Ali Abdelaziz, a prominent manager who has the likes of Islam Makhachev in his stable, was apparently removed from the Meta Apex last Saturday.
It was a victorious night in Las Vegas for Manel Kape, who advanced his title ambitions in the UFC flyweight division by getting the better of Kyoji Horiguchi.
‘Starboy’ has now won his last four fights inside the Octagon and eight of his last nine. Kape’s loss to Muhammad Mokaev is his only setback since 2021.
But while that should have sparked celebrations, there was instead allegedly a heated disagreement between two members of his team.
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Islam Makhachev’s manager, Ali Abdelaziz, accused of attacking Eric Nicksick at UFC Vegas 119
Kape trains at the Xtreme Couture gym in Las Vegas under the tutelage of popular coach Eric Nicksick. He is managed by Abdelaziz, the Dominance MMA Management CEO.
Nicksick has appeared in the corner for a number of championship-level fighters, including reigning UFC middleweight king Sean Strickland and heavyweight legend Francis Ngannou. He is seen as one of the sport’s great minds, and it’s difficult to find anyone who has a bad word to say about him.
But by the sound of things, Abdelaziz has an issue with the renowned trainer.
Following this past weekend’s event, rumors began to spread on social media about an altercation between Abdelaziz and Nicksick backstage at the Meta Apex.
After that news was shared by TheStarched and Blake Avignon on X, MMA Mania has corroborated the claim, reporting that Abdelaziz was removed from the venue after “taking a swing” at the Xtreme Couture head coach.
Details about what started the heated confrontation have yet to emerge.
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Photo by Mike Roach/Zuffa LLC
If the accusation is true, it wouldn’t be the first time Abdelaziz has gone beyond the boundaries of a manager with physical altercations.
Abdelaziz slapped Dillon Danis at UFC 268 in 2021 and was subsequently kicked out of Madison Square Garden as a result.
He’s also been involved in more than one incident at PFL events, including one where he punched fellow manager Abe Kawa in 2019.
The alleged punch last Saturday is what apparently sparked a heated exchange on social media between Xtreme Couture standouts Kape and…
2026-06-27 13:00:00
