Dana White took to TMZ Sports to address the Isaac Dulgarian fight fixing scandal. Dulgarian was cut by the UFC after he lost as a big favorite to Yadier Del Valle in the first round via submission.
White stated that he was notified of suspicious betting patterns from the UFC’s gambling monitor. He then spoke with Dulgarian and his lawyer (who was somehow present, perhaps on the phone) about the suspicious bets placed on his fight. White seemed ok with the answers given to him and Dulgarian was allowed to fight. Immediately after the fight White says he went in the back to his office to call the FBI. On Tuesday, White noted that he had spoken with the FBI.
Dana White is breaking his silence after suspicious betting activity was observed before Isaac Dulgarian, a heavy favorite, lost on Saturday.
— TMZ Sports (@TMZ_Sports) November 4, 2025
The @UFC honcho walks us through everything that's gone down, from being alerted to potential irregularities before the event to meeting… pic.twitter.com/cVrp99W82Z
White noted that the James Krause investigation into his fight fixing issues in 2022 is still open and the Dulgarian fight will be looped into it.
There is also the report by independent journalist Harry Mac that the government is looking into over 100 UFC fights for abnormal betting patterns which include “2 additional fighters on last nights card.” This is in reference to Saturday’s UFC Fight Night on which Dulgarian fought.
Update: federal regulators have flagged OVER 100 UFC fights this year for abnormal betting patterns, including 2 additional fighters on last nights card. Shit is about to get VERY ugly. Still working to confirm but it sounds like the Feds are moving to audit Herzogs fights https://t.co/mtx6XiTFJS
— Harry Mac (@bbharrymac) November 2, 2025
Payout Perspective:
White was adamant in his TMZ interview that the UFC and/or the FBI would get to the bottom of the situation. He also downplayed the report that “over 100 fights” are being investigated. The specific fights are not the issue for White; it’s the credibility and integrity of the sport. With gambling being a huge part of the revenue for the industry AND the UFC, if there are findings that fights have been “rigged” or “fixed” to determine a specific outcome, it could crater the popularity of the UFC.
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