Professional Envy? Managers for Khabib and Jon Jones Involved in ‘Physical Altercation,’ Report Says

In the world of mixed martial arts (MMA), it is usually the fighters who slam each other repeatedly for the enjoyment of spectators and the media. This time, however, it was the managers of the two UFC champions who got in a tussle, according to a report by MMA Weekly.

According to the report, Ali Abdelaziz, who represents a number of fighters including lightweight champion Khabib Nurmagomedov, slapped Abe Kawa, a vice president of First Round Management, who represents light heavyweight champion Jon Jones.

The incident reportedly happened during the Professional Fighting League tournament which took place on Friday, 11 October.

According to Kawa, Abdelaziz approached him during the event at the Mandalay Bay casino and slapped him on the right side of his face. Kawa’s fighter Anthony Pettis commented on the incident, saying Khabib’s manager slapped him “like a b****” and “was gone in 15 seconds.”

The altercation was later confirmed by Las Vegas Metro Police, who said, without naming names, that a “subject” was detained and issued a citation. 

“No enforcement action was taken regarding the second subject, who was also cooperative. There were no significant injuries,” the police said in a statement, according to MMA Weekly.

Ali Abdelaziz is the CEO of Dominance MMA, which represents a large number of fighters, including Henry Cejudo, the reigning champion of both bantamweight and flyweight (2nd and 3rd lightest) classes.

Abe Kawa’s First Round Management represents the likes of Jon Jones – number one in UFC’s pound-for-pound rankings, as well as Anthony Pettis, Tyron Woodley, and Jorge Masvidal.