ABU DHABI: Mixed martial arts fighter Usman Nurmagomedov reportedly received a six-month prison sentence following Wednesday’s hotel brawl involving former Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) bantamweight champion Merab Dvalishvili.
MMA Fighting linked Nurmagomedov to the sentences on Friday, citing The National’s coverage of an Abu Dhabi Judicial Department announcement. However, its account described the defendants as unnamed.
According to that coverage, the Abu Dhabi Criminal Court convicted 10 people and imposed different penalties according to their involvement.
Six defendants received six-month prison terms, fines of 300,000 UAE dirhams each and deportation orders for public-security offences arising from the confrontation.
Two others received the same penalties for filming and publishing footage in violation of privacy laws. The remaining two defendants received 50,000 dirhams in fines each, without prison terms. Real American Freestyle (RAF) announced Dvalishvili’s release on Friday, according to the sentencing coverage.
Abu Dhabi Police had confirmed Thursday that officers arrested eight people over the fight and two others for recording it. Police attributed the confrontation to prior disputes and referred the detainees to prosecutors.
Wednesday’s incident occurred while Dvalishvili was giving an interview at a Yas Island hotel. He subsequently posted footage showing a facial injury and accused Nurmagomedov and associates of attacking him and his friend, Saba Lazishvili.
Nurmagomedov’s manager, Ali Abdelaziz, apologised in an interview with MMA Junkie on Thursday.
“I’m truly sorry,” Abdelaziz said.
He condemned the confrontation, said there was no excuse and urged those involved to learn from it.
Read More: Merab Dvalishvili Accuses Nurmagomedov of Abu Dhabi Attack
Dvalishvili and Nurmagomedov’s older brother, Umar, have a competitive history. Dvalishvili defeated Umar at UFC 311 in January 2025, handing him his first professional loss.
Usman was in Abu Dhabi to support his brother before RAF’s Saturday event. Organisers said on Thursday that Usman would not attend the competition.
(With additional input from Al-Ittihad.)
