McGregor’s teammate fined $500 for flipping off Bellator opponent

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SBG Dublin fighter Kiefer Crosbie is literally paying for showing a lack of sportsmanship at Bellator 240.

SBG fighter Kiefer Crosbie came out with a victory via split decision over Iamik Furtado at Bellator Dublin over the weekend. But that win also cost him some money.

MMA Fighting reports that Crosbie was slapped with a $500 fine for flipping off Furtado during the fight. The amount was initially at $2,500 but was reduced after the 29-year-old welterweight “showed contrition about his behavior.”

“This is a minimal fine compared to one that would be given for an NFL game on Sunday. We’re a mainstream sport, and we have to treat it like one,” said Mohegan Tribe Department of Athletic Regulation executive Michael Mazzulli, who also serves as de facto commissioner for overseas events.

Flipping the bird during fights does happen on occasion. Strawweights Felice Herrig and Cortney Casey exchanged middle fingers when they fought at UFC 218 in 2017.

Esther Lin/MMAFighting

And of course, there’s this guy.

Joshua Dahl-USA TODAY Sports

Several others have done something similar, but unlike Crosbie, none of them were fined or sanctioned. The most action taken was by the UFC production team when Nate Diaz did it against Benson Henderson in 2012. The cameras immediately cut away as it happened to avoid it being fully seen on the FOX Sports broadcast at the time.