President of Russian MMA Federation and legendary fighter Fedor Emelianenko harshly criticized the event and called it a violation of all the rules of mixed martial arts.
"Fights involving children were declared as demonstration ones but in fact, viewers saw an actual combat. According to the official rules of this sport, athletes under 21 must enter the ring wearing a helmet and protectors, and the ones under 12 years need a rashguard or a T-shirt. Children under 12 years are not permitted to fight, according to the MMA rules at all. What happened at the tournament in Grozny, was unacceptable, and it cannot be justified," Emelianenko commented in an official message of the organization which he heads.
In an interview to Sputnik Tajikistan, popular Russian actor, the winner of the UFC-6 tournament and President of amateur MMA Oleg Taktarov expressed his opinion on the events in Grozny.
"I do not quite understand what ‘demonstration fights' have in common with battle where someone wins by a knockout. Demonstration fight means showing the technique and certain skills. It is when the athletes show their rich fighting arsenal. But if one simply knocks out the other, it has nothing to do with ‘demonstration fights.' Moreover, it can cause a psychological trauma in kids, both in the winner and in the loser," said Taktarov.
Earlier, 2008 Olympic bronze medalist in judo Rasul Bokiev also supported Emelianenko. He told Sputnik Tajikistan that the head of Russian MMA Federation was right, pointing out the inadmissibility of the 8-year-old children participating in mixed martial arts fighting.
