UFC bantamweight Tony Kelley finally broke his silence on the massive backlash he received after his comments at UFC Vegas 54. Blames ‘cancel culture’ for the counterblast.

UFC Vegas 54 took place last night inside the UFC Apex in Las Vegas, Nevada. One of the highlights of the event was the intriguing women’s flyweight bout between Andrea Lee and Viviane Araujo on the preliminary card of the event.

Both the female combatants went full rounds, displaying a stunning performance inside the cage. However, it was Lee’s corner that grabbed the attention of the UFC community during the fight.

UFC bantamweight Tony Kelley was cornering the American female fighter Lee for her fight. It was then that Kelley made a few bigoted statements about Brazilian fighters. Subsequently, he received massive backlash from the UFC community.

“Cancel Culture is real. What I said was real and in the heat of battle, and in no way had any type of racist connotations meant… but if that’s the way you take it, idgaf. So many people quick to say racist.. that shits getting so old. My reference was to a dirty eye poke.” Kelley wrote while reacting to the backlash. 

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According to the UFC fighter, his words came out in the heat of the moment and were regarding an ‘eye poke’ which came from Araujo during the fight. Further on, he also blamed the ‘Cancel culture’ for the backlash.

Gilbert Burns offers extra money to knockout Tony Kelley

Whether in the heat of the moment or not, Kelley’s words drew massive criticism from fans and UFC fighters. His words surely didn’t sit well with the Brazilian fighters. And many expressed their disgust on the internet.

One of them was the former welterweight title challenger, Gilbert Burns. The Brazilian UFC welterweight contender in response to the incident offered extra money to Kelley’s opponent Adrian Yanez to secure a finish in their fight.

“My guy @yanezmma get a finish on your next fight and I will send you an extra money #UFCVegas54.” Burns wrote on Twitter. While accepting his offer, Yanez wrote, “Aaayyyyyy But this finish will be on the house.”

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The bantamweight bout between Yanez and Kelley is targeted for an event in June. Kelley is currently on a two-fight undefeated streak. Meanwhile, his opponent Yanez is undefeated in the promotion.

It is an important fight for both the bantamweight fighters. And the recent exchange has brought more fireworks to the fight.

What are your thoughts on the fight? What is your reaction to Kelley’s words? Let us know in the comments below.