Despite an intense press conference in which suspensions were threatened, one of UFC 303’s most heated feuds may not be real.
Ian Machado Garry claimed that Michael ‘Venom’ Page had attempted to infiltrate his camp and receive classified information about his training during their heated exchange yesterday. He claims to have proof of messages sent to his coach offering money for details of his game plan.
However, just moments after an intense face-off, Garry and Page were seen in a much friendlier setting behind the scenes. A video captured by ESPN MMA which the Brit confirmed was after the press conference showed his rival introducing him to his son Leo, who even hugged his dad’s rival.
Ian Machado Garry and Michael ‘Venom’ Page share heated press conference
During the most fiery part of the UFC 303 press conference, Garry accused Page of offering one of his trainers a hefty sum for information on their game plan. He declared that such an act would result in a lengthy suspension, which remains to be seen.
“I’ve already broken this man’s confidence down so much,” Garry told fans and media at the event. “He knows it, I don’t need to say what I’m talking about, you know exactly what I’m on about; your self-confidence is f***ed.
“You know what I’m talking about, and it’ll come out, it’ll come out kid. But your brain is f***** scurrying for excuses. What am I talking about? Tell the people – did you and your team offer thousands of dollars to get information in Chute Box from my boys?
“Did you send someone a message and offer thousands of dollars for information? Yet you couldn’t infiltrate the camp – the Chute Box family is too tight! Your little rat Jiu-Jitsu coach offered money to one of my Brazilian friends and you got nothing. Saturday night, you are f***ed!
“All I know is that you’re going to get suspended after this f***ing fight, you’re never fighting again after this fight. You and your Jiu-Jitsu coach are getting suspended for life.”
The former Bellator star opted to take something of the high road, and even landed a vital shot at the Irishman in their exchange. Having previously noted an issue with the on-stage microphones, he tricked Garry into repeating his final line before cutting in with a boisterous “Shut the f*** up!”
Ian Machado Garry and Michael ‘Venom’ Page’s feud branded ‘fake’ by fans after backstage video
The exchange between Garry and Page was the talk of social media after the fact. And it helped to intensify the buzz for Saturday’s card, which needed a boost after losing it’s main and co-main events.
But just moments after they had faced off, it appeared that they were quite friendly during a backstage interaction captured by ESPN MMA. The Irishman could be seen in the footage playing with his son Leo and Page, whom he even told his child to offer a hug.
The footage, which was exceptionally cute, had fans questioning the legitimacy of the pair’s feud in the comments. “Wait I could’ve sworn they was beefing,” one fan wrote, before another added: “Noooo delete this tweet so we can pretend like there’s beef and not them just selling the fight!”
One viewer noted that the social media manager is “supposed to post this after they fight,” while a number of fans claimed they were “lied to”. The feud was also called “fake like WWE“.
Speaking after the pair weighed in this morning, Page said that the interaction took place after the press conference. Daniel Cormier on the weigh-in show seemed amazed to hear it, with the Brit explaining that their energies changed behind the scenes.
“I feel like a lot of people, especially with myself because I’ve managed to put out many highlight reels, it’s not something that anyone in the MMA game can really ignore,” he explained. “It’s something that people have seen.
“He’s younger than me so he will have seen it as he was coming up. So there’s a little bit of respect there, he might try to deny it but the second I gave him an option to show respect he was like offering his child to me and I’m not going to lie, the child is cute, so cute.”
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