Michael Johnson’s team issued their first comments Tuesday following the veteran’s last-minute fight cancellation at UFC 324 due to betting irregularities.
Johnson’s lightweight bout with Alexander Hernandez was scrapped in the hours before Saturday’s UFC 324 prelims amid suspicious betting movement toward a Johnson win. Johnson’s manager, Dave Martin, told Uncrowned’s Ariel Helwani in a statement Tuesday that the team is “obviously disappointed by the cancelation” but “understand and respect the UFC’s responsibility to protect the integrity of the sport.” Martin said Johnson is now focused on getting a fight rebooked “as soon as possible.”
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Martin’s full statement:
“We were obviously disappointed by the cancelation, as Michael had an outstanding training camp and was fully prepared to compete. That said, we understand and respect the UFC’s responsibility to protect the integrity of the sport. In today’s environment, particularly with the growth of regulated sports betting and heightened scrutiny across professional sports, these matters have to be taken seriously. We appreciate the open communication from the UFC throughout the process and our focus now is working with them to have Michael rebooked as soon as possible.
UFC CEO Dana White confirmed late Saturday night that betting irregularities were the reason behind the Johnson vs. Hernandez cancellation.
“We got called from the gaming integrity service and I said, ‘I’m not doing this s*** again,'” White said, “So we pulled the fight.”
This is far from the first gambling controversy to hit the UFC. Featherweight prospect Isaac Dulgarian remains under investigation by the FBI and Nevada Athletic Commission after being cut from the promotion in November following a suspicious loss to Yadier del Valle. Prior to that, featherweight Darrick Minner was similarly cut in 2022 following another suspicious first-round loss to Shayilan Nuerdanbieke that resulted in lengthy NAC suspensions for both Minner and his coach, James Krause. In 2017, South Korean lightweight Tae Hyun Bang was also sentenced to 10 months in prison alongside three others involved in a scheme to throw a 2015 fight against Leo Kuntz at a UFC event held in South Korea.
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Johnson (24-19) is one of the longest-tenured current active fighters in the promotion, having accumulated a 16-15 UFC record over the course of 16 years and 31 fights. At age 39, he rode a three-fight win streak into UFC 324, punctuated by a bonus-winning knockout of Ottman Azaitar and an upset of top prospect Daniel Zellhuber this past July.
