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Viktoriia Dudakova Apologizes for Slapping Husband after UFC Fight Night Loss

Dudakova suffered her second loss in a row last weekend after an 8-0 start to her pro career.
Drew Beaupre|
(Chris Unger/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images)

Viktoriia Dudakova has issued an apology for the viral moment that occurred immediately following her loss at the first UFC Fight Night event of the year.

Dudakova Goes Viral After UFC Fight Night Slap

The UFC will kick off its 2025 PPV schedule this Saturday when UFC 311 takes place at the Intuit Dome in Los Angeles, CA, and last weekend the promotion held its first event of the year in Las Vegas, NV with UFC Fight Night: Mackenzie Dern vs. Amanda Ribas 2.

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The main event saw Dern secure her second win in a row and avenge a previous loss to Ribas when she secured an armbar in the third round, and the action-packed event also featured plenty of other notable finishes such as César Almeida’s one-punch knockout against Abdul Razak Alhassan.

The night’s main card also featured a bit of controversy when referee Mark Smith stopped the middleweight bout between Roman Kopylov and Chris Curtis with just one second remaining, but it was the prelim fight between Dudakova and Fatima Kline that produced what was arguably the card’s most shocking moment after Kline stopped the Russian strawweight with strikes in the second round.

"I Couldn't Cope With My Emotions"

The clip of Dudakova slapping her coach after the loss quickly went viral, and a few days after the event the 25-year-old took to Instagram to reveal that the cornerman was also her husband and issue an apology for her actions.

“Emotions are a little off… First and foremost, I would like to apologize to my husband and my coach. I was sorry that in such a difficult moment, he turned his back on me and didn’t want to enter the cage. This is not an excuse and I am not looking for excuses for myself. I did wrong, I couldn’t cope with my emotions. Set a bad example for athletes and the younger generation. I also want to apologize for sports fans. Thanks to everyone who stays with me in this difficult situation.”

Dudakova went undefeated as an amateur fighter and began her pro career with five stoppage-wins to earn an opportunity on Dana White’s Contender Series, where she took a unanimous decision over the formerly-undefeated Maria Silva to earn a UFC contract.

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The 25-year-old won her UFC debut via 34-second injury TKO before defeating Jinh Yu Frey in a fight where she unfortunately missed weight, but Dudakova now finds herself on a two-fight skid after she suffered her first loss against Sam Hughes last year and was stopped by Kline in Las Vegas.

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Drew Beaupre
DREW BEAUPRE

Drew is an MMA writer that regularly watches regional events in addition to major promotions such as the UFC, PFL, Bellator, and ONE Championship. He joined MMA Knockout when it was founded in 2023.