Amanda Nunes' coach fires back at Dana White and 'dumb people' for criticizing UFC 213 withdrawal

Amandes Nunes' coach, Conan Silveira, is not happy with the criticism surrounding his student's decision to withdraw from UFC 213.

There's been mixed reactions to Amanda Nunes' sudden withdrawal from UFC 213 on fight night.

Nunes, the current UFC women's bantamweight champion, pulled out of her main event title defense against Amanda Valentina Shevchenko due to a sudden flare-up of chronic sinusitis.

'The Lioness' has been criticized by some but defended by others. Nunes, who is the only UFC champ to pull out of a headlining bout on the day of a pay-per-view, has attracted criticism for refusing to fight despite being medically cleared by doctors.

One of those critics is UFC president Dana White, who told reporters that Nunes would never headline another PPV.

Nunes' coach, Conan Silveira, fired back at White in a recent interview with MMA Fighting, telling Guilherme Cruz that the head promoter has to respect the champion's decision.

"If you have a mouth you can say whatever you want,” Silveira said of White’s comments. "Every person has their own opinion. What he said is what a promoter says. It was enough for him to hear the doctor clearing her, but at the end of the day, Amanda is the one who steps in there to fight. Opinions from everyone else are nothing but opinions. You have to respect her decision. She’s the champion. What everyone else says means nothing.”

Silveira also targeted the 'dumb people' on social media for stating that Nunes is 'scared' of Shevchenko, a fighter she beat via unanimous decision at UFC 196.

"Critics and dumb people get together and form an opinion that doesn’t exist,” Silveira said. "Even fighters saying she was scared. Amanda is not scared of anyone. She retired Miesha Tate, she retired Ronda Rousey. Not to mention that she already beat Valentina by unanimous decision. How did she become scared now? Know the facts before you have your opinion.

"If any other fighter is ill, nobody says anything. Everyone has this right. But she doesn’t because the champion? She has no right to get ill? He’s the promoter and has his opinion. That’s what he got from the doctor. Amanda went back to the hospital the next morning (Saturday) and did other tests and they saw she had chronic sinusitis and gave her antibiotics."

Silveira believes Nunes will shut up the critics when she beats Shevchenko in the rescheduled rematch.

The fight will happen. We want Valentina,” he said. "They will set a new date, and I’ll tell you this: the result won’t be any different than what we had planned. No disrespect to Valentina, she’s a great opponent and a great fight for Amanda, but our final answer will be on fight night, with Amanda defending her belt. That’s the best answer to those who talk too much."

Although nothing has been confirmed, Dana White is planning to re-book Nunes vs. Shevchenko for UFC 215 on September 9.