Al Iaquinta ‘happy’ with new UFC deal, but not letting go of past grievances

For the past couple of years, lightweight fighter Al Iaquinta has been at odds with the UFC. Like many of his contemporaries on the roster, his main complaint has been about compensation.

Things seemed to have turned better between “Ragin’ Al” and the UFC management. In a recent interview with FloCombat, Iaquinta revealed that he had finally gotten what he has been clamoring for.

”Me pulling out of that fight [at UFC 205 in New York], asking for more money, and them not giving it to me, it all works out, ‘cause now I come back, I win a fight by knockout, and kind of hold out for it,” Iaquinta said. “Now I get a little bit of a pay bump. I’m fighting in New York, and I’m fighting an opponent who I think is a great stylistic matchup for me. I’m really looking forward to it.”

”The best negotiating power is being willing to walk away and I was and they knew that. They know that I’m more valuable with them than not at all.”

But while everything may have been sorted out, Iaquinta is not yet willing to forget about what he felt amounted to major mistreatment by the company he has been fighting for since 2012.

”There are some things that have been done that I don’t think I’ll ever get over,” Iaquinta said. “I was basically sitting in a car waiting for a phone call from Dana White or Lorenzo Fertitta and I never really got one. I had a surgery scheduled and they said they were not paying for it.”

“They were going to pay like 15 percent or 30 percent and I was going to have to come up with a lot more money, which at the time I didn’t have. They kind of forgot about me. They kind of threw me to the side.”

”So I’m never going to forget that,” he added. “But aside from that, I’m happy with what I’m getting paid for this fight. I’m not thinking past that. Everything made sense and it’s all working out. I’ve just got to go in there and prove that I’m worth it.”

The number 11-ranked Iaquinta will open up the main card of UFC 223 on April 7^th in Brooklyn, where he faces Paul Felder.