Australian YouTuber charged for faking credentials to sneak into UFC 284

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Australian YouTuber charged for faking credentials to sneak into UFC 284

Two men, one of whom is a Perth YouTuber, have been charged with fraud and trespass for allegedly using forged IDs, lanyards, and apparel to gain entry to last month’s UFC 284 event at RAC Arena.

MikeyT, aka Michael Robert Todoro, stated that on February 12, he got into one of the greatest athletic events of the year and “just strolled straight in and there were no questions asked or nothing” to sit ringside with the press.

Alexander Volkanovski Grappling
JACKSONVILLE, FLORIDA – APRIL 09: Alexander Volkanovski of Australia reacts after defeating Chan Sung Jung of South Korea in the featherweight title bout during the UFC 273 event at VyStar Veterans Memorial Arena on April 09, 2022 in Jacksonville, Florida. (Photo by James Gilbert/Getty Images)

On Tuesday, WA authorities disclosed that he and another man had been charged with fraud and trespass by detectives in Perth. It has been reported by Perth Now that the two suspects, both in their twenties, falsely identified themselves as event videography employees by creating costumes, lanyards, and identification cards for the event. A police spokeswoman stated:

“One of the men is alleged to have used the fake identification to gain access to the event, while the other purchased a valid ticket. t will be further alleged, while inside the event the men used the manufactured items to gain access and film themselves in restricted areas including the entrance to the changerooms, cage side, a media briefing room, and in ticketed areas, before posting the videos online.”

The YouTuber claimed that after the purported prank, tickets sold out in less than ten seconds and he was forced to gain entry by sneaking in:

“I went to the event initially thinking I would be just sitting around watching the fights from a distance then I found myself ringside, backstage with them, walking out, so it was pretty special. We literally just walked straight in and there were no questions asked or nothing — we were just sitting along ringside with the other media crew.” [Source/ 7 News]

Australia’s Alexander Volkanovski reacts to Jon Jones taking over the No.1 spot in the P4P list

As a result of UFC 285, there have been major shifts in the organization’s official pound-for-pound rankings. Three years after his last fight, Jon Jones returned to the octagon and easily defeated Ciryl Gane. The UFC has promoted Jon Jones to the top P4P spot after his comeback victory. In a single week, ‘Bones’ climbed nine spots to take the top spot.

Jones’s continued presence in the top 10 was surprising given that, despite his current fighter status, he had not competed in the octagon for quite some time. Yet, after only one bout, he has already eclipsed both Alexander Volkanovski and Islam Makhachev, the latter of whom recently defeated the former in a fight between the top two pound-for-pound fighters.

Reacting to Jones taking over his spot as the pound-for-pound best in a recent episode of Steve-O’s Wild Ride!, Volkanovski stated:

“It’s a big deal. I’ll be honest with you, [becoming] a champion was great, being pound-for-pound No. 1 [was greater], which Jon Jones took that from me (laughs). I don’t think with all of the [rankings], but the UFC, yes. He actually said it really well where it goes by what you’ve done lately as well. It’s gonna go with that you might have done a whole heap four years ago, but that’s got nothing to do with now. You are not pound-for-pound, we don’t know what you’re doing right now. So, that’s always gonna come into play, though.”

“It was just that one [fight in three years], you’re right. But what he did, moving up — at least he moved up and showed that pound-for-pound comes into play. The body of work that we’ve done in the last three years, obviously, a lot of people are gonna be like, ‘Look what Alex has done in the last three years.’ You can get that, but at the same time, look at what Jon Jones has done as well. Can I really argue that? He’s gonna be one of the greatest of all time. For him to take that is like, ‘Damn it! What do you do?’”

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