Indonesian MMA Fighter Weigh In on Khabib VS McGregor Fiasco
9 October 2018 19:14 WIB
TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - Khabib Nurmagomedov`s post fight brawl with Conor McGregor`s camp after the end of the UFC229 event in Las Vegas drew world-wide attention. One of it came from Indonesian MMA star Stefer Rahardian who argued that what Khabib had done after the game harmed the value of sportsmanship.
“Defending the value of one’s country, family, and religion is a must for every fighter. No matter the origins or religion of the fighter, they must defend it. However, we must take into account that the sports business is not a business that operates by slandering an opponent’s religion or family inside the cage,” said Stefer.
Stefer further maintained that Khabib’s post-fight incident cannot be justified since it could set a bad example for public in general and underage children who watched the match. Other than that, he said, such act of anarchism harms MMA itself as a sport.
“Regarding whether Khabib should be sanctioned or not I think the UFC has their own consideration,” said Stefer.
Similar tone was expressed by a fellow Indonesian MMA fighter Egi Rozten, who said that Khabib had violated the principle of sportsmanship. “He should have shook hands with Conor who already lost, not attack him. I think what he did was out of line,” he said.
Egi then compared Khabib’s situation with the legendary boxing match between Mike Tyson and Evander Holyfield in 1997, where Tyson felt cheated when the referee did nothing. But in the end, Tyson suffered the loss after he was punished for his actions.
Following the Las Vegas match post-fight brawl, Khabib Nurmagomedov reportedly was handed numerous punishments such as a fine, withheld pay, and suspended in the following match.
ARIANDONO