A UFC fighter was heartbroken and cut an interview short when he found out a champion wrestler had been executed in Iran
- David Green, a UFC fighter, said he found out moments before he was due to compete on Saturday that a wrestler had been executed in Iran earlier that day.
- The American lightweight earned a hard-fought decision behind closed doors and afterward could talk only about Navid Afkari's killing, telling ESPN he was heartbroken to learn of his death.
- Afkari was executed after being convicted of murder, but he had said he confessed to the crime after being tortured.
- "It just f---ed me up," Green said. "You really just crushed me today. Like, somebody lost their life today."
The UFC fighter Bobby Green said he found out during a live event on Saturday that a wrestler had been executed in Iran, and he cut an interview short because he was so upset.
Green said he learned about Navid Afkari's killing moments before he fought at the behind-closed-doors "UFC Fight Night: Waterson vs. Hill" show in Las Vegas, when a tribute was broadcast on a big screen.
The American lightweight, who earned a unanimous decision win over Alan Patrick, was asked about the bout by the ESPN MMA broadcaster and former UFC champion Michael Bisping.
But Green could think of little apart from Afkari, a 27-year-old who was executed on Saturday after receiving a death sentence.
Afkari had been convicted of murder in the death of a security guard during anti-government protests in 2018, the BBC reported. He had said he confessed to the crime only after being tortured.
The UFC boss Dana White and US President Donald Trump had pleaded with Iran not to execute the wrestling champion.
"You guys just showed something about someone who just died," Green told ESPN after his win, adding, "You guys just broke my heart, to say that that man lost his life.
"I thought we were going to be able to save him. He just lost his life? That just messed me up. Somebody just lost their life for protesting. That just messed me up."
When Bisping attempted to talk about the fight, Green said: "There's nothing to talk about, man. That guy lost his life. I'm just here — somebody just lost their life, bro. I don't even want to talk right now. That's just so sad. It's messed up, man.
"Y'all pulled that right before my fight, and that just really blew my mind. I can't even talk right now, bro. Thank you so much. Sorry."
Green then took off his headset and walked off toward another media obligation.
Again, he could think of little apart from Afkari.
He said that his performance was "f---ing terrible" and that he had a bad night, even though he won. It wasn't long before he segued into talking about Afkari.
"It just f---ed me up," Green said. "You really just crushed me today. Like, somebody lost their life today."
He added, "I just can't believe that dude lost his life protesting, you know, the same stuff we do over here."
Green's win was his third in as many months, advancing his record to 27 wins (eight knockouts, nine submissions, and 10 decisions) against 10 losses.
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