Exclusive: Road to UFC star Sumit Kumar rubbishes fight-fixing allegations, promises to terminate contract if found guilty

After Anshul Jubli won the Road to UFC lightweight tournament, Sumit Kumar is the next prospect out of India to compete in the series.

However, allegations of fixing fights along with those of him fighting opponents with spotty records have arisen. What's more, there are conflicting reports about his record across various top MMA publications.

Sumit Kumar responded to the allegations in an exclusive interview with Sportskeeda. Here's what the up-and-coming Indian MMA prospect said:

"I have had a total of eight fights and I have videos of them all. I have won all of those fights. If any fighter tells me that I have presented him a fixed fight, if any fighter says that Sumit is involved in fixing, then trust me when I tell you that I won’t fight in the Road to UFC."

Sumit Kumar's response to the allegations:

Kumar reiterated that, if proven guilty, he will withdraw from the Road to UFC Season 2:

"If any promoter tells me that I fight opponents after fixing the bout, then I won’t fight in the Road to UFC. If I have cheated with any fighter or forced him to compete with me then I won’t fight in the Road to UFC, I will cancel my contract. If I have cheated in any way with any Indian fighter in any Indian promotion, I’m telling the truth I will not fight in the Road to UFC."

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"Khabib also fought 0-0 opponents" - Sumit Kumar justifies fighting 0-0 opponents by namedropping the lightweight GOAT

Three fights in Sumit Kumar's MMA career have been brought into question and are the subject of allegations against him. The first fight was his debut fight where he faced an opponent who allegedly faked his identity and had practically no experience fighting. Sumit Kumar took lightweight GOAT Khabib Nurmagomedov's example to justify fighting inexperienced opponents:

"It's not like my record was 10-0 and I fought a 0-0 person. It was my first fight, and I don't know if his name was Mukul Anand or Prakash Raut, whoever the promoter asked me to fight, I fought. I never told any fighter to take money and lose a fight. Our job [as fighters] is to fight [whoever they put in front of us]. Look at Khabib, his first eight fights were against 0-0 opponents. Whoever fights in MMA, starts from 0-0 record right?"

Another fight brought into question was Sumit Kumar's fight against Vijay Barolia in 2020. The allegations against Kumar were that this fight was fixed. Here's what Kumar said about the contest:

"Vijay Barolia is one of India's best kickboxers, hailing from Uttarakhand. When I fought him, my record must have been 1-0 or 2-0, I'm not sure. I submitted him within 12 minutes of our fight. If whoever is accusing me of doing a fake fight or fixing this fight, I tell them that I have fought whoever has been put in front of me, whether it's Vijay Barolia or Prakash Raut."

The third questionable fight that Kumar was part of was his bout against Fateh Amin, whom he finished in the first round via KO in 2021. This fight was flagged as the promotion that the bout took place and his opponent didn't seem legitimate.

Sumit Kumar blamed the promotion Right 2 Fight for his fight with Fateh Amin being flagged. He claimed that the promotion must not have been updated in time for the publications to record his win.

Sumit Kumar vs. Fateh Amin at Right 2 Fight:

The second edition of the Road to UFC will commence on May 27 with the show's finale expected to take place sometime in the fourth quarter of 2023. The first edition saw Indian MMA fighter Anshul Jubli winning the lightweight category.