David Branch's message to press row after lackluster UFC 211 win: 'Go ahead and chew me up'

DALLAS – David Branch knows his long-awaited return to the UFC octagon wasn’t exactly a thriller, but he’s confident better performance are ahead.

Still, he knew Saturday’s UFC 211 victory was a lackluster one, so as he left the cage and strolled by press row, he had a message for reporters.

“I said, ‘Go ahead and chew me up,'” he told them.

After a late card change moved Branch to the pay-per-view main-card opener at American Airlines Center in Dallas, he had an opportunity to prove his return was long overdue. After going 2-2 in his first UFC stint, he left the promotion in 2011 and ultimately caught on with WSOF, where he won 10 straight fights while claiming the middleweight and light-heavyweight belts.

But against Krzysztof Jotko (19-2 MMA, 6-2 UFC), Branch (21-3 MMA, 3-2 UFC) used a stifling clinch and effective defense to grind out narrow a split-decision win. It wasn’t exactly a frontrunner for “Fight of the Night” honors.

“He was very cautious,” Branch said. “I was too.”

The boos were plentiful, so Branch let cageside reporters know that any criticism was justified.

“That’s just me being a little frustrated with myself,” he said. “I sometimes take this a little … to heart because I’m hard on myself, but people’s opinions are what they are. I know what I am as a fighter.”

With his WSOF run, Branch moved to No. 8 in the USA TODAY Sports/MMAjunkie MMA middleweight rankings heading into UFC 211. It’s a far cry from his first UFC stint, when Branch admitted he was “like a C-level curtain-jerker.”

But if he wants to maintain main-card spots, especially on big cards like UFC 211, he knows he needs to bring more to the cage.

“At the end of the day, I’m a fighter, and my job is to get the W but also be entertaining.” he said. “And I can only promise to do that next time.

For more on UFC 211, check out the UFC Events section of the site.