UFC 243
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A few hours before the world's top two middle-weight athletes entered a packed Marvel Stadium, Ji Yeon Kim and Nadia Kassem entered the octagon in the preliminary matches to compete for a better place in the featherweight category. In her home arena, the Australian distinguished herself at the beginning of the fight by what is commonly called a ‘cheap shot.’
A ‘cheap shot’ is a move that goes against all the principles of fair play. It can be a strike after the whistle, a blow below the belt, or, as Nadia Kassem attempted, a blow by pretending to touch her opponent's gloves at the beginning of a fight, or at the beginning of around.
Instant Karma
Fortunately, there is a concept which is very widespread in the world of mixed martial arts, and more generally in that of combat sports: karma. Karma is basically a principle derived from Hinduism, the idea that a human being's life is determined by his or her actions or behaviour. To sum up, if someone does not behave with dignity, the future may hold some unpleasant surprises in store for them.
Saturday evening, Nadia Kassem learned the principle of karma at her own expense. After pretending to touch her opponent's gloves at the beginning of the fight, she took the opportunity to perform a body kick, but ended up being counterattacked immediately and went down to the floor of the octagon. She managed to get back into the fight, before being stopped at the very end of the second round by Ji Yeon Kim.
Watch the video above to see the moment that Kassem learned her lesson!
