Alexander Bublik asked one of his rival’s to come outside and fight after their fiery match in Phoenix.

The umpire and supervisor stepped in when Alexander Bublik asked Corentin Moutet for a fight (Image: X @TheTennisEmotes)

Alexander Bublik caused a stir at last week’s Phoenix Challenger. Despite finishing as the runner-up, the focus was on his quarter-final tie, where he was part of a heated post-match scrap with Corentin Moutet.

The rivals shared a tense handshake at the net before things erupted, with the chair umpire forced to separate them. New footage from their confrontation has now come to light, with Bublik telling the Frenchman to come outside and “fight”.

Bublik and Moutet are both known for their on-court outbursts but they took things to the next level when they recently faced off in Arizona. There was drama when Bublik was preparing to serve, and Moutet said he wasn’t ready.

“I don’t give a s***,” the world No. 80 replied, starting the point as normal. Bublik came from a set down to win the match 2-6 7-6(4) 7-5, booking his spot in the last four.

There was still plenty of tension in the air when the players met at the net for the handshake. And the hostilities continued when Moutet headed to his bench to pack up, as Bublik approached him and offered to fight.

“Ten minutes outside? Let’s go. We have a fight?” the Kazakh asked. The supervisor came to the court and stepped in, trying to lead Bublik away while the umpire dealt with Moutet.

Alexander Bublik is known for his controversial on-court antics (Image: Getty)

But the world No. 80 continued his tirade, adding: “The French kid is speaking and he doesn’t want to fight. Let’s go, we meet in 10 minutes outside.”

Retired American tennis player Jack Sock later addressed the incident on the Nothing Major podcast – a show he hosts with three other former professionals.

“He offered it, Bublik said let’s go to the parking lot! He said, ‘Do you want to go… we can go to the parking lot right now’,” the former world No. 8 recalled.

“He goes, ‘Do you wanna fight?’ And Corentin Moutet, like, started laughing as if it was – but I think Bublik was like ready to take the gloves off and go.”

Bublik quickly put the fiery match behind him. A day later, he returned for his semi-final match against top seed and two-time defending champion Nuno Borges and earned a statement 6-3 6-4 victory.

The 27-year-old ultimately lost to teenage sensation Joao Fonseca in the final. It was a tight match, with the Brazilian winning in two tiebreak sets to lift his third trophy of the season after enjoying success at the Canberra Challenger and the Argentina Open.

While there was no love lost between Bublik and Moutet, it was a different story when the Kazakh lost to Fonseca. “I can say that tennis is in good hands. Joao, you are the future of the sport. I wish you much success,” Bublik told the 18-year-old.