Paul Daley sucker-punches Josh Koscheck after their UFC 113 fight, an action that got him fired.

NOTTINGHAM, England – British MMA fighter Paul “Semtex” Daley (23-9-2) has issued an apology for taking a “cheap shot” at opponent Josh Koscheck (15-4) following the final bell of their UFC 113 welterweight fight Saturday night, May 8, at the Bell Centre in Montreal, Quebec, Canada.

Following weeks of trash talk that went back and forth between the two, Koscheck used his high level wrestling to repeatedly take down and control Daley for three full rounds. In addition, Koscheck used the last minute of the fight to continue the trash talk to his neutralized opponent being held him down from top position.

A combination of these things, coupled with the “phantom knee” incident in the first round, apparently was enough to send the top-ten ranked 27-year-old English striker over the edge. As the bell sounded signaling the end of the fight and Koscheck stood up to let Daley out from underneath him, Daley got up, came up behind Koscheck and sucker-punched him with a left hook in the face.

The referee, Dan Miragliotta, immediately grabbed Daley and moved him to a secure location inside the Octagon. To Koscheck’s credit, he did not retaliate. Instead, he smiled, probably realizing the hole his opponent had just dug for himself.

Several minutes later at the post-fight press conference UFC President Dana White said Paul Daley would never fight in the UFC again. He made it very clear, even if Daley apologized, he was no longer welcome inside pro MMA’s premiere organization.

For Daley, it was a long plane ride back to England, and a time he could use to reflect on what had taken place. On Sunday Daley issued the following statement via England’s Daily Telegraph:

“I’ve had a long flight home to consider my actions and regret the mistake I made on Saturday. I would like to apologise to the UFC and the Athletic Commission for what I’ve done as well as all the fans and sponsors that support me.”

“I would also like to offer my sincerest apologies to Josh Koscheck who did not deserve the cheap shot I threw. He did what he needed to do in order to win the fight and get the job done, and I foolishly reacted to the situation.”

“There is no excuse for my actions and I know what I did was very unprofessional. I was immensely frustrated by a collection of things that took place throughout the fight as well as leading up to it, but I’m certainly not trying to condone or excuse my actions.”

“Josh implemented his game plan perfectly taking me down and staying on top of me for the majority of the fight. I was also frustrated about him claiming (and acting like) I knee’d him in the head on the ground when it was clear for all to see in the video replay that I didn’t connect at all with the knee I threw.”

“Then finally, the verbal abuse Josh hit me with in the final 30 seconds of the fight simply pushed me over the edge and my frustrations came out as I knew I’d lost the fight, was unhappy with my own performance and had then been ridiculed by my opponent to top things off.”

“This is certainly no excuse for my actions; I fully deserve to be punished for what I did and hope that everyone I have disappointed can forgive my rash decision. I feel very disappointed in myself for losing my cool and hope that I am able to address my temperament and bounce back from this low point in my career.”

“I feel ashamed and embarrassed by what I did and hope that together my team and I can get through this issue. It will be a long road back from where I am now to earning the trust and respect of the UFC and the MMA fans that have supported me for so long, I know I’ve let you all down but I’m determined to make it up to you all.”

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