(Video) Dillon Danis gets ejected from UFC 323 after Makhachev teammate John Pork starts altercation

Chaos erupted at Madison Square Garden on Saturday night when a melee broke out cageside during UFC 322, resulting in the removal of controversial influencer Dillon Danis from the venue.

The dramatic incident unfolded between scheduled bouts when tensions between Danis and members of Islam Makhachev’s training camp reached a boiling point. Video footage circulating on social media captured the startling confrontation as multiple individuals from Makhachev’s team, including UFC competitor Magomed Zaynukov, engaged with Danis in a heated exchange.

In one particularly disturbing clip, Zaynukov can be seen delivering significant strikes to Danis’ head while the latter appeared to be attempting to de-escalate a separate confrontation occurring nearby. The situation quickly spiraled out of control as security personnel and law enforcement struggled to restore order inside the iconic venue.

The chaotic scenes persisted for approximately five minutes before authorities were able to separate the parties involved. Both Danis and several members of Makhachev’s camp were ultimately escorted from the octagon area and taken to the backstage section of Madison Square Garden.

During the evening’s post-event press conference, UFC CEO Dana White addressed the incident directly, announcing decisive action regarding Danis’ future attendance at promotional events.

While confirming that the organization would not be pursuing criminal charges against Danis, White delivered an unambiguous message: ‘You will never see Dillon Danis at another UFC fight’.

White also disclosed that prior to the main altercation, Danis had been creating disruptions by repeatedly occupying cageside seats that had been reserved for other competitors.

The confrontation appears rooted in a longstanding rivalry between Danis and Makhachev’s team, stemming from the infamous post-fight incident following Khabib Nurmagomedov’s victory over Conor McGregor. As a prominent member of McGregor’s corner at that time, Danis was prominently featured in viral footage of the melee that erupted after Khabib’s team confronted the Irish fighter.

Just last month, Danis provided detailed recollections of that 2018 incident during an appearance on the MightyCast podcast, claiming Makhachev ‘punched me in the head seven times’ during the chaos.

‘He jumped in such a weird way where he jumped with his feet and hands,’ Danis recounted. ‘It was like the weirdest thing. So I didn’t know what to block, he had his feet in the air and his hands up.’

Danis continued describing the encounter: ‘I was like, am I getting drop-kicked right now? I should have just run forward and tackled him. That would have been the best thing, but in the moment I didn’t know what he was going to hit me with. So he landed and we got into that brawl.’

He further elaborated on the intensity of that previous confrontation, stating: ‘Then f***ing security is holding me and Islam punched me in the back of the head, but during the whole fight it was kind of building up in the corner. They were saying s*** to me and Islam was saying s*** to me.’

The Saturday night incident marks another troubling chapter in what has become an increasingly volatile relationship between the camps, raising serious questions about security protocols at high-profile UFC events and the conduct expected of attendees at such gatherings.