Former UFC fighter allegedly targeted by gang crime, MMA event gets canceled over concerns

A former UFC fighter set to appear at the Dark Matter Fighting Championship at Warwick Farm in Sydney, Australia, on April 19 has withdrawn from the event. In fact, the card itself was scrapped due to fears that said fighter was the target of a Sydney-based gang, according to a Daily Mail report.

The fighter in question is Suman Mokhtarian. However, he was not actually scheduled to compete at the event. Instead, he was gearing up to corner several fighters who train at his gym, Australian Top Team, where he serves as a lead coach. Unfortunately for Mokhtarian, this isn't the first time he's been targeted.

Back in February 2024, he was the target of an assassination attempt in Wentworthville, Sydney. Since he has remained a target of gang violence, New South Wales police feared that he could be an indirect cause of casualties at the now-canceled Dark Matter Fighting Championship.

Despite the amount of danger Mokhtarian seems to be under, there seems to be no known reason behind all the incidents he's been subjected to. Regrettably, he isn't the first UFC fighter to be, in some way, connected to gangs or out-of-cage violence.

Former welterweight champion Leon Edwards lost his father to gang violence when he was younger, and he himself had been involved in criminal activity before turning his life around through martial arts. Not long ago, there were even rumors that Conor McGregor had allegedly angered the Kinahan Cartel.

However, the Irishman's supposed mob relationship has never been proven and has since become part of his mythos.

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Suman Mokhtarian had a forgettable run in the UFC

At one point, Suman Mokhtarian seemed like a high-potential prospect. He was undefeated at 7-0 and had the benefit of youth. Unfortunately, when he competed under the UFC banner, he quickly discovered the massive gap between regional Australian competition and the UFC.

Check out Suman Mokhtarian's loss to Sodiq Yusuff:

He took part in 'The Ultimate Fighter 27,' losing via unanimous decision to Ricky Steele. Nevertheless, he made his way into the promotion, where he suffered back-to-back losses to future featherweight mainstay Sodiq Yusuff, who TKO'd him, and a unanimous decision loss to Seung Woo Choi.

Thereafter, he parted ways with the promotion and hasn't fought since 2019, focusing on his career as a coach instead.