“When you point one finger at someone, three fingers are pointing back at you.” Namo Fazil likely forgot that old wisdom.

The 29-year-old MMA fighter from Kurdistan, who suffered a knockout loss at Dana White’s Contender Series event on Tuesday night, caused a considerable stir yesterday after he accused Khamzat Chimaev‘s team of attacking him hours before his DWCS bout against Kaik Brito. The combat sports world was still absorbing the news when another development appeared to compel Fazil to justify his actions.

“So Namo Fazil complaining about getting attacked in a hotel,” UFC middleweight Robert Valentin said in a video shared by Full Send MMA. “And that’s the same guy that—okay, actually two stories, because this motherf–ker attacked me too. But that was…that went backward. Phuket, 2023. Probably one of his friends told me that he’s going to slap me in the face.

“So I got up and bear-hugged him and pushed him away. Namo came out of the cafe, jumped on my back, and tried to choke me. I threw him over. He fell. We broke a vase. Then his girlfriend’s mother, who owned the shop, um, told me to f–k off or they’d call the police. All right. Nothing happened. All right.
I went away.”

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According to Valentin, Fazil told the middleweight’s manager that he had choked him out. What particularly disturbed Valentin was Fazil’s alleged involvement in an another altercation that took place in a restaurant. This time, the Swiss fighter claimed Fazil vented his anger at people who had nothing to do with the sport.

The post featured a short clip that showed Fazil and a few others, who appeared to be fighters, shouting at someone. Though the footage does not reveal the full picture or suggest what actually transpired, Valentin said that such instances never disappear from the internet.

Notably, Fazil attracted considerable attention for his exchange with star Arman Tsarukyan a few months ago.

As the MVP MMA 1 event, headlined by Ronda Rousey and Gina Carano, progressed at the Intuit Dome in Inglewood, California, Fazil was seen exchanging heated words with the lightweight contender. Before things could escalate further, Tsarukyan was asked to leave the arena.

Beyond his own encounter with Fazil, Valentin’s comments basically center around the attention the Kurd fighter brought on himself after claiming that a group of around 15 men, “Chechens,” assaulted him in his hotel room before his appearance at the Contender Series.

Though Fazil did not initially reveal the identity of the individuals, the situation later became clear after Baisangur Susurkaev posted a message that suggested he was part of the group that attacked Fazil. Susurkaev is Khamzat Chimaev’s team member and fights in the middleweight division of the UFC.

Regarding the DWCS bout, Fazil was stopped 12 seconds into the third round by an overhand right from the Brazilian Kaik Brito. Later blaming the pre-fight altercation for his subpar performance against Brito that cost him a UFC contract, Fazil said, “I can tell you that I didn’t eat anything that day. Around 3 or 5 o’clock in the morning, I woke up, and I still had to continue cutting weight. Then I went to the fight, and in the fight, I definitely wasn’t as strong as I normally am.”

Khamzat Chimaev calls for calm as Ali Abdelaziz moves to ease tensions

While UFC CEO Dana White’s comments about “some sh-t” happening at the hotel where the fighters stayed appeared to allude to Fazil’s Instagram video, the strongest indication that something happened came from Khamzat Chimaev’s message.

Reportedly, responding to Fazil’s claim, the former UFC middleweight champion wrote, “I just want to say that if something happens between two men, they need to sort things out between themselves without letting media make fitna between nations. We all are brothers. Chechens and Kurds, we are Muslims, and we should stay united. I’m not happy with the things that happened. I respect strong Kurdish people. When someone speaks bad then he should know there always will be consequences.”

Beyond the Chechen icon’s post, a subtle message from Ali Abdelaziz, however, hinted that things are getting resolved between the different parties.

Acknowledging the multiple issues that have emerged over the last few days, Abdelaziz revealed that Fazil acknowledged his mistake and “apologized” to Islam (Dulatov), another UFC fighter of Chechen descent about whom Fazil had made some disparaging comments days prior to his DWCS bout on Tuesday.

With that, fans can hope the controversy that marred this week is finally coming to an end.

More significantly, Fazil can refocus on his career. After the boost he received at Jake Paul’s MMA event, where he defeated Jake Babian with an anaconda choke, the Kurd’s setback at Contender Series has put him back to square one, where he has to weigh his priorities, especially since his chance at earning a UFC contract has slipped away.