Ex-UFC Fighter Reveals What UFC Told Him After ‘Most Boring’ Win

Former UFC light heavyweight fighter Zac Pauga shared some insider information regarding the treatment of fighters after lightweight star Mike Davis voiced concerns about double standards following UFC Abu Dhabi on July 25.

‘Beast Boy’ Davis was dominated by Nurullo Aliev for most of 15 minutes, resulting in a unanimous decision loss. Frustrated, he bluntly called his opponent “gay” when the fight was finished. Later, Davis took to X to criticize both Aliev and the UFC.

He claimed that the UFC pressured him to fight more aggressively after a few unremarkable wins—an apparent double standard, especially since fighters like Aliev are now 4-0 in the promotion without finishes. Davis later apologized for the comments, but this didn’t stop Pauga from chiming in.

Zac Pauga Reveals UFC Told Him To “Actually Fight” After Jordan Wright Win

Pauga (7-4) went 1-3 in the UFC, with some unremarkable wins of his own. In a post on X, he revealed the UFC asked him to “actually fight,” following a very boring victory.

“I got the same talk [about needing to be more exciting] after beating Jordan Wright in the most boring co-main [event] in UFC history,” Pauga wrote. “What they told me verbatim was ‘we want to see you actually fight.’ There is a double standard, but once you’re honest with that double standard and where you stand in it your life gets so much easier.”

Pauga Says UFC Has Different Expectations for Different Fighters

“As far as TKO is concerned there’s two tiers of fighters: makes money and doesn’t make money,” Pauga continued. “If you make money the only goal is to win, and sometimes you don’t even have to win (Diaz style). Eastern European, Russian, and Muslim fans support their fighters, they buy fight kits, they buy tickets and when pay-per-views were a thing they bought pay-per-views.”

“It’s Not Fair but It’s How It Is”

“When I was in Azerbaijan every single fan in the crowd was decked out head to toe in UFC fight kits. I love my Samoan people but they aren’t spending $100+ on a T-shirt. You need to be real with yourself where you fall in this criteria, if you don’t make the company money just by existing then you need to fight a certain way.

“It’s not fair but it’s how it is, reacting to how it is will always serve you better than complaining about how it should be.”

Pauga Explained: “I Would Have Cut Me Too”

‘The High Chief’ clarified he wasn’t annoyed with the UFC in a follow-up message: “I’m not saying I was treated poorly or didn’t get a fair shake, I would have cut me too if I was the UFC, that’s not the point I’m making here.”

GettyAnkalaev scored a round five finish over Guskov

‘Boring’ Is Part of the Reason Magomed Ankalaev Took so Long to Win a UFC Title

Ankalaev secured the light heavyweight title after a 14-fight winning streak.

However, he arguably missed out on title fight opportunities against Alex Pereira, with contenders like Jamahal Hill, Jiri Prochazka, and Khalil Rountree Jr. gaining their shots, partly due to his underwhelming performances against Jan Blachowicz and Johnny Walker in consecutive fights.

Then-champion Pereira admitted to Kevin Iole in 2025 that it wasn’t his fault: “Ankalaev has such a boring style of fighting that nobody wants to watch,” He said. “That the guys don’t want to put him in.” Lending credence to the idea of UFC suppressing ‘boring fighters.’

With Ankalaev’s sleepy victory over Guskov, who stepped in on short notice, it seems unlikely he’ll get a title shot anytime soon. After all, this isn’t the Ultimate Meritocracy; it’s the UFC.

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