Nurmagomedov and Zaynukov were among a small army of fighters who opted to jump Danis at the event at Madison Square Garden on November 15. The incident transpired years after Khabib Nurmagomedov attacked Danis follwing his UFC 229 main event, and came about as a result of trash talk the American had participated in online.

Sticks and stones?

While UFC President and CEO Dana White opted not to press charges, New York City mayor Eric Adams is not so permissive. On Monday, Adams announced that the NYPD was investigating the incident, and promised that those involved would be held accountable.

“These assaults at Madison Square Garden are completely unacceptable. The NYPD is already conducting a full investigation, and everyone responsible will be held accountable,” Adams wrote in a brief statement accompanying video footage of the melee.

Following UFC 322, White announced that Danis would be permanently banned from all of the promotion’s events. No punishment for Nurmagomedov, a former UFC athlete and member of Islam Makhachev’s entourage, nor Zaynukov, was announced.

Makhachev, a close friend, training partner and now student of Khabib Nurmagomedov, won the UFC’s welterweight championship later in the night, defeating Jack Della Maddalena in a lopsided decision to do so.

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Much of the brawl was caught on camera, but questions remained as to who instigated the incident, which ultimately saw the UFC decline to press charges. Danis and Abubakar Nurmagomedov were immediately identified; “Chanko’s” presence was confirmed a short time later when alternate angles of the incident showed him striking Danis to the back of the head.

Zaynukov, a training partner of Islam Makhachev, became an MMA meme when Khabib Nurmagomedov mispronounced his nickname, making it sound like “John Pork” and setting off a string of memes online (helped by the fact that “John Pork” was already a pig-faced character on the internet).

That fun little bit of MMA trivia, however, is no longer what Zaynukov may be known for moving forward. Instead, in a repeat of UFC 229 in 2018, Dillon Danis found himself at the center of a brawl instigated by Team Khabib, as teammates of Khabib and new welterweight champ Islam Makhachev, including Zaynukov, attacked Misfits MMA champ Danis just prior to the UFC 322 main card commencing.

While UFC President and CEO Dana White later announced that Danis would be banned from UFC events moving forward, in a new interview, Zaynukov confirmed that he had attacked the American fighter and BJJ athlete over past comments.

“He has to answer for everything that is said, and he allowed himself to do such things, posted, threw up all sorts of incomprehensible posts,” Zaynukov told Ushatayka (Russian translation via YouTube, h/t MMA Fighting). “… There was no time to think about anything. I flew in and hit him from the right; he fell, and then it all went on and on from there. … In the end, we were kicked out. It would have been better if we had watched the fight at home in the hotel.”

While Zaynukov says it would have been better to stay at the hotel, however, it doesn’t appear he’s talking about avoiding an embarrassing public display of stupidity and narrowly avoiding arrest. Rather, he added that “I think it was not enough. This was not enough for him. In terms of what he’s done, it’s not much. That type of thing can’t be forgiven. You have to be responsible for that. That’s our way of life. If you said something, you’ve got to be responsible for your words.”

It’s unclear what specific words by Danis are being referred to, though there are no doubt plenty to choose from. The former Bellator fighter and training partner of Conor McGregor is notorious for getting into more beefs online than he has actual fights in the cage.

Magomed Zaynukov is under contract with the UFC after winning his way into the promotion on the Contender Series, but does not have a debut date scheduled. It remains to be seen if the promotion will choose to take action against the fighter, or if the athletic commission in New York will choose to get involved.

In an eerily similar set of circumstances, Khabib Nurmagomedov scaled the octagon to launch himself at Danis following the culmination of UFC 229 in October 2018. During the brawl that ensued, Zubaira Tukhugov, another member of the Nurmagomedov/Makhachev camp, struck Conor McGregor from behind. All involved – Nurmagomedov, McGregor, Tukhugov, and Danis – were later hauled before the Nevada Athletic Commission, with various sanctions handed out.

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Among the UFC hopefuls in DWCS 2025 Week 9, Luke Fernandez, an unbeaten CFFC light heavyweight champion with plenty of raw talent. With a favorable set for Tuesday, the slow path could seem Fernandez blossom into a real star in the UFC’s 205lb weight class.

We’ve got our breakdown and predictions ready for the upcoming instalment of DWCS, so let’s get to it.

Flyweight, Imanol Rodriguez (5-0) vs. Roque Junior (10-2)

Notable Notes

• Rodrigues fought this past season on TUF
• Rodrigues has a 100% finish rate outside of his last TUF fight
• Rodrigues is 0-1 to the decision (TUF fight)
• Junior is 1-2 to the decision
• Both have questionable decision losses
• Both guys have all their finishes inside two rounds
• Both have a submission win a piece

Imanol Rodriguez

In my opinion (and many others), Rodriguez should’ve won his fight on TUF 33 to move to the finals. Instead, the guy he “lost” to ended up winning the show, and that’s why I think he’s getting this spot. He came into the show a bit too soon, we thought, but during the show proved he belongs.

At his core, Rodriguez is a striker. While he occasionally throws opponents to the mat, it’s more about resetting the pace than controlling position. His style is chaotic yet calculated—he thrives in wild exchanges, launching power shots with both hands, attacking the body, and mixing up angles. He’s relentless, with legitimate finishing ability, and when he hurts an opponent, he knows how to close the show. His durability and knockout power allow him to take risks, and he is willing to absorb damage in pursuit of the finish. That can also hurt him at the higher level because a vet could be able to pace themselves better and pull away on Rodriguez late in the fight.

Rodriguez’s game is straightforward—about 60% chaos, 40% technique. He’s the type of fighter you’d bet on because he puts everything on the line. However, there are still unanswered questions. How will he fare in deep waters? How will he handle an elite wrestler? What does his ground game truly look like? This fight may have come sooner than ideal, but regardless of the outcome, it’s a crucial learning experience for Rodriguez.

I had three big questions for Rodriguez going into the TUF house: How will he fare in deep waters? How will he handle an elite wrestler? And what does his ground game truly look like? And I believe he answered those. He can be taken down and put in a bad position and controlled for a bit. Also, he scrambled well and stays composed and defends subs well. Rodriguez’s ground game as a whole looked good. He knew when to explode out of positions, and in round three, he dominated Morales on the mat, which is a great feat for a young fighter.

Roque Junior

Going into the tape on Junior, I wasn’t expecting much given the level of Brazilian talent brought in this season—but I came away impressed. He has a 2020 loss to Hugo Paiva, a solid prospect at the time, so there’s no shame there. His more recent loss to veteran Denis Araujo was a fight I thought Junior should’ve won, which means he could realistically be riding a nine-fight win streak with no official losses in the past five years.

Junior is primarily a striker, and he’s got sharp hands. He would benefit from mixing in more kicks and body work instead of relying so heavily on head-hunting, since his attacks can get a bit repetitive. That said, he applies steady pressure, cuts off the cage well, and throws with real intent. Adding more target variety would make him even more dangerous, but he already does a nice job of throwing in volume and working from different angles.

His wrestling and ground game are harder to pin down, though he seems capable of holding his own everywhere. He shows good awareness in scrambles—hitting switches, defending takedowns, and working constantly to stand up when he’s on his back.

Prediction: This should be a fun clash between two skilled strikers. Junior has the edge in raw power, but that’s about it. Rodriguez is the more layered striker—he works the body better, carries more speed, and has the option to mix in takedowns if needed. Junior’s power and Rodriguez’s tendency to get reckless make him live for a big moment, but I lean the other way. I think Rodriguez’s pace and pressure eventually wear Junior down, leading to a late-round TKO.

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