Flabbergasted fighter reveals massive UFC 293 tax deduction: ‘Australian government (and judges) robbed me!’

John Makdessi didn’t have an ideal result on his recent trip “Down Under.”

UFC 293 marked the 20th walk to the Octagon for the Canadian “Bull.” Unfortunately for the Halifax, Nova Scotia, native, he suffered his ninth career UFC defeat (18-9 overall) against Jamie Mullarkey via unanimous decision.

Makdessi joined the promotion in 2010, which made him the longest-tenured fighter of the 24 athletes who competed this past weekend (Sept. 9, 2023) inside Qudos Bank Arena in Sydney. For his first bout in Australia, Makdessi was upset to see the whopping deductions taken from his $58,000 fight purse (as seen in the embedded image above).

“I sacrificed my whole life for this sport and put everything on the line,” Makdessi said in a since-deleted Tweet (h/t MMA Fighting). “Damn Australian government and the judges robbed me pretty badly.”

The invoice Makdessi shared displayed deductions from medical, airfare and other before federal tax took 45 percent of his pay, leaving Makdessi with just $28,461.65.

When you know, you know.

Makdessi’s Mullarkey loss put him on a two-fight skid. The 38-year-old Lightweight veteran last saw his hand raised with a split decision over Ignacio Bahomondes in April 2021. Makdessi’s most notable victories throughout his 27-fight career include Ross Pearson, Abel Trujillo, Mehdi Baghdad, Sam Stout and Daron Cruickshank.

For complete UFC 293 results, coverage and highlights click HERE.