UFC Fighter Accused of Threatening Police Officer

By Brian Jones

A UFC fighter was arrested in December for allegedly assaulting a police officer. Tony Martin, who competed in UFC from 2014 to 2020, approached officers in the front yard of a home in Bonita Springs, Florida, according to Body Elbow. Officers were responding to an abandoned 911 call and encountered a crying female in a Black Ford Expedition before encountering Martin. The female told deputies  that "she just wanted to leave."

Martin, who "appeared inebriated," told the deputies to "get off my f–king property right now," according to the report. Officers told Martin that they launched an active investigation, to which he responded, "I don't care, and if you touch me, I will kick your ass." Martin then got in one of the faces of the deputies before being restrained. He then told them,  "You think you're a bad man, if you take me out of these cuffs' I will kick your ass."

Martin was booked into the Lee County Justice Center at 5:16 local time. He was bonded out of custody later that day with a bail set at $5,000. Martin had a hearing on the misdemeanor charge scheduled for Tuesday, but Martin's Lawyer filed a request for a jury trial on a not-guilty plea, which means he will now appear in court on Feb. 23. 

Martin, 33, has an overall 18-6 mixed martial arts (MMA) record. His last match in UFC came against Neil Magny at UFC 250 in June 2020. Martin lost the match via unanimous decision, and it was his second loss in three matches. In May of 2022, Martin made his CES debut and defeated Tim Bazer via submission in the second round. 

In an interview with Body Elbow in 2018, Martin talked about getting more respect in UFC. "I feel like I haven't gotten the respect that I've deserved being in the UFC and being an elite-level fighter," he said. "If [the LaFlare win] didn't earn my respect, then there's really not much else I can do."

Martin also talked about waiting six months to compete between his match in April and taking part in UFC 229. "I try to fill in," Martin said. "I tried to fill in for Neil Magny (against Alex Oliveira at UFC Sao Paulo in September), I tried to fill in for these other fights. I said, 'Hey, do you guys need me? I'm ready.' At some point, I don't want to be waiting five, six months for a fight. This is my time."

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