Dillon Danis not happy about NSAC suspension, but finds silver lining

Shortly after Khabib Nurmagomedov defeated Conor McGregor in the UFC 229 main event back in October, he scaled the side of the Octagon and attacked McGregor’s long-time training partner Dillon Danis. In the subsequent moments, McGregor got into a brief skirmish with Nurmagomedov training partners Zubaira Tukhugov and Abubakar Nurmagomedov inside the cage.

In late January, the Nurmagomedovs, McGregor, and Tukhugov all received suspensions and fines of various levels at a Nevada State Athletic Commission (NSAC) meeting.

Dillon Danis, however, was not disciplined at that time.

At a Monday afternoon NSAC hearing, Danis finally faced the music for his role in this brawl.  The BJJ specialist was hit with a $7,500 fine and seven-month suspension, retroactive to October 6, which means he can fight again as soon as May 6.

Given that Dillon Danis was attacked by Nurmagomedov, and arguably only returned fire in self-defense, some members of the MMA community have argued he shouldn’t have been disciplined at all. The grappler himself seems to share this opinion — although he’s found a silver lining. He’s happy he got the opportunity to hit one of his arch rivals in Nurmagomedov.

Danis shared his take on his punishment on Instagram.

“7 months and 7500$ for defending myself it is what it is fuck it at least i got that bitch with that two piece and a biscuit then he cowered away.” – Dillon Danis on Instagram.

Danis last fought in early 2018, when he made a successful MMA debut under the Bellator banner, defeating Kyle Walker by first-round submission. The polarizing McGregor training partner claims he was briefly in discussions to return at Bellator 214 in January, but this plan was thwarted by his lingering situation with the NSAC.

What do you think of the punishment he was handed by the NSAC?

This article first appeared on BJPENN.COM on 2/25/2019.