Juliana Velasquez complained and appealed her Bellator championship loss to Liz Carmouche in April, but she still got nothing in return. The judo legend will need to recover her title inside the cage during Friday’s Bellator 289 in Uncasville (Conn.), when she faces Carmouche again.
Velasquez suffered her first MMA loss when referee Mike Beltran decided he had seen enough at Bellator 278, awarding Carmouche the flyweight championship via TKO with just 13 seconds left on the clock in the fourth round. Referee veteran “Big” John McCarthy sided with Velasquez on the matter, calling it a premature stoppage, but the Hawaiian commission still denied the appeal.
“I really think Liz Carmouche’s win wasn’t definitive and she knows that,” Velasquez said on this week’s episode of Trocacao Franca podcast. “That win was given to her after the referee’s mistake, a premature stoppage. Bellator posted this video where it is clear that she was not landing the elbow. She was landing the forearm at such an angle she couldn’t hurt me. I knew there were only 10 seconds left. The referee is a human being and he can make mistakes, but this win was given to her and I’m anxious to get back what is mine.”
Velasquez stated that she learned so much from the night. She didn’t lose her invincibility, she had been a judo player and needed to get deep many times before. But Carmouche was very good inside and out of the cage.
“I’ve learned a little bit about Liz Carmouche and people like her,” Velasquez said. “I already know what to expect from her in this fight. I know she will complain a lot when she’s in a dangerous moment. There will be reasons for her to whine. This is something I have never seen, and I didn’t talk about it. However, when she was against my cage, she complained that I was constantly poking her in her eyes. I wasn’t. That side of her was what I saw, so I know what I can expect. I am also hungry.
” I didn’t think that she would do it, despite all the promotion opportunities she has received. She fought for the Strikeforce belt and couldn’t [get it]. She tried to fight for the UFC belt but couldn’ [get it]. It was her opportunity in Bellator and she wasn’t going to [get it].”
Towards the end Velasquez stated that she was not surprised at Carmouche trying to take on another competitor instead of her. She said: “Have any kids ever put a finger onto the power plug, and then do it again ?”
“She won’t do it, right? [Carmouche] knows,” Velasquez said. “I never handpicked fights, especially when you have the belt. You must fight only the greatest .”
fighters if you truly believe you are the best.
Velasquez has lost her perfect MMA record, but she is determined to end this tale .”
“I want to show that this belt is mine and I’m the best in the division in there,” Velasquez said. “I mean no disrespect, nothing like that, but I’ll do my thing in there and show her I’m the best. She must be better than me if she is to become champion .”
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Source: https://www.mmafighting.com/2022/12/9/23499788/juliana-velasquez-liz-carmouche-didnt-win-bellator-belt-given-to-her-referee-mike-beltran-mma?rand=96749
