UFC president Dana White once revealed he immediately contacted the FBI after becoming suspicious that one of the promotion’s fights may have been fixed.
The concerns emerged following allegedly suspicious betting activity surrounding a fight at UFC Vegas 110 in November last year. Featherweight Isaac Dulgarian entered the card as a heavy favorite against underdog Yadier del Valle, but suffered a shock first-round defeat that immediately raised eyebrows.
According to White, officials were told there had been “irregular” activity surrounding the bout, including unusually large wagers backing the fighter to lose in the first round.
“The bet monitoring system hit us up in the afternoon. They said there’s some irregular s— going on with this fight. There’s big bets on this kid to lose in the first round,” said White. “Our lawyer called the fighter and his lawyer and said there’s some irregular betting going on on you right now losing the first round. Are you hurt, do you owe anybody money?
“The fight goes to the ground the kid gets his back and I’m like he’s got him in a f—— rear naked choke, I literally went in the back and called the FBI.”
Dulgarian was reportedly released by the UFC following his controversial first-round submission defeat to Valle. The loss sparked immediate scrutiny after viewers questioned the level of resistance Dulgarian showed during the finish.
The unusual nature of the bout also prompted several sportsbooks, including Caesars Sportsbook, to announce they would refund bets placed on Dulgarian to win. The UFC later released an official statement saying it takes the allegations “very seriously,” while confirming betting integrity firm IC360 is conducting a full review into the circumstances surrounding the fight.
The UFC was subject to another match-fixing incident earlier this year. UFC lightweight veteran Michael Johnson had been scheduled to face rising contender Alexander Hernandez at UFC 324 before the bout was dramatically pulled from the card just hours before fight night.
Suspicion reportedly grew throughout the day after unusual betting activity surrounding the matchup was flagged to UFC officials, prompting White to intervene and cancel the contest before the fighters entered the Octagon.
“It happened again,” White said during the post-fight presser when asked about the Johnson-Hernandez fight cancellation. “We got called from the gaming integrity service, and I said, ‘I’m not doing this s— again.’ So, we pulled the fight.”