Las Vegas, NV — UFC Hall of Famer Urijah Faber was on hand for the UFC Fight Pass Invitational 2 grappling tournament on Sunday, but there was more than just mat work on his mind.
In addition to previewing the upcoming Song Yadong vs. Cory Sandhagen fight, Faber opened up, and then some, about Josh Emmett’s treatment at UFC 276 over the weekend.
As is tradition, numerous fighters including several current contenders showed up for the PPV event. But Emmett, who trains at Faber’s Team Alpha Male, wound up being treated as if he was Persona Non Grata, banished to the back rows and excluded from any air time on the broadcast.
“I was super disappointed and Josh was also, in the fact that he wasn’t treated that great this last week. We were expecting him to be there, sidelines. He’s beaten so many guys in dominant fashion, he’s had some major injuries, and he needs that fight next for the 145 pound belt. He’s the guy that can match up well with [Alexander] Volkanovski, who can pack a punch that puts people people out cold with one punch, he can handle volume, he’s wrestled his whole life, wrestled in college. That’s the match-up,” Faber told Cageside Press and other media outlets at the Invitational. Given that Brian Ortega and Yair Rodriguez have been beaten by some of the other top guys, “Josh is the guy. We were hoping to get the camera on him watching the event, and to be honest, it was kind of a mishap, but he had a really bad experience.”
According Faber, Emmett “was put way back in the seating, not even with the rest of the guys and had to find his way by himself upstairs because they have peons working security that are getting paid minimum wage that are like, ‘Hey, you can’t come this way.’ He’s not a confrontational guy unless you’re paying him to beat someone up. He was really upset that there wasn’t more made of the fact that he’s the guy in line. I’m going to talk to Dana [White] about it and talk to Hunter [Campbell] and let them know that it’s really bullsh*t.”
Later, Faber referred to Emmett as Milton from Office Space, continually having his desk pushed back until he’s in the basement. Worse, Emmett was dismayed enough to wish for his release.
“Last night, he was like ‘F-this, I wish they’d just release me, I get no respect, blah blah blah. I think I’m going to drop down to 135 to fight Sean O’Malley, because that’s who’s getting all the credit,'” Faber recounted Emmett as saying. While the seating placement was admittedly a mishap, the lack of an interview was no less distressing.
“Nothing, ghosted. It’s really sad and his wife was livid, he was livid and he was just like, ‘What do I have to do to get a little bit of respect?’’ Faber added. “So Dana, I hope you see this and understand that it’s Josh’s time.”
