A version of this article appears in print on Dec. 13, 2022, Section B, Page 8 of the New York edition with the headline: Several U.F.C. Fighters Linked to Chechen Leader Who Strongly Backs Putin.

Despite the sanctions and criticism leveled at Kadyrov, the Chechen-born fighters he is connected with – including Chimaev and Zubaira Tukhugov – continue to compete in the UFC.

Two MMA fighters quarreled on the sidelines of the UFC's flagship Abu Dhabi event Saturday. Abubakar Nurmagomedov and Khamzat Chimaev seemed to patch things up after intervention. Chechen warlord ...

Ramzan Kadyrov, the leader of Chechnya, is facing U.S. sanctions and accused of brutal abuses. Yet some fighters and others who work with the U.F.C. have kept ties with him.

The French police investigator told Insider that MMA clubs frequented by the Chechen diaspora in Europe. Two other EU police officials also confirmed that these clubs were a concern.

In any case, MMA is a diversion for Chechen fans in that it diverts their attention from his repressive, my-way-or-you-better-start-running regime. It simultaneously celebrates and amplifies alpha ...

Chechen leader Ramzan Kadyrov is one of the closest allies of Russian President Vladimir Putin’s. PHOTO: NYTIMES Follow topic: Mixed martial arts Published Dec 15, 2022, 04:52 PM ...