Dana White has put a wild rumor to bed following the events of UFC 326.
On Saturday, Michael Johnson shared the Octagon with Drew Dober. Johnson suffered a brutal second-round knockout loss. Prior to the bout, a post from an X account gained some traction. The tweet made a serious accusation that claimed Johnson’s nephew was being held hostage.
“Michael Johnson has been paid to lose by R2 TKO today the gang called Gangster Disciples coming out of St Louis, Missouri are holding his nephew hostage,” the account claimed.
Since Johnson ultimately did lose in the second round, the conspiracy theorists began sharing their takes on social media. This is despite the fact that Johnson was knocked out cold.
During the UFC 326 post-fight press conference, White shut down the absurd rumor (via MMAMania).
“It was zero [legitimacy]. Zero. Zero,” White said. “And a weird post that somebody posted that a kid was kidnapped and some crazy s–t. All bull–t.”
One reason why some bought into the rumor is the fact that Johnson’s planned UFC 324 fight against Alexander Hernandez was cancelled after White was informed of suspicious gambling activity on the fight. Rather than take a chance, the top MMA promotion decided against going through with the bout.
As of late, betting scandals have rocked the world of MMA. More recently, Isaac Dulgarian was released from UFC following suspicious betting activity after his last fight. Late money on Dulgarian’s opponent, Yadier del Valle, raised suspicions.
Dulgarian was submitted in the opening frame and even UFC analysts were skeptical of how things played out. Dulgarian is currently under suspension handed out by the Nevada State Athletic Commission.
Did you buy into the Michael Johnson rumor when you first saw it? Do you believe Dana White when he claims the rumor isn’t true? Sound off in the comments below.