Rashad Evans Details Emotional Post-Fight Conversation with Michelle Waterson-Gomez

Rashad Evans consoling his long time friend Michelle Waterson-Gomez#UFCVegas79 pic.twitter.com/YIqIeq23XG

— MMA Mania (@mmamania) September 24, 2023

Michelle Waterson-Gomez suffered a second round technical knockout loss in a rematch against Marina Rodriguez at UFC Fight Night 228 on Saturday.

“The Karate Hottie” was thoroughly outclassed by Rodriguez on the feet with a 90-16 total strike differential. While Rodriguez seemed close to finishing to bout in the opening frame, Waterson-Gomez displayed commendable toughness in weathering the storm. As the beatdown continued, referee Kerry Hatley stepped in to halt the bout at 2:42 of the second round. A bloodied Waterson-Gomez broke down in tears after the defeat.

UFC Hall of Famer and Waterson-Gomez’s former teammate at Jackson-Wink MMA, Rashad Evans, who was an analyst for the event, consoled the 37-year-old outside the Octagon as she was overwhelmed by emotions. Sharing details of the exchange, Evans stated that Waterson-Gomez felt like she could have still mounted a comeback.

“It was tough,” Evans said on the post-fight show. “Because at the end of the night, when she came to me, she said, ‘I didn’t want him to stop it. I wanted to come back. I wanted to come back and I know could come back.’”

While there is no arguing the stoppage as Waterson-Gomez was clearly not defending herself anymore, Evans can’t help but empathize with his former teammate.

“I’ve known Michelle for the longest time,” he said. “We go back to Jackson’s and when she was named ‘Peanut.’ She was one of the guys on the team and she was just always there, just going through the workouts we did. It was hard for me see her in that moment because I know what it’s like to want to keep going, but you just can’t.”