“Flat-out dumb, it’s dumb” – Former UFC heavyweight contender lashes out at Dana White and the UFC’s handling of Bella Mir

Bella Mir’s Dana White’s Contender Series debut ended in a result few expected. However, former UFC heavyweight contender Brendan Schaub believes the issue lies with how the UFC develops young fighters.

Mir, the 23-year-old daughter of former UFC heavyweight champion Frank Mir, entered the bout against Alex Apodaca as a massive favorite. Despite her accomplished wrestling and Brazilian jiu-jitsu background, Apodaca managed to neutralize her strengths and secure a unanimous decision victory.

Schaub believes Mir was pushed onto the biggest stage before gaining enough professional experience. In a recent video on his YouTube channel, he said:

“I think there should be a rule, and the rule should be… Especially to get to a Dana White Contender Series. The very minimum should be 10 professional fights. This protects the fighter. This gives a better product… The notion that a fighter after three or four fights in a lower-level promotion, super low level, is ready for the limelight or ready for the biggest organization in the world is flat-out dumb, it’s dumb. And no other sport, no other sport, no and UFC wants to compare themselves to the NFL, MLB, NBA, no other major sports organization would ever put up with this. Ever! It’s a huge issue in our sport. We’re still in the leather helmet days.”

He added:

“It’s across the board because it’s an investment into their future. It’s not a we need you right now type of thing. It’s an investment. The issue with our sport is there’s no investment. There’s no investment in any other athletes. There’s zero investment. The investment is in UFC, TKO, and the shareholders. The investment is not in a once-in-a-generation talent in Bella Mir. They do not care if she makes it. They don’t care. Her managers don’t care. They should be ashamed of themselves that Bella Mir, you finally have this prospect, especially in the women’s division.”

Check out Brendan Schaub’s comments below (2:30):

Bella Mir’s mother apologizes to Alex Apodaca after backlash for recent comments

Jennifer Mir has apologized to Alex Apodaca after facing heavy criticism for her reaction to Bella Mir’s shocking defeat at Dana White’s Contender Series.

Bella suffered the first MMA loss of her career on Tuesday against Apodaca despite entering as a massive favorite. Jennifer later fired back at Apodaca and the judges on social media.

Jennifer has now explained that she reacted after seeing hateful comments directed at her daughter. She also acknowledged that alcohol and adrenaline influenced her response. In a recent Instagram post addressing the controversy, she wrote:

“I want to address the comments I made after the fight. But first I want to give you all a very deserved explanation. After the fight I went onto Bella’s comments and saw comments telling my daughter to die and kill herself. I reacted purely as an emotional and protective mother after seeing my daughter go through a hard loss and I let alcohol and adrenaline get the better of me.”