A victorious MVP’s antics didn’t go over well with referee Dan Miragliotta, who allegedly called MVP a “piece of sh*t” after the bout, which is something the ref doesn’t deny.
“I’m not going to say I didn’t say it, but I was wrong for saying it,” Miragliotta said to MMA Fighting. “I shouldn’t have gotten that angry, but I did. I screwed up.”
“I was pissed, bro,” Miragliotta later said. “I’m 56 years old. I’m a grown man. I’m older than him. I show respect to everybody. When someone says f*ck off like that to me with disrespect, I lost it. I never should have said what I said. And I know I was wrong. Under my breath, I turned, and one of his coaches was right next to me, and I said, ‘What a f*cking piece of s*it.’ I knew I was wrong, and especially with it being his coach right there, and he said, ‘What did you say?’ And I said, ‘Man, I apologize. I never should have said that.’”
Mike Mazzulli, who was overseeing the event, would confirm that Miragliotta actually said the expletive to MVP’s corner and not to the fighter himself.
Miragliotta also states that he will never officiate a bout that MVP is involved in for the rest of their careers.
“I’ll never do his fights again, because I can never really look at him and not have that animosity toward him, because I’m not going to let somebody tell me to f*ck off, and there’s nothing I can do, and I’m an official,” Miragliotta said. “It’s not good for me or the sport.”
