Cheick Kongo admits to 'a lot of anger' toward Oli Thompson: 'I wanted to (expletive) him up'

SAN JOSE, Calif. – Cheick Kongo had already made it clear that he was not particularly happy with the idea of facing an ex-teammate.

But after completely nullifying Oli Thompson (17-10 MMA, 0-2 BMMA) to take a clear unanimous decision win in Saturday’s Bellator 172 replacement co-headliner, Kongo (26-10-2 MMA, 8-2 BMMA) made his feelings toward his opponent extra clear.

“I was a little bit, for sure – I wasn’t a little bit, but I was completely upset, because Oli used to be a really good partner and also a friend,” Kongo said during the post-fight press conference at SAP Center, in San Jose, Calif. “So we used to create some teammate relation and to see him, facing him tonight fighting wasn’t really good inspiration.

“So I have a lot of anger against him. Probably the anger used to make me blind on the gameplan. It’s not a wish to hurt him, but I was really upset, and I wanted to (expletive) him up. I’m sorry about my language, but that’s what I have in mind.”

The heavyweight bout served as Saturday’s co-main event after a previously scheduled headliner of Fedor Emelianenko vs. Matt Mitrione was scrapped just before the start of the card, pushing Patricky Freire vs. Josh Thomson to the night’s premier spot. The event aired on Spike, following prelims on MMAjunkie.

With Saturday’s win, his fourth in a row, Kongo now rides a recent 6-1 Bellator record. The good moment in the heavyweight’s career might mean a step-up in competition in the not-so-distant future – which could include, why not, Emelianenko, himself.

But when asked directly about the possibility of facing “The Last Emperor,” who seems to be eyeing a May or June return regardless of Mitrione’s availability for a rescheduling of their scrapped appointment, Kongo took a cautious approach.

“The thing is, if I have to fight him it’d be great,” Kongo said. “I would talk about that with my teammate to set up the right thing to myself. But, as usual, I never refuse anything. So, if I have to face him one day, it would be great. I’m still in the game, and we’ll see what the future is holding for me.”

To hear more from Kongo, check out the video above.

And for complete coverage of Bellator 172, check out the MMA Events section of the site.