Arjan Bhullar wasn’t allowed to wear turban during UFC 215 walkout, hopes that changes

UFC heavyweight Arjan Bhullar said the promotion did not grant him his wish of wearing a turban during his UFC 215 walkout ahead of his debut in September. However, the former Olympic wrestler is hopeful for change.

Arjan Bhullar was not allowed to wear a turban when he walked out at UFC 215 ahead of his promotional debut in September. He hopes that changes in time for his next fight.

Born in Canada, Bhullar, who defeated Luis Henrique by decision in his first Octagon showing, is the first UFC fighter of Indian descent. Bhullar practices the Sikh religion. The heavyweight said UFC officials denied him his wish of walking out to the cage in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada wearing his turban.

Wearing unbranded clothing does not violate the UFC Athlete Outfitting Policy, per its rules and regulations.

“Maybe there was some — I want to be respectful here — learning that needed to be had on what Sikhism was and the turban,” Bhullar told MMAjunkie.com. “If they actually realize, it doesn’t conflict with the Reebok athletes code for clothing. So that was the issue there. I brought it up, and it was getting bounced around beyond that. No one wanted to touch it, whether to allow it or not.”

Since the Henrique fight, Bhullar said, he has talked to the premier MMA organization about the possibility of wearing a turban during future walkouts. It doesn’t appear to be a done deal just yet, but things are headed in the right direction. Bhullar added that the company now understands the importance behind wearing a turban for him.

“Essentially, on the back end of it, they’ve reached out; they are very understanding internally now within the company,” Bhullar said. “Moving forward, I’m hoping to make that a reality, but not only that — make some awareness to what that’s about. There are obviously others out there that maybe do not understand what that means for a culture like ours.

“As an athlete, I want to do more than just compete in the cage. So there’s a perfect scenario right there for me.”

The UFC did not immediately return a request for comment on Wednesday evening.