​Eric Nicksick (pictured) spoke about his public clash with Ali Abdelaziz, saying the matter has been resolved. The two men reportedly clashed shortly after Manel Kape’s victory over Kyoji Horiguchi last month, with Abdelaziz allegedly throwing a punch at Nicksick before security escorted him out of the venue. Nicksick recently addressed the incident but kept details to a minimum. He explained that while he often butts heads with Abdelaziz, this most recent confrontation drew public attention because it occurred in front of onlookers.
“I told him Argentina was gonna beat Egypt. We’re brothers, man. You get arguing with your wife, it happens in the house. This happened more in front of people, so it became more out in public,” Nicksick told Ariel Helwani. “But we’ve been friends for 15 years. We argue, we fight, we bicker and we literally roll over the next day. It wasn’t that big of a deal.”
Nicksick coaches Kape, who is managed by Abdelaziz. He said Abdelaziz owned up to his mistake and apologized, and the feud was then defused because Nicksick believes in forgiveness. “To his credit, he said, ‘Look, dude, I’m sorry, I made a mistake.’ I’m a man; he’s a man; I think forgiveness needs to be something that we practice a lot more,” Nicksick remarked. “I can understand some of the things he’s upset about… But it really has got nothing to do with me. But it’s all squashed. We have too much to lose, man. We have too many guys in common… We’re all good.”
Nicksick attributed part of the incident’s escalation to factors that were misconstrued or lost in translation involving others in the room. “I just think there’s some things that are lost in translation, amongst other guys in the room that need to get squared away. And at the end of the day, it’s my job,” he explained. Concerning the punch Abdelaziz allegedly threw, Nicksick said, “Nothing that affected me.”
He also acknowledged that online back-and-forth between Kape and Sean Strickland contributed to the ongoing tension with Abdelaziz. Although Kape and Strickland both train at Xtreme Couture, the UFC middleweight champion Strickland has been vocally defending Abdelaziz online, which has fed into the broader dispute. “Starboy” has stood by his manager, showing little concern about a potential clash with Strickland despite the size disparity.
In reflecting on what happened, Nicksick emphasized the importance of resolution and moving forward. He noted that the relationship with Abdelaziz has a long history, and despite recent noise, the men have more important things to focus on. “We’re all professionals with a lot on the line,” he said. “We’re both adults who can learn from this and put it behind us.” As for the public nature of the incident, Nicksick suggested that the visibility of the confrontation amplified scrutiny, but insisted that the core issue has been settled and there’s no lingering beef. He reiterated that the parties involved have far more common ground than conflicts, and the emphasis now is on their shared goals and responsibilities within the sport.