Outside Source
Broadcast live on Rede Globo starting at 11 p.m. local time on Saturday, Spaten Fight Night 2, heavily advertised in recent weeks through a multi-million dollar marketing campaign promoted by the AMBEV brewery (which produces Spaten beer), connected with an audience that MMA doesn’t often reach in Brazil. Unfortunately, the fight’s outcome — which included a brawl where Silva was knocked unconscious — significantly increased the engagement.
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Fabricio Werdum Sent Audio Message to Popo, Anticipating a Fight
The repercussions from the fight were numerous. In the early hours of Saturday morning, Rede Globo published on its website (Ge.Globo.com) that the man who knocked Silva out was Popo’s son, Rafael Freitas. On Sunday morning, Fabricio Werdum released on social media an audio message he had sent to Acelino “Popo” Freitas on Friday, attempting to calm things down. Upon noticing the aggressive behavior of some members of Popo’s large entourage at the weigh-ins, Werdum decided to leverage his good relationship with the boxer to try to prevent that behavior from occurring again during the event. Werdum knew a repeat could lead to conflict between the teams.
“Hey, Popó. I’m sending you this message, you know I respect you a lot, a lot, and you know it. I really like you. I’ll be brief; you won’t see anyone on our team cursing you, because everyone respects you. So, I ask you to talk to your people about not cursing Wanderlei. You guys are champions and you cursing each other is part of the promotion, but your team members cursing Wanderlei is something that may heat up the tempers. Let’s keep things cool between the teams. You know that, on both sides, we’re all thugs (street brawlers or individuals who don’t shy away from trouble). You guys too. So, I ask you in good terms to talk to your people. And it’s just between the two of you to stay 100% professional,” Werdum said in the message.
Popó Mocks Werdum In Response, Escalating Tension
In a response, also via audio, the four-time world boxing champion defended his team members, including one of his sons, who was allegedly responsible for calling Wanderlei “Dead Dog.” He claimed that the disrespect had initially come from Wanderlei.
“The disrespect came from Wanderlei Silva yesterday, live on air, calling me ‘chicken.’ That’s disrespectful. But relax, brother. You’re going to get hit. When you get hit, you get hit. When you get hit in the ring, you get hit. I’m sure that when he loses, you’ll lose too. Stay cool, keep to yourself. Go to sleep and dream of defeat,” Popó replied.
The boxer’s words were seen as a kind of mockery by the former UFC champion, who nevertheless responded amicably. However, after Saturday’s incident, Werdum decided to publicly share this exchange of audio messages, implying that, in his view, Popó and his team may have been considering the possibility of a full-scale brawl in the ring since the eve of the event.
Attempted Murder?
Another character who went viral on Sunday was Claudio Dalledone. Considered one of the most respected criminal lawyers in Brazil, Dalledone is a personal friend and training partner of Silva during his time with Chute Boxe. The lawyer made it clear that he will criminally prosecute Popó’s son.
“Popo promised before the cowardly [attack] that everyone would get beaten up, and he delivered…. The person who treacherously attacked a [49-year-old] man from behind who had already fought and was off guard will be criminally punished. There’s no doubt about that. He could even be charged with attempted murder,” Dalledone said in a video statement. “The intent is clear, and in criminal law, intent is what counts — from the moment Popó said in the audio that everyone would get beaten up.”
Dalledone’s video was shown on all of Globo’s news programs. Subsequently, Rafael Freitas, Popó’s son, recorded a video stating that he has received dozens of threats since the incident. He apologized to Silva and his family, stating that it was not his intention.
“I did it in desperation to defend my father and my family,” he said.
Subsequently, Popó appeared in a hospital bed in Salvador on the eve of hand surgery. The fighter reiterated his apologies to Wanderlei and again accused his coach, Andre Dida, of assaulting him, and revealed that he had broken his hand in the brawl during the altercation.
In another article published on one of Globo’s sports websites, people got a sense of the severity of Silva’s concussion from a statement by Werdum, who went with him to the hospital shortly after the fight.
“Wanderlei is a strong guy, he can take a beating, but it definitely affected his head a lot,” Werdum said. “I explained the situation to him more than 10 times. I explained it, and seconds later he repeated, ‘Werdum, what happened?'”
Belfort Responds to Popo
Straight from the São Paulo airport in the departure lounge on his way back home to Florida, Vitor Belfort reiterated his outrage at the entire incident and responded to Popó’s challenge.
“I left during the commotion, then I found out Popó challenged me,” Belfort said. “The challenge is accepted. If he agrees to fight Wanderlei at 98 kilgrams, I’ll fight at 90 kilograms. Challenge accepted, now it’s time to decide with Spaten.”
On the night of Spaten Fight Night 2, Belfort gave a backstage interview to Combate. He revealed that after a series of tests conducted by his neurologist in São Paulo — following a month of rest due to the grade 3 concussion he suffered during training for the fight with Silva — he would be cleared to train starting in October.
This article first appeared at Recent News on Sherdog.com
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