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A pair of UFC fighters found themselves as targets of a failed robbery attempt while heading to Florida for UFC 314.
Set to take place at Miami’s Kaseya Center, the main event of UFC 314 will see Alexander Volkanovski and Diego Lopes square off for the vacant featherweight belt after Ilia Topuria announced that he was leaving the division for a full-time move up to lightweight.
UFC 314 also features a co-main event between Michael Chandler and Paddy Pimblett and plenty of other intriguing bouts, but ahead of the event one of the card’s prelim fighters almost had his travel plans derailed by a robbery attempt.
Marcio Tulio & Norma Dumont Detail Failed Robbery
According to a video posted by top-ranked UFC women’s bantamweight Norma Dumont, she and UFC 314 fighter Marcio Tulio were targeted by a robber that smashed their car window and tried to take Tulio’s phone (h/t MMAWeekly).
“We’re heading to Saturday’s fight in Miami with 'Matuto',” Dumon said in Portuguese. “It was chill…They tried to rob him, grab his phone, smashed the window. But look, did they get it?”
Dumont is coming off a dominant win at UFC 306 against Irene Aldana that came after “The Immortal” found out her husband had cheated on her, and after the failed robbery attempt it’s now Tulio that apparently has some added motivation heading into his fight this weekend at UFC 314.
“Nope, they didn’t get it, see,” Tulio said. “Their plan failed…Now, the urge to fight someone is even stronger…Someone’s going to pay for this.”
“Matuto” stopped Mattheiu Duclos in his second fight on Dana White’s Contender Series last year to earn a UFC contract, and after making short work of Ihor Potieria in his promotional debut in January the 30-year-old is now scheduled to meet The Ultimate Fighter 29 winner Treasean Gore on the UFC 314 prelims.
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