Isaac Dulgarian’s UFC career ended this weekend. The promotion cut him after his loss at UFC Vegas 110 on Saturday.
MMA journalist Ariel Helwani broke the news. The UFC said the release came because of “last night’s loss.” But that’s only part of it.
Dulgarian faced Yadier del Valle at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas. He was the favourite. Instead, he submitted in the first round. That result matched exactly what someone apparently knew was coming.
Why This Fight Drew Immediate Scrutiny
The betting patterns raised alarms before the first punch landed. Helwani reported that “a ton of money started to come in on Dulgarian, a sizable favourite, to lose in the first.”, and that’s precisely what happened.
DraftKings didn’t wait around. The sportsbook pulled all markets from the fight and cited “integrity concerns” as the reason. That’s operator-speak for something doesn’t smell right.
The timing tells the story. When a heavy favourite suddenly attracts significant money on a specific loss outcome, and then that exact outcome occurs, regulators and operators take notice. Sports betting integrity depends on unpredictable results.
What Happened Before and After the Bout
Dulgarian entered the cage as the betting favourite against del Valle. The odds suggested he should win. The betting action said otherwise.
First-round submissions don’t happen by accident in professional MMA. They’re the result of skill, strategy, or, in suspicious cases, something else entirely.
Caesars Sportsbook took an unusual step after the fight. The operator posted on X (formerly Twitter) that it would issue cash credits to customers who lost bets on Dulgarian. Mobile customers would get refunds within 24 hours for single bets, or within 24 hours of the final leg settling for parlays and same-game parlays.
That’s not standard practice. Sportsbooks don’t typically refund losing wagers unless something’s wrong with the event itself.
How This Case Affects Sports Betting Oversight
This incident puts more pressure on combat sports betting markets. UFC fights already face scrutiny because individual fighters can influence outcomes more directly than team sport athletes.
Operators now face questions about their monitoring systems. Did they catch the suspicious betting activity early enough? Should markets have closed sooner?
The UFC’s quick release of Dulgarian sends a message to other fighters. The promotion won’t tolerate anything that compromises fight integrity. But it also raises questions about what investigation occurred and what evidence exists beyond the betting patterns.
State regulators in Nevada will likely review the fight and wagering data. They’ll determine whether this stays a UFC personnel issue or becomes a broader investigation into potential match manipulation.
