The UFC announced Monday that it will review the situation after a U.S.-based betting integrity firm decided to investigate suspicious betting activity before Shayilan Nuerdanbieke’s abrupt win over Darrick Minner at UFC Fight Night 214.
Nuerdanbieke stopped Minner by first-round TKO this past Saturday after Minner threw a left kick and appeared to injure his leg. It was Nuerdanbieke’s first finish in four UFC fights.
As surprising as the outcome may have been, it was the betting lines, which drastically changed just hours before the featherweight bout took place, that raised eyebrows. As rumors emerged that Minner was injured, Nuerdanbieke went from a -220 to -420 favorite. A lot of money came in on Nuerdanbieke winning by first-round TKO, which had sportsbooks suspicious of the unusual line change for such a low-level fight.
In a statement to ESPN, the UFC said it will review the matter with its own betting integrity firm.
“Like many professional sports organizations, UFC works with an independent betting integrity service to monitor wagering activity on our events,” the UFC’s statement read. “Our betting integrity partner, Don Best Sports, a leading global supplier of real-time betting data for North American sporting events, will conduct a thorough review of the facts and report its findings. At this time, we have no reason to believe either of the athletes involved in the bout, or anyone associated with their teams, behaved in an unethical or irresponsible manner.”
The controversy comes on the heels of the UFC announcing last month that fighters and their teams no longer can wager on bouts. The new rule is part of the UFC’s athlete code of conduct.
