Mixed martial artist Tony Ferguson has entered a not guilty plea after being charged with a misdemeanor DUI violation, reported to have occurred in May when the athlete crashed his car in Hollywood, California. Ferguson attended an arraignment hearing last week, where the charge was delivered by prosecutors. The former interim lightweight UFC champion was taken into custody on May 7, having collided into a pair of parked cars and overturned his truck outside a night.

Ferguson was arrested when he reportedly declined a field sobriety assessment from police who attended the scene. The subsequent investigation recorded Ferguson as being “very uncooperative”, although he was not harmed in the incident, and later released on bail. 

Misdemeanor DUI charges in California can lead to a fine of up to $1,000; an anticipated sentence for a first-time offender additionally offers access to rehabilitation and alcohol education courses, accompanied with informal probation. As of now Ferguson has not made a public statement about the matter, although he has been placed in a bout against Bobby Green for UFC 291 in Salt Lake City on July 29.