Being punched and kicked at the office seems unpleasant. That goes for a graveyard shift at the local Circle K and any form of combat sports venue too. Fights are fun, but we’re a bit touchy about keeping our face bones intact, eh? Well, the brawl that erupted at the Amateur Mixed Martial Arts Championship in Dagestan is a special mix of “ooh, that looks like fun and “ooh, I don’t want to be kicked in the neck” in a escalating donnybrook.
Bloody Elbow reports that the ring-crashing action came about after Aziz Dzhumaniyazov, kicked his opponent Vladimir Mineev in their tilly’s immediate aftermath. Less-than-charmed by Dzhumaniyazov’s bonus kick, Mineev responded with a punch. This back-n-forth led to supporters crashing the ring like a Royal Rumble where everyone’s number has been called at one.
Shamil Alibatyrov, the president of the Dagestani regional MMA Union, has criticized the interpretation of the visual evidence as total misunderstanding.
“What happened can not be called a mass brawl, as is media reported. The video can be seen clearly. When there was a skirmish between the athletes, the people ran out to the ring. But our team, I personally, match referee and the most titled athletes are not allowed to develop conflict. It was just a crush between us. A little later, I, as President of the Federation, and arranged a meeting between Mineev and Dzhumaniyazov, where they shook hands. The men made it clear that what happened was just a rush of emotions. This incident was over then.”
Evaluate that take how you will. The Russia MMA Union are investigating this incident and the globe waits patiently to discover who is the Fan Man’s Dagestani equivalent.
(Via Bloody Elbow)
