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UFC fighter released amid suspicious betting activity on his fight

Originally posted on Larry Brown Sports
By Renzo Pocholo Salao | Last updated Nov 3, 2025 11:20 PM ET

The UFC has released fighter Isaac Dulgarian amid a sudden surge of bets on his recent bout against Yadier del Valle.

Dulgarian was cut on Sunday, according to Uncrowned reporter Ariel Helwani. While the official reason was due to his loss to del Valle on Saturday, Helwani noted that the fight is being investigated after “a ton of money” was placed on Dulgarian to lose in the first round

Isaac Dulgarian, who was submitted last night by Yadier del Valle, has been released by the UFC, sources say. He was released today.

The official reason was attributed to last night’s loss, however, the bout has been the center of controversy after a ton of money started to come…
— Ariel Helwani (@arielhelwani) November 3, 2025

Dulgarian, a heavy favorite entering the fight, did lose in the first round via submission. The 29-year-old fighter succumbed to a rear-naked choke and appeared to give minimal effort to get out of del Valle’s control.

Yadier del Valle vs Isaac Dulgarian
Featherweight bout
Full fight recap #UFCVegas110

This is the full fight recap of the fight that was allegedly fixed. What do you think? I see a case pic.twitter.com/T2oLsog8M7
— Albert (@AlbertMMA_) November 2, 2025

On Monday, Helwani interviewed sports betting analyst Ben Fawkes, who revealed that numerous bets came from new accounts and dormant accounts owned by “sharp” bettors with a winning track record. The unusual betting activity reportedly triggered internal alerts, prompting several sportsbooks to close betting on the fight early and even cancel some bets that had already been placed.

Dulgarian was a -270 betting favorite on at least one sportsbook. His figure dropped rapidly to -162 just before the fight. Per Helwani, the Nevada State Athletic Commission is withholding Dulgarian’s entire fight purse as investigations continue.

The allegations against Dulgarian come just weeks after the FBI arrested several NBA players based on the bureau’s findings in an illegal gambling investigation.

This article first appeared on Larry Brown Sports and was syndicated with permission.

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