Bang received a prison sentence (Photo: Reproduction/Youtube/UFC)
South Korean Tae Hyun Bang was sentenced to 10 months in prison for receiving bribes to deliver a UFC fight in 2015. The South Korean was supposed to lose to Leo Kuntz UFC Seoul, held in 2015 in South Korea. He received US$ 92 thousand or R$298 thousand to lose to the North American at the Ultimate event in Korea. Interestingly, he ended up winning that fight via a split decision from the judges. The information is from the South Korean newspaper “Korea Herald”.
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Bang allegedly received the money from three “brokers”, who also received sentences for their participation in the transaction. Before the fight, both the South Korean and his opponent received warnings from the UFC after the betting lines changed drastically in Kuntz's favor. Ultimate officials warned that the two would be investigated if they did not fight willingly, which would have made Bang give up the idea of collaborating with the “brokers”. Even so, the fighter would have bet on his own opponent, according to the North American website MMA Junkie, in a report made in April this year, at the beginning of the investigations.
“The crime of fixing fights damages the credibility of the sport and, in international fights, it also has a bad effect on the credibility of the country. Bang had an obligation to play the game fairly, but he ignored it and played an important role in the scheme. But we take into account that Bang won the fight and returned the money afterwards”, says part of the sentence, according to the “Korea Herald”.
After the victory over Kuntz, Tae Hyun Bang fought once again for the UFC, losing to German Nick Hein in 2016. After the setback, the South Korean was fired and has not fought professionally since. In turn, Kuntz left Ultimate after UFC Seoul and fought twice in other promotions, with one win and one loss.
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