London, England — A limping but victorious Jai Herbert admitted that opponent Kyle Nelson had dome some damage during their UFC London lightweight scrap.
“He caught me with some solid calf kicks. Fair play to him, it is what it is. It’s fighting, isn’t it?” Herbert (12-2) exclaimed following the win, speaking to media outlets including Cageside Press backstage at the O2 Arena in London on Saturday.
“It’s fighting” could also be applied to the end of the fight, with Nelson apparently throwing a couple of punches just after the bell. Herbert, who came away with the decision win, gave his perspective on the final exchange.
“I felt like, the round went, didn’t it, and he threw a couple punches after the round. He was frustrated obviously because he knew I won the round, and he probably assumed I was going to come there to swing out with him,” Herbert explained. “So he got pissed off about it.”
Nelson then fired the late punches. “He threw a couple of shots after the bell went, and I was a bit pissed off about it,” admitted Herbert. “But look, I came here to be professional and to get the victory. I didn’t come here for the bollocks, I came here to get the W, and that’s what I had to do. I did anything I needed to get the W, and that’s what I did.”
He did get the win, and 15 minutes of cage time. Which, believe it or not, Herbert was actually hoping for on Saturday.
“I’m glad I got the three rounds. I literally wanted the three rounds. I was saying to myself, obviously I wanted a quick finish, but I was saying to myself ‘come on, pray for three rounds, you need to go in there and get three rounds.’ Because I needed to have that discipline for three rounds and prove, not to anyone but to myself, that I can do three rounds and have discipline throughout the whole fight.”
With that in mind, Herbert is happy the fight went the way it did. “That is a hundred times better for me than getting a first-round, 10 second knockout. That is what I needed to progress my career.”
Watch the full UFC London post-fight press scrum with Jai Herbert above.
