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It’s definitely fair to say that the UFC has had an excellent 2022. However, despite putting on some great fights and events, the promotion has had its fair share of controversy, too.
Over the months of 2022, the UFC has seen some notably controversial moments, with some crazy things taking place both inside and outside the octagon.
Sometimes, these controversial moments were of the promotion’s own doing. On other occasions, though, there was nothing Dana White and company could do about them.
Here are the five most controversial UFC moments of 2022.
#5. Charles Oliveira’s weigh-in issues at UFC 274
May’s UFC 274 was all set to feature one of the biggest fights of 2022, as Charles Oliveira was pegged to defend his lightweight title against top contender Justin Gaethje in the headline bout.
However, when it came to the weigh-ins for the event, utter chaos quickly ensued. Oliveira failed to hit the 155-pound lightweight limit – managing 155.5 instead – and was ultimately stripped of his title. The incident meant that only Gaethje would be eligible to win gold at the event.
‘Do Bronx’ was no stranger to weight-cutting gaffes, as he’d previously missed weight for multiple featherweight bouts. However, he’d never failed to hit the 155-pound mark before. Astonishingly, it quickly emerged that something else was afoot.
No fewer than 19 of the 28 fighters competing on the card came in at least half a pound heavier than the division's championship limit, with featherweight Norma Dumont also missing weight outright. This clearly wasn’t a problem with Oliveira alone.
In the end, it reportedly transpired that the practice scale used by the fighters prior to their weigh-in had encountered some calibration issues caused by multiple switches from kilograms to pounds. Oliveira had essentially made weight on that scale, only to find the official one was very different.
In the end, ‘Do Bronx’ defeated Gaethje pretty handily, choking him out in the first round, but it couldn’t give him his title back. This was not only a controversial moment, but a frustrating one too. It was an avoidable situation and seemed unfair to the Brazilian.
#4. UFC 279’s last minute changes
The most controversial event of 2022 took place in September, as UFC 279 ended up featuring an entirely different main card to the one that the promotion had initially intended.
The event’s headliner had already caused plenty of controversy, as the promotion matched rising welterweight star Khamzat Chimaev with aging veteran Nate Diaz in what was the final bout on Diaz’s contract. In the eyes of most fans, Dana White and company were determined to send Diaz packing with a nasty defeat.
In the end, though, Chimaev vs. Diaz didn’t happen, and nobody could’ve predicted the reason why.
Chaos initially ensued at the pre-fight press conference for the event, as a backstage melee involving Chimaev, Diaz and Kevin Holland – as well as their respective teammates and coaches – took place. White made the decision to scrap the press conference altogether, a first for the UFC.
Things only got crazier, though, when Chimaev missed weight badly. ‘Borz’ came in at 178.5 pounds, way over the welterweight limit. Nobody was surprised when Diaz decided against facing an opponent so much bigger.
The result? A wild switch-around that saw three fights changed on one day’s notice. Diaz ended up facing Tony Ferguson, Chimaev squared off against Holland, and the odd men out – Li Jingliang and Daniel Rodriguez – agreed to face off, too.
The event did produce some tremendous action. However, with conspiracy theories abounding that the UFC had planned the whole thing in advance, there’s no denying the insanity that it caused.
#3. T.J. Dillashaw fights Aljamain Sterling at UFC 280 with an injured shoulder
According to many fighters, it’s common to go into a big fight carrying an injury. However, it’s been rare in the UFC to see a fighter head into a bout completely hampered to the point where they probably shouldn’t have entered the octagon at all.
That was the case for T.J. Dillashaw, though, when he challenged Aljamain Sterling for the bantamweight title in October.
A former titleholder in his own right, Dillashaw had never actually lost the gold in the octagon. Instead, he'd had it stripped after testing positive for banned substances. His determination to win it back, as well as Sterling’s determination to beat him, made their bout one of 2022’s most highly anticipated.
However, once the two men faced off, Dillashaw had nothing for ‘Funk Master’. Sterling took him down at will and beat the hell out of him, finishing him via TKO in the second round.
Remarkably, though, after the fight, it quickly emerged that Dillashaw had entered the bout carrying a major shoulder injury. According to numerous sources, the injury badly hampered his preparation. More importantly, it clearly gave him issues during the fight, to the point that he was almost defenceless.
The former champion headed directly for surgery after the bout. This left everyone wondering quite why he’d gone through with it in the first place, given he had practically no chance of winning.
Even Dana White seemed baffled, stating that he had “no idea” Dillashaw had been injured. Even if that was the case, though, quite how the UFC’s medical team didn’t identify the issue remains a major question mark.
Overall, Dillashaw essentially forced Sterling into a largely pointless bout, making this one of 2022’s most controversial moments.
#2. Conor McGregor’s crazy weight gain
Conor McGregor did not manage to actually compete in the UFC in 2022, but unsurprisingly, his name was never far from the news. More to the point, ‘The Notorious’ found himself embroiled in controversy in the latter stages of the year.
Stuck on the shelf after suffering a major leg injury in his 2021 loss to Dustin Poirier, McGregor naturally remained active on his social media accounts. The Irishman was often seen posting various updates showing him slowly getting back into training.
However, when he began to post photos showing that he’d gained a huge amount of muscle, even jokingly suggesting he could fight at heavyweight, more than a few eyebrows were raised.
Things got even stranger when it then emerged that McGregor had quietly withdrawn from USADA’s testing pool. This was a practice usually reserved only for fighters who had announced their retirement.
When challenged on this, Dana White simply stated that the Irishman would have to complete six months of testing before a return.
After being called out by a number of different fighters, though, ‘The Notorious’ hit out on social media. While he did not confirm he’d used PED’s, he did admit that “everything was disclosed” to USADA and the UFC with regards to his leg injury healing.
Whether ‘The Notorious’ has used any banned substances to help to rehabilitate his injury is still a mystery. However, it’s definitely safe to say that this contentious issue isn’t likely to go away any time soon.
#1. James Krause banned from the UFC after a betting scandal
Over the years, the UFC and gambling have always gone hand-in-hand. Experts have appeared on the promotion’s events and fighters’ odds of winning have been shown in pre-fight graphics. For the most part, this was never an issue.
However, 2022 saw a highly controversial issue erupt when featherweights Darrick Minner and Shayilan Nuerdanbieke did battle in November.
The fight itself caused immediate controversial. Minner appeared to injure his knee in the early part of the bout, allowing Nuerdanbieke to take over and eventually stop him after a series of elbow strikes.
However, hours before the contest, it emerged that there had been some suspicious betting activity around the fight, specifically in regards to the American losing via first-round stoppage. Following the start of an investigation, Minner was subsequently released from his contract with the promotion.
The UFC then released a statement on the matter, and at the crux of it was former lightweight competitor James Krause. Krause had retired from action in 2020 to focus on his coaching career, with Minner one of his students.
Essentially, the former fighter – who also ran a Discord server and a YouTube show centered on gambling – was alleged to have leaked information about a knee injury suffered by Minner prior to the fateful bout. This resulted in bets on Nuerdanbieke pouring in.
With the Nevada State Athletic Commission suspending Krause’s coaching licence, the UFC’s statement went as far as advising any fighters working with him to immediately cut ties – or risk being released from their contracts like Minner.
The decision essentially ended the matter, but it didn’t really pour cold water on the controversy. Some media outlets even blamed the promotion for not having a more stringent policy on gambling amongst its athletes.
Whether this is the last betting scandal to hit the promotion remains to be seen, but it’s definitely fair to call it the most problematic incident of 2022.
