Rivera has 'no respect' for UFC Utica opponent Moraes - or his manager

There may not be a lot of buzz surrounding UFC Utica's main event, but for Jimmie Rivera, Friday's fight is personal.

The 28-year-old bantamweight will face Marlon Moraes (20-5-1) after their squabble over a potential fight in December when Rivera's original opponent, Dominick Cruz, pulled out of a top contender's bout with a broken arm.

Rivera (21-1) wanted nothing to do with Moraes when first offered a matchup with him, as the Brazilian was only 1-1 in the UFC at the time (before beating Aljamain Sterling in December). But then Moraes' manager, Ali Abdelaziz, said Rivera was dodging fights, and according to Rivera, he also insulted the bantamweight's wife.

"One of the reasons I took this fight is his manager will hide behind his fighters, but I’m going to go in there and whoop his fighter’s ass," Rivera told Damon Martin of MMA Weekly. "All that animosity has been helping me train for this fight and I’m looking forward to fighting him ...

"I don't have any respect for him and especially who he has that manages him. No respect as a fighter. That’s even why when we got up there at the press conference, he was saying something and I couldn’t understand him cause he always mumbles his words. I’m going to go in there, fight, and do what I have to do."

Abdelaziz denied calling Rivera's wife any names, telling MMAjunkie's Steven Marrocco in March that his insults were directed at the fighter and maintaining that Rivera was trying to dodge Moraes.

"I don't respect him as a person, because I think he was doing everything he could not to fight Marlon," Abdelaziz said. "If Jimmie Rivera has something to say to me, then he can say it to my face."

Rivera, a former champion in three other promotions, is on a 19-fight winning streak with five straight victories since coming to the UFC and expects to be in line for a title shot if he can get past Moraes.