Albuquerque native and UFC Hall of Fame fighter Diego Sanchez was arrested early Friday morning on gun-related charges after allegedly firing a weapon from a moving vehicle near a traffic crash on Interstate 40, according to court documents filed in Bernalillo County Metropolitan Court.
Sanchez, 43, was booked at 12:01 a.m. Friday and charged with shooting at or from a motor vehicle without great bodily harm, a fourth-degree felony, and negligent use of a deadly weapon, a misdemeanor.
The incident occurred Thursday evening when an Albuquerque police officer was assisting at a traffic collision on I-40 westbound near University Boulevard. According to court documents obtained by KRQE News and KOAT News, a white Jeep Gladiator passed the crash scene when police service aides reported hearing “a loud bang” and said the passenger “shot off a round.”
The officer followed the vehicle to the Sixth Street exit and conducted a felony stop. After being placed in custody, Sanchez denied firing the weapon but told officers there was a gun in the vehicle, according to court documents. The driver, who is not facing charges, told police that Sanchez had shot the gun while in the passenger seat and “did not know Sanchez was going to shoot the gun or where the gun came from.”
During a consensual search of the vehicle, officers found two live rounds and a spent casing, along with a black handgun in the back pocket of the driver’s seat, court documents state.
Sanchez’s representative, Ricky Kottenstette, told MMA Fighting that the former UFC star “has been struggling with substance abuse in recent years” and has undergone rehabilitation multiple times. Kottenstette expressed hope that Sanchez would receive treatment following this arrest.
Born and raised in Albuquerque, Sanchez graduated from Del Norte High School in 2000 after winning the state wrestling championship in the 152-pound weight class. He began training in mixed martial arts and eventually joined the renowned Jackson’s MMA gym in Albuquerque, where he still resides.
Sanchez made UFC history in 2005 as the first winner of The Ultimate Fighter reality show, defeating Kenny Florian to claim the middleweight tournament. He went on to compete in the UFC for 15 years across four different weight classes – middleweight, welterweight, lightweight, and featherweight – making him one of only three fighters to achieve this feat.
The Albuquerque fighter earned a UFC lightweight title shot in 2009 against B.J. Penn at UFC 107, though he lost the bout. He has been involved in more “Fight of the Year” bouts than any other fighter in mixed martial arts history and was inducted into the UFC Hall of Fame in 2019 alongside his fight against Clay Guida.
Sanchez was also inducted into the New Mexico Sports Hall of Fame, cementing his status as one of the state’s most recognizable combat sports figures.
His final UFC appearance came in 2020 when he lost a decision to Jake Matthews. After leaving the UFC, Sanchez briefly competed in bare-knuckle boxing, facing veteran Austin Trout in BKFC.
