Dan Ige says he will grant Edson Barboza a rematch

UFC featherweight contender Dan Ige says he will grant a rematch to Edson Barboza after their controversial split decision at UFC Florida.

Ige won a split decision with scores of 29-28, 28-29, and 29-28 in his favor in a decision that the majority of media and fans disagreed with. UFC president Dana White also said that he thought Barboza deserved to win the decision, but officially it starts as a loss for the Brazilian. While he’s usually quite reserved, Barboza has taken it upon himself to demand the UFC pay him his win bonus despite losing on the judges’ cards.

Speaking to TMZ Sports, Ige said that he thinks he won the fight, but he also admitted he feels bad for his rival, who he says he will grant a rematch to if he’s asked.

“It’s kind of sad, you know, I feel kind of bad for him. But I kind of think he’s doing the wrong thing to say, ‘I won this fight, I won the fight, I won the fight.’ You know, it is what it is man, it sucks, you know, sometimes we lose in the sport. But clearly he has to go back and watch the fight because I hit the dude with 95 right hands. I won rounds two and three. That’s it. He hurt me, yes he did hurt with me a body shot, the last 30 seconds of round two. But that doesn’t win you the round,” Ige said.

“I just feel kind of bad for him. That guy’s a legend, that guy’s been around, he’s been in the top-10, top-5 of the world for the last 10 years. I understand how bad he wants to win, but you know what, the guy for how much he’s saying he won the fight, not one person from his team has asked for a rematch. Hey, I’ll give him a rematch dude, I beat him on two weeks’ notice. Give me eight weeks and I’ll see what I can do to him.”

Do you want to see a rematch between Dan Ige and Edson Barboza?