A current UFC fighter has revealed he was previously approached with an offer to throw a fight and disclosed how much he was offered to do so.
It is one of the biggest stories in MMA right now.
On Monday night, the UFC released a statement addressing irregular betting patterns prior to the UFC Fight Night 263 contest between Isaac Dulgarian and Yadier del Valle.
In fact, the UFC have confirmed that an investigation into the situation is underway through its betting integrity partner, IC360.
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"Like many professional sports organisations, UFC works with an independent betting integrity service to monitor wagering activity on our events," they said in the statement, as per Aaron Bronsteter.
"Our betting integrity partner, IC360, monitors wagering on every UFC event and is conducting a thorough review of the facts surrounding the Dulgarian vs. del Valle bout on Saturday, November 1."
The UFC added: "We take these allegations very seriously, and along with the health and safety of our fighters, nothing is more important than the integrity of our sport.”
Just days after Del Valle secured a submission victory via rear-naked choke and Ariel Helwani took to social media to confirm that Isaac Dulgarian, 29, has been released from the UFC roster.
Helwani wrote: “The official reason was attributed to last night’s loss; however, the bout has been the center of controversy after a ton of money started to come in on Dulgarian, a sizable favourite, to lose in the first, which is what happened.”
In his latest episode of The Ariel Helwani Show, the MMA journalist gave further details on the controversy, stating that, as far as he knows, the FBI are aware of the incident and, while the depth of the investigation is not known, the repercussions could be huge.
Amid the controversy, UFC featherweight Vince Morales has revealed that he was previously approached with an offer to throw a fight.
In a now-deleted post on X, Morales wrote: "All this throwing the fight stuff is crazy! I’ve been approached about doing it and it’s not something I could live with…even though I ended up losing the damn fight anyways."
Morales was then asked how much he was offered to throw the bout. He replied: “Penny’s considering how big of a deal it is. 70k.”
The 34-year-old, who is currently on a three-fight losing streak following defeats to Raul Rosas Jr., Elijah Smith and Taylor Lapilus, later clarified that the offer was made during the COVID-19 pandemic.
“That was way back in the covid times," he told Cageside Press. "Fight week during the first week of apex. Happened in passing so I didn’t even take it serious."
More fighters reveal they were approached and offered money to throw fights
Morales isn't the only active fighter to speak out. UFC strawweight Vanessa Demopoulos claimed she has been approached in the past about throwing a fight.
"Yeah people have approached me to throw fights also," she said, as per Mike Bohn. “My integrity could never. We’ve spent our lives learning skills and honoring this sport. Can’t believe people compromise their morels [sic] like this.”
Lando Vannata, a 13-fight UFC veteran who competed in the featherweight division, also says he was approached seven times to throw a fight. "My record reflects integrity," he added, as per Ben Davis.
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