An Iranian MMA fighter was handed a lifetime ban after kicking a ring girl just before competing in a match in Russia.
Ali Heibati was set to fight in a main event match against Arkadiy Osipyan during Russia’s Hardcore Fighting Championship when he decided it would be a smart move to kick the behind of one of the ring girls as she circled the ring holding up a card to signal round one.
The referee stepped in to warn the competitor against his behavior just before the match officially commenced.
Osipyan dominated the entire bout, winning thanks to a technical knockout in the very first round. But despite that, the only thing social media users could focus on was the bizarre and disrespectful interaction involving the ring girl before the game.
"The disrespect because she is a ring girl is uncanny," wrote one user, after the clip was reposted to X (formerly Twitter).
"That's disrespectful and disgusting!!!" added another.
A third also chimed in with: "I hope he was immediately disqualified."
And you'll be happy to know that he was.
The fighter was given a lifetime ban after allegedly stating that he did not agree with the ring girl's choice of attire at the time, citing his religious beliefs as the reason for trying to usher her out of the ring quicker.
After reflecting on his behavior, the Iranian fighter took to social media to apologize to the ring girl who was identified by Maria.
Standing awkwardly with the ring girl, Heibati said: “Hello everyone. This is for Maria
“I didn't act right with her. The reason was that before the MMA fight there were a lot of fistfights. I stayed there in the cage and I just wanted to go out and fight. I was tense and, as most understand, emotions flourish in the fight, so before the fight I acted badly towards María."
He continued: “I want to publicly apologize to her. I am a married man, so I respect the female gender. She was doing her job and I, after the fight, didn't admit my guilt either, because they also hit me on the head. Tell Maria that I am sorry."
But it seems as though the Hardcore Fighting Championship was not impressed and addressed the controversy in a statement.
“What happened in TODAY'S live broadcast is beyond all moral and ethical standards,” HFC wrote in a statement on its official Instagram page. “No one has any right to touch, let alone beat the staff, employees, and partners of Hardcore Media.
"Moreover, such marginal behavior is absolutely unacceptable towards women. Loosening your hands towards ladies is the lowest a man can go to," they continued. "The League decided that in the context of the current situation, the apologies already made by Ali Heibati are absolutely not enough. He will be fined for his fee, and the entire amount will be transferred to ring-girl Maria."
They also added that everyone that was involved in "mass backstage fights will be disqualified and removed from appearances in Hardcore Media promotions."
They concluded that they had opened an investigation into the matter to identify all the "culprits" involved.
Alongside the lifetime ban, a group of at least five men decided to take matters into their own hands he was attacked in the hallway, not only for his disrespectful actions towards the ring girl but because he also exchanged heated verbal and physical back-and-forths with noncombatants backstage.
A report by the Daily Star also stated that he "aimed a head-height kick at a commentator."
I mean, if you're going to act like that then you better deal with the consequences, right?
