UFC fighters Arman Tsarukyan and Diego Lopes face potential discipline and have had portions of their purses withheld after altercations at UFC 300, with a full disciplinary hearing scheduled for May.
Arman Tsarukyan and Diego Lopes are in hot water. They’ve got themselves tangled up in some UFC 300 drama in Vegas.
The Nevada State Athletic Commission spilled the beans on Tuesday. They’ve got some details about the fighters’ purses and the cash they’re holding back. All until a full disciplinary hearing in May.
Matthew Feeley, the Nevada Deputy Attorney General, read out a report. Tsarukyan pocketed $158,000 for his win over Charles Oliveira. But, they’ve held back $31,600, which is 20% of his purse.
Why? Well, Tsarukyan had a bit of a run-in with a fan. It happened during his walk to the octagon at UFC 300. The fan didn’t press charges, but the commission took note.
Tsarukyan talked about the incident at the UFC 300 post-fight press conference. He said the fan flipped him off. That led to him throwing a punch before security stepped in.
His words? “He showed me ‘F*ck you’ and he wanted to punch me and I wanted to punch him back,” Tsarukyan said. “So guys, no one show me ‘F*ck you.’ Doesn’t matter who you are, I’m going to punch you in the face. You can show me ‘F*ck’ from like 200 meters, I’m not going to punch you. But when you’re close to me, it’s, like automatically, I’m from Russia. Don’t do that, please, or I’m going to go to prison in U.S.”
The commission’s verdict? They’ll hold onto the $31,600 from Tsarukyan’s purse. Until the full disciplinary hearing in May, that is.
Lopes? He bagged $100,000 for his first-round knockout win over Sodiq Yusuff. But, he jumped into the crowd after his win. A big no-no. So, they’re holding back $5,000 from his purse.
A commissioner who was at UFC 300 said Lopes climbed on top of the cage. He motioned to UFC CEO Dana White about jumping outside the octagon. Dana White allegedly gave him the green light, saying “I will pay his fine.”
So, part of Lopes’ purse got withheld. The $5,000 will stay with the Nevada Commission until the full disciplinary hearing in May.
The commissioners want video evidence. Especially about the Tsarukyan incident. They’ll review it before deciding on any potential punishment.