Beneil Dariush Won’t Call Alexander Hernandez a Dirty Fighter Yet After UFC 222

– Beneil Dariush spoke with MMAjunkie about his fight with Alexander Hernandez at UFC 222 and more. Highlights are below:

On Hernandez rushing him in the opening seconds: “It’s kind of strange, because I thought he was trying to touch gloves because he had his hand out. But maybe he was looking to measure distance. I’ve had so many fights and normally I just come out and touch gloves, maybe I’d just built a bad habit. With that being said, I made a mistake in judgement thinking he was coming out to touch gloves. It’s too early to tell if he’s a dirty fighter. That was his first fight in the UFC. He’ll have more fights and then I’ll have a better idea of what kind of guy he is. I’m not going to judge him on just one action.”

On his loss to Hernandez: “It’s strange, because it was so fast, it’s hard to take too much away from it. The frustrating thing, too, is I had one of the best weight cuts, one of the best camps I’ve ever had. Everything was sailing really good. Then to go in there and to lose like that, it’s a big setback for me. That hardest thing is getting back mentally, but thank God I’m actually feeling really motivated. I’m back to work already, and that makes me happy.”

On not being overly critical on himself: “Beating yourself up – I don’t think that stops – you don’t stop thinking about it, and you continue to replay it. But as far as turning the corner, as soon as I got back home, the last thing I wanted to do was leave the house. I just wanted to stay inside and just eat food or be depressed. Then I was like, ‘I can’t do this. It’s going to be a super long recovery, and I’m not going to get back to fighting anytime soon.’ One of the things I did that was really important is I got back up, and I left the house, and I started teaching jiu-jitsu. I think one of the hardest things for fighters is they don’t want to go out there and face people. I don’t really want to talk about it. I don’t want to face people. I don’t want them to pity me or say, ‘Oh, things happen.’ I don’t want to make excuses and have people try to make me feel better. I’ll carry the weight by myself. I know they’re doing it out of love, so it’s a hard thing to face. But it’s necessary. The faster you face that, the faster you’re able to overcome the crappy feeling of the fight.”

On his recent slump: “I’ve been in a drought without a doubt. I’m definitely in a drought, but I’ve noticed this is the time where you think the clearest and you focus on the most important things, and you don’t let anything else get in the way. I may be in a drought right now, but if I continue to stay focused and set my eyes on the right things, I think I’m going to come out of this drought and come out of it stronger than before.”