Ateba Gautier Releases Statement Following First UFC Loss

UFC 332 was a night for the favourites... unless your name is Ateba Gautier. The Cameroonian sufferd his first UFC defeat when he was knocked out in the first round by Roman Kopylov, ending a 10-fight winning run.

There have been signs that Gautier relies too much on his power, and when he can't land, he looks underwhelming. Against Andrey Pulyaev, the 24-year-old wavered in the final round and went to a decision for the first time since his debut. Was he overhyped? Is he actually 'that' good? Only time will tell, but we must remember that the prospect is just 24 years old and already has 13 professional fights. Kopylov was a big step up in competition, and he fell at that hurdle. That isn't to say that he won't come again.

Following the loss at UFC 332, Gautier took to Instagram to release the following statement:

""Hey everyone ❤️I just wanted to take a moment to let you know that I’m doing well, especially to everyone who has been worried about me and has been sending me messages since last night.Last night simply wasn’t our night. 🥊All credit to my opponent. He was better than me last night, and I respect that. 🤝🏾Of course, I’m disappointed. I wanted to win, as always. But that’s also part of our sport. There are days when everything goes your way, and there are days when things don’t go the way you imagined.I fell, yes. But I’m going to get back up. And I’m going to start again as many times as it takes until I reach the goal I’ve set for myself. ❤️‍🔥A sincere thank you to everyone who has been sending me messages of support and motivation. I read your messages, even though I can’t reply to everyone, and believe me, they mean a lot to me. 🙏🏾

As they say in our sport: sometimes you make the highlights… and sometimes you ARE the highlight. 😂🥊And thank you to those who are celebrating my loss. I don’t hold it against you. Everyone is free to feel however they feel. I’ll simply use all of this as motivation to keep working.And above all, thank You to the Almighty Lord, Creator of Heaven and Earth. 🙏🏾I’m grateful to Him for this loss. Maybe today I don’t fully understand everything this defeat is meant to teach me, but I know it will be part of my story.I fell last night.But my story doesn’t end here.I’m going to get back up. ❤️‍🔥I’m going to work. 🦾And I’m coming back.Thank you all for your support. ❤️."

In a classy show of respect, Gautier's UFC 332 opponent, Roman Kopylov commented on the post saying, "Thanks for the fight 🤝I was glad to share the cage with you 🫂only the best in your direction 🤝🙏🏻".