NAC Oversteps Boundaries with UFC 329 Fines

It's been more than a month since T-Mobile Arena played host to UFC 329. The July 11 card featured ups and downs and was marred by Conor McGregor having his return to competition cut short due to injury in the first round of the main attraction.

Three fighters who were booked to appear on UFC 329 that July Saturday night won their respective contests, but their wallets were lightened due to their post-fight celebrations. UFC 329, an event which took place inside T-Mobile Arena in Enterprise, NV, was sanctioned by the state's athletic commission.

The Nevada Atletic Commission initially elected to withhold the purses of Gable Steveson, Paddy Pimblett, and Max Holloway in the aftermath of the show. Earlier Wednesday, fines were levied against the three men for leaving the cage in celebration after they won their respective fights. 

Steveson, Pimblett, Holloway Down $2,500 Apiece After UFC 329

In Wednesday morning's NSAC disciplinary meeting, the commission took the action of docking Steveson, Pimblett, and Holloway $2,500 (USD) each as a result of their respective post-fight celebrations in Enterprise last month. NAC's rationale behind the move to fine the three winners stems back to what happened in October of 2018 at UFC 229.

That night, immediately following the main event of the evening, an infamous brawl took place when Khabib Nurmagomedov, who had just defended his UFC Lightweight Championship against Conor McGregor, jumped over the cage fence to attack Dillon Danis, McGregor's teammate. Arena security removed both fighters from the Octagon and UFC CEO Dana White mentioned after the show that three of Khabib Nurmagomedov's teammates were apprehended by police. 

"That one incident caused the commission to take a very firm stance with that," NAC Chairman Dallas Haun said Wednesday. "We're very clear with the fighters, again, before they enter the cage, 'Do not leave the cage for any reason.' These three items, they're jumping the cage to shake Dana's hand. We appreciate the difference."

Celebrations and Brawls Shouldn't be Factored into Disciplinary Decision-Making

What happened nearly eight years ago during UFC 229 and what happened during UFC 329 are two very different extremes. A brawl of that magnitude was unacceptable and always will be. 

Shaking someone's hand after a win as part of a celebration is always welcome and should be encouraged. When it comes to Gable Steveson, Paddy Pimblett and Max Holloway at UFC 329, their actions were born out of common courtesy and politeness toward the head of the promotion. The fact that NAC issued fines after Steveson, Pimblett and Holloway shook hands with Dana White is confusing. 

These celebratory actions were never going to get anywhere close to excessive that night. If enough people decided to jump over the cage fence and shake Dana White's hand after winning a fight in Las Vegas on a given Saturday night, they'd all be losing money eventually. 

NAC's Language on Celebrations Needs to be Redefined in Wake of Fines

If thought about, the Nevada Athletic Commission should seriously consider looking into revising the protocol on post-fight celebrations for winners. It's sort of like the situation the National Football League faced years ago when cracking down on excessive celebrations after touchdowns.

NFL rules dictated that referees were to assess a 15-yard penalty for unsportsmanlike conduct to the offending player if the celebration was found to be excessive. In 2017, the league softened its stance on excessive celebrations, so long as they were not inappropriate.

NAC can do the same in this case. As long as a fighter uses his or her post-fight celebration to shake Dana White's hand or doesn't pose a credible threat to anyone in or around the cage, it should be welcome. The minute a celebration gets out of control, however, disciplinary actions should be discussed.