Davey Grant believes ref standing him and Raphael Assuncao up was fair but understands why his team was mad: “I was just squeezing for dear life”

Davey Grant knew Raphael Assuncao would be a tough out at UFC Las Vegas but admits it was a harder fight than he thought.

Grant knew Assuncao was a good wrestler but the Brit was confident he would have his way on the feet and eventually get the KO. But, after ten minutes that wasn’t the case as Assuncao had won both rounds.

“I thought I was going to be able to pick him apart pretty easy and get that KO,” Grant said to BJPENN.com. “But, he had a great game plan and won the first two rounds and made me get aggressive in that third round. I did think I was going to break him down but his defense was really good, he’s a vet for a reason and is really good at what he does.”

In the third round, Grant landed some good shots but as Assuncao tried to take him down, the Brit grabbed the fence which kept him on top of the Brazilian. Grant makes it clear he did not grab it on purpose but understands why a point was taken.

However, after the ref took a point, he stood Grant and Assuncao up, which the Brit says was the fairest thing to do.

“I did grab the fence but I am not trying to cheat. When you are falling face-first, your natural instinct is to put out your hands and grab something,” Grant said. “He took the point which was fair enough… None of us had the positions, if anything, I was on top. So, for him to get a top position on the floor wouldn’t be fair so to keep us standing was the fair thing to do, I think. I get why he and his team were mad but he didn’t have the position on the ground.”

With less than a minute remaining, Davey Grant was well-aware that he needed to finish Raphael Assuncao at UFC Las Vegas if he was going to win. The Brit landed a big spinning backfist that dropped the Brazilian and after scrambling on the ground, Grant secured an inverted triangle and put Assuncao to sleep with less than 20 seconds to go.

“I knew I had hit him pretty well before that spinning backfist and then when I dropped him, I knew I had to punch him as many times as possible to get the finish. But, he kept hiding his head and grappling and I saw the inverted triangle and went for it,” Grant said. “I was just squeezing for dear life and I couldn’t see his face and I didn’t really know how tight it was. I was just squeezing and squeezing and was hoping for him to tap or go out.”

It was a massive comeback win that netted Grant the $50k bonus. Although the fight nearly went the distance, the Brit didn’t take a lot of damage and hopes he can get back in there soon.

“I’ll fight whoever they want. I’m already back training, so hopefully at least two more fights this year and be in that top-10 by the end of this year,” Grant said.

Who would you like to see Davey Grant fight next?