Dillon Danis has long wanted to fight for UFC. Well, congratulations to him, because he finally got one at UFC 322 last Saturday night at Madison Square Garden in New York. Unfortunately, it wasn’t in the way he ever imagined. Instead of stepping into the Octagon, the mixed martial artist ended up in a heated brawl with members of two-division champion Islam Makhachev’s team, forcing security to eject him from the arena.

During the post-fight presser, UFC CEO Dana White explained that he had been told Danis was sitting in someone else’s seat, but he chose not to remove him. “It never even crossed my mind… that the entire Muslim Brotherhood was here,” White said. “And as soon as it broke out, I go ‘f—, I know exactly what that is.'” White banned Danis from attending future UFC events. Meanwhile, Makhachev’s teammate Magomed Zaynukov, who was involved in the brawl, has explained why he hit Danis, and why he feels it still wasn’t enough.

Words have consequences, says Magomed Zaynukov

Speaking to Red Corner MMA, ‘Chanco’ addressed the blood on his knuckles following the chaotic brawl. “There is a scratch here. Must be his tooth… I hit it with this too, and it got a bump,” he said. Asked whether he struck anyone other than Dillon Danis, Makhachev’s teammate made it clear that Danis was the sole target for him and the rest of the team. He also insisted that the beating wasn’t enough considering the things Danis has said.

“I’m sorry for interrupting, but it’s not enough for him. For his actions, it’s not enough,” Zaynukov continued. “Such things are not forgiven, you have to answer for every word. We have such stereotypes that you said, you have to answer for your words. But it’s for them, you see. I don’t know how they live here. What they want to say can hurt the family, and for them, it’s nothing. But for us, every word is sacred, and you have to answer for it.”

The incident immediately brought back memories of the infamous 2018 post-fight melee involving Conor McGregor and Khabib Nurmagomedov’s team. With that history in mind, it’s no surprise that tensions between both camps still run deep. Nurmagomedov himself leaped out of the cage to confront Danis, McGregor’s teammate at the time. 

Despite the disruption caused on Saturday, the UFC has not pressed charges against Danis. However, any slim chance he once had of joining the UFC roster has since evaporated after this latest outburst. While the UFC has just decided to ban Danis from their events, Islam Makhachev wants far more serious punishment for Danis.

Islam Makhachev wants Dillon Danis to be banned from the country

Despite what happened cage-side on Saturday night, it didn’t affect Makhachev’s game. He stepped into the Octagon and dominated Jack Della Maddalena to win the welterweight strap on Saturday night. The two-division champion later addressed the melee that took place at Madison Square Garden involving his team and Danis, asking Danis to be banned from the country altogether. 

“When you talk about someone like [the] last five years…when you meet them, you have to answer [for] what you said, you know? Today, I don’t think he answered,” Makhachev told the media during the post-fight press conference. “He’s still saying a lot of bad things about our team. Today, he was coming and somebody just met him. He talked about these guys bad, and today they meet him.”

“He has to [be] banned from this country also,” Makhachev said when asked about Dana White’s move to ban Danis. 

It appears Islam Makhachev and his team aren’t regretting the incident with Dillon Danis. Unfortunately for Danis, this will be the last scene he causes at a UFC event. Do you think the actions of Makhachev’s team were justified?