Mixed martial artist banned for life after this weekend’s match He kicked a ring girl with his derriere before the match started, was knocked out and then punched by the crowd
A star MMA fighter has been handed a lifetime suspension from the Hard Fighting Championship (HFC) for kicking a ring girl before a weekend match.
Iranian fighter Ali Heibati took on Arkady Osipian in a hardcore MMA tournament in Moscow on Friday night.
Before the match began, Haverty strangely stepped forward and kicked a ring girl in her derriere as she passed by holding up a card announcing the start of the opening match.
The woman turned around, visibly taken aback by Haverty’s behavior, and approached him, making a noise of disapproval, before the referee intervened to separate them and appear to warn him about Haverty’s actions.
The bout was allowed to begin shortly after, but it was a short bout as Osipian won by technical knockout in the first round.
Ali Haverty pointed his king at a passing ring girl before Friday’s match.
Haverty’s fight didn’t last long as he was stopped in the opening round.
Immediately after losing, Haverty stood up and attacked his opponent.
His victory was confirmed when the referee waved his hand and called off the fight, saying Haverty was in no position to defend himself with just over 30 seconds left in the round.
When the referee sent Osipian back to his corner, Haverty got up and started attacking his opponent, taking a few cheap shots with his back turned.
The men were quickly separated and several people tried to separate them in a cage while they awaited formal sentencing.
The drama didn’t end there, as both fighters then grabbed the microphone inside the cage.
Mr Haverty appeared to be angry at what was said to him and aimed another kick at the commentator, this time at head height, before exchanging angry words with the man.
Additionally, footage has been released showing Haverty being attacked by a member of the crowd after the match, as he was pushed onto a chair and punched several times in the head.
Following the embarrassing act, Haverty apologized to ring girl Maria on social media.
Haverty was banned for life from HFC after stealing the microphone and attempting to kick a commentator after the match.
Iranian Muslim mixed martial artist kicks ring girl for wearing clothes at Russian tournament
Before the match, Iranian fighter Ali Heibati kicked a girl who had brought up a sign with her round number written on it.
In the first round, the Iranian player lost to the representative of… pic.twitter.com/cR64IZp7JD
— Voice of Europe 🌍 (@V_of_Europe) April 21, 2024
‘Hi guys. This is for Maria. I didn’t do the right thing with her. The reason for this is that there were a lot of fistfights before MMA matches. I was in the cage and I just wanted to go out and fight,” he said.
“I was nervous and as many people understand, emotions run high during matches, so I behaved badly towards Maria before the match.
“I want to publicly apologize to her. I’m a married man, so I respect women’s sexuality. She was at work, and after the fight, I didn’t admit my guilt either. Because they… You hit me on the head. Please tell Maria I’m sorry.”
Despite the apology, Haverty remains banned from HFC for life.
He is not the first MMA star to lose his job due to outrageous behavior inside the cage, after Brazilian youngster Igor Severino was fired last month for biting an opponent in his UFC debut.
Severino cut off part of fellow Brazilian Andre Lima’s arm and was disqualified before losing his job, and later revealed he had received death threats for his actions.
