UFC's Valentin accuses DWCS reject Fazil of choking him in Thailand bar brawl

UFC middleweight Robert Valentin has publicly accused Namo Fazil of attacking him in Phuket, Thailand in 2023, alleging the failed Contender Series hopeful jumped on his back and attempted a choke during a confrontation at a café. The accusation comes as Fazil faces mounting scrutiny following his knockout loss to Kaik Brito on Dana White’s Contender Series.

According to Valentin, the incident began when one of Fazil’s friends threatened to slap him. Valentin says he stood up, bear-hugged the individual and pushed him away. Fazil then allegedly emerged from the café, leapt onto Valentin’s back and tried to choke him out. Valentin claims he threw Fazil off, causing a vase to break. The café was owned by Fazil’s then-girlfriend’s mother, who threatened to call the police, at which point Valentin left.

“Namo Fazil complained about getting attacked in the hotel,” Valentin said on Instagram Stories. “This motherf*cker attacked me too. But that went backwards. Phuket, 2023, probably; one of his friends told me that he’s gonna slap me in the face. So, I got up, bear-hugged him and pushed him away. Namo came out of the cafe, jumped on my back, tried to choke me, I threw him over, he fell, we broke a vase.”

Valentin also alleged that Fazil had targeted untrained civilians with no connection to the fighting world, sharing a video appearing to show a man charging at someone with a kitchen knife before slipping and falling. “It’s the same guy that did this to harmless people, non-fighters,” Valentin said. “People that have nothing to do with fighters. So, each gets what they deserve.”

The accusations add a further layer of controversy to Fazil’s post-DWCS narrative. Fazil had entered his Contender Series fight against Brito with considerable momentum, coming off a win on the inaugural Most Valuable Promotions MMA card and generating attention through outspoken pre-fight trash talk. Brito stopped him in the final round, denying Fazil a UFC contract.

In the aftermath, Fazil claimed his performance had been compromised by an assault during his weight cut. He alleged he was confronted by 15 Chechens in his hotel room while cutting weight — an incident he suggested was retaliation for comments he had made against Chechnya ahead of his earlier win over Chechen fighter Yakub Sulimanov.

Valentin, who holds a UFC contract at middleweight, has not indicated whether he intends to pursue any formal action over the 2023 incident. Fazil has not publicly responded to Valentin’s account.