One spectator picked the wrong time to troll former UFC fighter Alex Nicholson.
An MMA fan learned a brutal lesson after trolling former UFC fighter Alex Nicholson immediately after Nicholson’s knockout loss at XFC 52.
Nicholson and Darion Abbey co-headlined XFC 52 in a highly-anticipated heavyweight matchup on the card. The fight marked Nicholson’s MMA return after a first-round knockout defeat to Frank Tate at Gamebred Bareknuckle MMA in November.
While Nicholson possesses one-punch knockout power, as he’s showcased in stints in the PFL and UFC, the fight didn’t go as planned against Abbey. In the immediate aftermath, one fan learned the hard way not to mess with a heavyweight fighter, especially after they fall short inside the cage.
Alex Nicholson responds to fake handshake, insults by punching fan after KO
Abbey needed mere seconds to outpace and outpressure Nicholson against the cage. Just over a minute into the fight, Abbey swarmed Nicholson with punches en route to the first-round TKO victory.
It was Abbey’s third consecutive win after a loss to former Bellator standout Tim Johnson last April. Meanwhile, as Nicholson left the cage during Abbey’s post-fight interview, he was greeted by a fan with a congratulatory headshake attempt, but it didn’t play out as planned.
Nicholson initially shook the fan’s hand in an innocuous way as he attempted to leave the arena. But as Nicholson walked away, the fan can be heard berating the former UFC fighter, luring him back into a heated interaction.
Whatever the fan said, Nicholson didn’t react well, as he charged at him and threw several punches before security personnel intervened. You can check out the full incident below, courtesy of Fight Bananas.
As Alex Nicholson made his way to the dressing room after a tough loss, one fan couldn’t help but mouth off after a fake handshake, calling him a ‘p_ _ _ _’ and calling him a quitter.
This is the aftermath … pic.twitter.com/driQxhNTQm— Fight Bananas (@FightBananas) April 15, 2025
UFC’s Lerone Murphy charged at a mocking fan after recent main event win
As of this writing, Nicholson hasn’t spoken publicly about the incident, and it’s uncertain if charges will be filed by the fan in question. Nicholson’s contract status with XFC is also unclear.
Nicholson went 1-3 in the UFC Octagon, earning a knockout against veteran Devin Clark in July 2016. After back-to-back losses to Sam Alvey and Jack Hermansson, the UFC parted ways with Nicholson.
Nicholson isn’t the only former or current UFC standout to get into it with trolling fans after their fights. Rising featherweight contender Lerone Murphy got into it with a fan after a recent win over Josh Emmett, but luckily, security prevented Murphy from escalating the incident.
At a recent Bare Knuckle FC event in Dubai, one of Conor McGregor’s security team members punched a fan who attempted to swing at the UFC superstar. In an unrelated incident, McGregor spat in a pro-Khabib Nurmagomedov fan’s face during an altercation at a casino.
