The UFC cut ties with featherweight fighter Isaac Dulgarian on Sunday – barely 24 hours after he tapped out in the first round to Yadier Del Valle at the UFC Vegas 110 fight night.
The cause for concern? A flood of sketchy betting action connected to his fight, which lit up the sportsbooks. Quickly after his loss, betting lines froze, and UFC-related wagers got pulled from the board.
Dulgarian walked in as a -250 favorite, but his odds slid hard to around -154 right before the first round, per YahooSports. An unusual amount of bets then poured in on Del Valle winning in the first round, which is exactly what happened when he easily locked in a rear-naked choke in under two minutes.
Several sportsbooks closed UFC bets on the night and later refunded wagers on Dulgarian’s loss.
Caesars Sportsbooks posted an update around 9 PM on Saturday to X, stating “Mobile customers with losing bets on the Dulgarian UFC fight will receive a cash credit within 24 hours….”
UFC confirmed the release of Dulgarian in a statement obtained by Reporter Aaron Bronsteter, which reads, “…UFC works with an independent betting integrity service to monitor wagering activity on our events. 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. 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.”
MMA journalist Ariel Helwani first reported Dulgarian’s release on social media and further discussed the fighter’s sketchy gambling schemes on his podcast on Monday.
Helwani said that the UFC had been notified of the betting irregularities before the fight on Saturday, spoke with Dulgarian and his team about them, and they collectively assured officials there was no cause for concern.
Helwani would go on to describe the incident as “not an isolated” case, claiming that he has heard of multiple UFC fighters who have been approached with offers to intentionally fix fights for cash.
Helwani also added that although Director Kash Patel is friends with UFC higher-ups like Dana White, he believes the organization is at least under some review. Just how extensive that review is, or if the UFC is currently under FBI investigation for gambling issues, is still not clear.
Dulgarian, a former trainee of MMA coach James Krause – who himself was banned from UFC events following a 2022 betting controversy, per YahooSports – held a 2-2 record during his time at UFC before being released on Sunday.