Ailin Perez, a renowned fighter, reveals she was the victim of an alleged assault a few days before her UFC Fight Night 232 faceoff against Lucie Pudilova. Even though Perez was seen with a black eye and lacerations during the fight week, indications of the supposed assault, she went on to attain victory in her bout against her Czech rival. The triumphant moment was celebrated by Perez by jubilantly twerking inside the octagon. The assault incident was subsequently disclosed in a post-fight interview where Perez confirmed that her attacker was indeed another fighter.
According to Perez, who hails from Argentina, it was her comments on social media about the aggressor’s performance in a previous fight that incited the attack. Perez asserted her belief that the attack was executed in an attempt to force her into retracting from the scheduled fight. However, fleeing was the least expected of Perez, who faced the ordeal with courage, determined not to let the assault impact her performance.
During a post-fight scrum, Perez stated, “I am someone just like everyone else, like you, like you. I don’t have a personal problem with anyone.” She went on to clarify that her online opinion on a fight, void of any disrespect or derogatory comments, became the cause of the assault. “This irrelevant lady came up to me after I opinionated about one of her fights,” Perez recounted, “she came to assault me and she did assault me with the intention to make me pull out of my fight. But I’m sorry she didn’t achieve it. I won and fought regardless of the assault that took place.” On further questioning regarding the identity of the attacker, Perez chose not to reveal, focused only on her victory. However, the UFC is yet to comment on the incident.
Despite an unpromising start with her promotional debut loss against Stephanie Egger at UFC Fight Night 209, Perez has been on the winning streak with back-to-back victories in the Octagon. Her resounding triumph, considering the taxing ordeal she underwent just before fighting, is a testament to her undeterred spirit and unyielding resilience.