Somehow, Ariel Helwani is directly involved in the most captivating feud in women’s MMA.
On May Day, Ariel Helwani tweeted an update on UFC women’s flyweight queen Nicco Montano.
The 125 lb champion has yet to defend the belt since winning it in TUF 26 Finale on December 1. Helwani reported that the UFC were growing impatient trying to book Montano against Valentina Shevchenko for UFC Calgary. Shevchenko has claimed that she has already signed a bout agreement.
Montano, who is recovering from having her tonsils and adenoids removed, did not take too kindly to the tweet. She fired back with an astonishing statement on Instagram in which she called Helwani a ‘huge waste of space,’ and ‘Mr. Poor Excuse for a Man’. She added that he ‘sucked at his job’ and that he had ‘balls the size of a baby rat.’
The response
Helwani issued his response to Montano on After the MMA Beat. He’s adamant that everything he reported is the truth. As he sees it, Montano or any members of her team haven’t offered any evidence to prove otherwise.
“I stand by everything that I reported. In fact, after I reported it and her message coming out, people within the company reached out to me to let me know that I was accurate. So there’s that. But the most important thing from a journalistic perspective is, if you go back and read the message that she wrote and you weed through the insults, you’ll note that nowhere in her message does she actually refute what I reported.”
“The best approach, in my opinion, if I was wrong, was to say, ‘I have not been offered a fight on July 28. I have not been offered a fight against Valentina Shevchenko. All this is false.’ But, you’ll note that you do not see that anywhere. So, to me, it feels like there’s a lot of pressure being put on this young woman. She cannot lash out against the UFC, so she’s choosing to lash out against me.”
Absolutely furious https://t.co/BNmUPjwwpp
— SportsJOE (@SportsJOEdotie) May 2, 2018
Unfortunate
Helwani isn’t happy with how this played out. He believes he’s done all he can to allow Montano to clear the air. While he’s disappointed with the comments, he doesn’t want to engage in a back-and-forth.
“And she’s insinuating that I’m insinuating that she is quote-unquote ‘afraid’ of Shevchenko, which I never said. I said the UFC’s losing patience because they want to book this fight. And then Shevchenko later on that day came out and actually backed up that report and said she signed the bout agreement.”
“It was unfortunate. I reached out to her in February. I reached out to her in March, I reached out to her after that statement to clear the air and I’ve also invited her to come on the MMA Hour to clear the air. So I feel like I’ve done everything that I could. It was disappointing to read some of the things that she wrote. I’m not going to get into a back-and-forth, but I say once again everything I reported was accurate. To me, if any of it was inaccurate, she had a perfect opportunity, as did her teammates to refute it and they did not. And the fact that they did not, to me, says it all.”
https://www.instagram.com/p/BiWhiaLASmk/?taken-by=nrmontano
Sorry
After Helwani addressed the backlash, Montano issued her apology. On Instagram, she admitted being sorry for the insulting language she used. She claims she was speaking in the heat of the moment.
However, she still takes issue with how Helwani reported the update. It seems that the lack of context regarding her silence rubbed her wrong way. She feels her recent surgery deserved a mention.
Check out her statement in full below.
“Today will make day 8 since I got my surgery and I’ve been cooped up in my place pretty stiffly, not being able to talk or move my neck or move at all really do to the pain and discomfort. It’s been getting better day by day, and all I’ve been able to do is contemplate really so in a way it continues to be a very appreciative experience. And I can definitely say that I can sympathise or that I at least have an idea about anybody with any temporary or permanent handicap, whether it’s physical or emotional.”
“On that note I will say that I’m sorry for the names I called Ariel. I was speaking in the heat of the moment, but at the time I felt what he and Valentina teamed up to do (because that was his source) was uncalled for. I had already stated my current situation a month ago and said my goal was to get healthy so I can come back and fight Valentina, so there was no question in my mind that she’s going to be my next opponent, but they were kicking me while I was down and I felt like I was backed into a corner and needed to defend myself. It was a purely instinctual move and I shouldn’t have taken it that far but that’s where it went.”
“I won’t however be shamed into silence about how I think he handled his job. I’ve done nothing but be honest with all of you via my social media accounts (except for Twitter because I forgot my password and log in info) and he wasn’t able to conclude from that what’s been going on with me? He’s obviously doing his job but he’s using biased propaganda instead of the truth and that’s what truly irritated me.”
“Anyway I’ve decided to put this all behind me because of the people I want to continue to inspire. I want them say confidently that they would like to follow in my footsteps. We’re part of a bigger movement here people and I feel like being a champion, being a leader, I need to be even more mindful than most about what messages I’m sending across. I know that the change has to start with our leaders, with our champions, with people who take the initiative to stand up for themselves and others and utilise their free speech and courage.”
“Through my process of obtaining my role I’ve experienced so much bullying and irrationality that it would be easy for me to just give up. But I’m choosing to stand strong. I can either choose to believe what other people say or I can believe in myself and I choose the latter, as can you. There’s only one persons’ opinion who should matter to you most and that’s your own.”
Montano’s next appearance on the MMA Hour will be interesting. To say the least.
