Mauricio Ruffy knows he screwed up.
This past weekend, Ruffy took on Arman Tsarukyan in the co-main event of UFC 331. The bout was billed as a lightweight title eliminator, and while Ruffy had a strong early start, Tsarukyan ended up knocking the Brazilian fighter out cold with just a few seconds remaining in the opening round.
On Wednesday, Ruffy released a statement on social media, his first since the brutal loss, explaining to his fans what exactly went wrong.
“I want to think God first. Thank God for my life, my health. I am in perfect health. 100 percent. I feel very well with the affection from all of you. So many amazing messages I received, and I want to express my special thanks. I didn’t real all the messages; I’m still reading. There were so many amazing messages that I really felt very supported and embraced by you all, I had to stop to make this video.
“I was called a little over six weeks — exactly six weeks and four days — and I dedicated everything about myself in this camp. I dedicated myself. I know that apparently it was short time, but I felt ready to fight any opponent. I was doing great. I was confident and I delivered everything from me. I stayed away from my family, I was going through various situations, every day, my body couldn’t take it anymore, but I put myself there.
“I arrived so confident in the fight that I wanted to go through everything for the first time. I didn’t want a to knock out the fight in the first round. I wanted to overcome the things inside my head that I had sometimes been influenced by people, even so much talking and all. I wanted to prove myself that I was fine. So I wanted to defend all the takedowns. I didn’t want a fast knockout. I wanted to go out there a better fighter. And I say the best meaning going through situations, not only to bring clarity to people but for myself, how much I am ready to do this. I know I’m ready, but knowing is not all you need to prove to yourself you are ready.
“I was 100 percent focused on performing, in passing all possible situation, and have an answer for them all. I was feeling really good in the fight. …
“When I got that flash knockdown and felt his strength starting to fade. I felt the fight in my control. And when he got flash knocked down, I felt that his strength was breaking. I saw how much he felt it when I hit one elbow at the tip of the rib when he was defending reversal. So he was hurt, his eye was very closed. I would get a lot of punches up there, and I was sure I would finish the fight in the second round.
“An important thing to say is that the mistake was totally mine. It was my fault, my carelessness, and his merit. Arman is an excellent fighter.
“When the guys yelled at me that there were ten seconds left and he shot for my legs, that was actually the best thing for me. I thought, ‘He’s going to spend a little more energy here. The second round is going to start, and I’ll knock him out.’
“There were four seconds left, so I had strikes I could have thrown. I could have gotten away from the fence, but I didn’t want to. I wanted to use that moment against him, and it was a good idea. I just got careless. I relaxed—relaxed on defense, which is I normally don’t do. So I paid the price for that.
“So I want to apologize to my fans for the sadness of the loss. I know it’s not easy to root for someone through a defeat, but guys, I’m learning. You’ve seen the evolution of each fight, and this fight was going very well. But I’m happy for everything that happened. It’s difficult to deal with loss and all that, but it makes us grow.
The loss is the second of Ruffy’s UFC tenure, the Contender Series product having lost to Benoit Saint Denis last September. Ruffy had been on a two-fight winning streak heading into the event, and stepped in on relatively short notice.
