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MMA star Ali Heibati was handed a lifetime ban from the Hard Fighting Championship (HFC) after he kicked a ring girl. Heibati locked horns with Arkady Osipyan at the Hardcore MMA tournament in Moscow, but before the beginning of the fight, he kicked a ring girl from behind when she walked past him holding a card signaling that the bout was about to start.
The ring then turned around and was taken aback by Heibati’s behavior. Before she could approach him to voice her disapproval, the referee stepped in. He then warned Heibati about his behavior before the fight started. The bout lasted for around 30 seconds as Osipyan defeated his rival by a technical knockout in the first round.
After the fight, Heibati was attacked by the crowd, was pushed over some chairs, and received several blows to the head.
Ali Heibati issues apology for his behaviour with ring girl
Later, he took to social media to apologize to the ring girl named Maria. He wrote on social media, “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.”
He added, “I was tense and, as most understand, emotions flourish in the fight, so before the fight, I acted badly towards María. 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 María that I am sorry.”
However, it was too late as he had already received a lifetime ban from the UFC.