan criticism – fairly the other. Cortes-Acosta has been going backwards and forwards with a few of his critics, and he’s been having fun with it.
“That’s social media, and it’s a must to have interaction,” Cortes-Acosta stated. “Talking of clashing with followers, I completed my battle early on Saturday, and I used to be off my cellphone for about 4 hours, and after I checked, I needed to reply to about 4,000 messages from totally different individuals, and I replied to each single one in every of them.
“I didn’t sleep that evening. I simply hopped immediately on the airplane, and I’m nonetheless replying to messages.”
The Dominican heavyweight is now 5-1 since becoming a member of the UFC in 2022. He’s proud of the best way his profession goes not solely as a result of he’s been rising up the rankings, but additionally exhibiting evolution to his sport, which is one thing his followers have appreciated.
“There’s at all times going to be critics and folks saying the worst issues about you and all that, however lots of people that criticized me or didn’t find out about me are actually cheering for me as a result of I confirmed issues that I had by no means performed earlier than within the octagon,” Cortes-Acosta stated. “They see me with totally different eyes. I’m not only a boxer and a striker, however I can wrestle, too.”
Take a look at the Hablemos MMA YouTube channel for Spanish-language movies and interviews with MMA Junkie’s Danny Segura.
Make sure you go to the MMA Junkie Instagram web page and YouTube channel to debate this and extra content material with followers of blended martial arts.
