LAS VEGAS – King Green seems like he's the kind of guy who doesn't say something if he doesn't mean it.
So when he said fighting Terrance McKinney was a little bit personal, and a lot about teaching a lesson, it was hard to not buy into it. After he put McKinney away with one second left in the opening round at UFC 329, he said they squashed their brief beef and planned to head out into "Sin City" to prove it – together.
And that they did, according to Green's social media posts after his TKO win at T-Mobile Arena to open the main card Saturday. Green (36-17-1 MMA, 17-12-1 UFC) was given the business by McKinney (18-9 MMA, 8-6 UFC) in the early moments of their fight, and his face showed it afterward. But in the final 30 seconds, he caught McKinney and hurt him, then kept the pressure on to get the stoppage with a second left in the opening frame.
"You've got to understand this is at its highest pinnacle," Green said after the fight. "The emotions are high, but you've got to be able to be in the fire. You've got to keep the emotions high, but you've got to control your emotions at the same time. It's a weird game that you've got to play. So they're high. I'm looking at him. He's looking at me. They're high, and they're in the fight. … But I'm just so used to the fire and the way it burns. It is what it is."
Green said in the buildup to the fight that his disappointment with McKinney was in his accepting the bout to begin with. In Green's eyes, they had a handshake deal in place – and McKinney admitted during fight week that he broke it so he could be part of a fight card headlined by Conor McGregor.
So when he said fighting Terrance McKinney was a little bit personal, and a lot about teaching a lesson, it was hard to not buy into it. After he put McKinney away with one second left in the opening round at UFC 329, he said they squashed their brief beef and planned to head out into "Sin City" to prove it – together.
And that they did, according to Green's social media posts after his TKO win at T-Mobile Arena to open the main card Saturday. Green (36-17-1 MMA, 17-12-1 UFC) was given the business by McKinney (18-9 MMA, 8-6 UFC) in the early moments of their fight, and his face showed it afterward. But in the final 30 seconds, he caught McKinney and hurt him, then kept the pressure on to get the stoppage with a second left in the opening frame.
"You've got to understand this is at its highest pinnacle," Green said after the fight. "The emotions are high, but you've got to be able to be in the fire. You've got to keep the emotions high, but you've got to control your emotions at the same time. It's a weird game that you've got to play. So they're high. I'm looking at him. He's looking at me. They're high, and they're in the fight. … But I'm just so used to the fire and the way it burns. It is what it is."
Green said in the buildup to the fight that his disappointment with McKinney was in his accepting the bout to begin with. In Green's eyes, they had a handshake deal in place – and McKinney admitted during fight week that he broke it so he could be part of a fight card headlined by Conor McGregor.
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