Alessio Di Chirico thanks Dana White for performance bonus following initial snub

UFC middleweight Alessio Di Chirico thanked UFC president Dana White for his “Performance of the Night” bonus after initially snubbing him.

Di Chirico picked up a huge upset win when he finished rising star Joaquin Buckley via first-round KO on the UFC on ABC 1 main card. The Italian had lost three straight fights coming into the Buckley matchup and many fans and media believed this was a set-up fight designed for Buckley to continue building his star power. Unfortunately for Buckley, he was on the wrong end of a highlight-reel knockout when Di Chirico kicked him in the face with his shin.

After being announced the winner, Di Chirico refused to speak, only saying that he believes the UFC conducts its interview process wrong and that both the winning and losing fighters should each get their say. Following the event, Di Chirico was given a bonus by the UFC for his performance. But according to White, Di Chirico initially snubbed him when they spoke in person backstage.

Dana White says that he congratulated Di Chirico and his team backstage and they looked at him like "what the f*** do you want?"

Needless to say, White was pretty surprised by the not-so-warm reception.

— Aaron Bronsteter (@aaronbronsteter) January 16, 2021

“Dana White says that he congratulated Di Chirico and his team backstage and they looked at him like “what the f*** do you want?” Needless to say, White was pretty surprised by the not-so-warm reception.” (H/t Aaron Bronsteter)

After taking some time to digest everything, Di Chirico is now singing a different tune. The Italian middleweight took to his social media and thanked White and UFC matchmaker Mick Maynard for giving him the $50,000 bonus while explaining he has been under a lot of stress due to the weight of his three-fight losing streak. Check out what “Manzo” wrote on his Instagram.

https://www.instagram.com/p/CKJWFeZo1go/

What a Night, what a rollercoaster. I’m so happy for the W and I wanna spend some words to thank Dana and Mick Maynard, I’ll tell you Why: I was in a three fight losing skid, a controversial skid cause I think One or two of that losses should have been W for me, but always a bad position to be in. I could have been cut before this match, a lot of guys have been cut with 2 or 3 losses in a row. Dana and Mick let me fight again, they gave me the opportunity to let you see that I can fight and beat the best guys in the UFC. So this is the time for a big thank you. See you soon. @danawhite @mickmaynard2

Do you think Dana White will accept the thanks of Alessio Di Chirico?