VIDEO: Mohammad Karaki gets brutally knocked out at UAE Warriors 20 after referee misses eye poke
They say protect yourself at all times, but Mohammad Karaki was hoping the referee would protect him when he was inadvertently poked in the eye.
At UAE Warriors 20 on Saturday, former Desert Force champion and ONE Championship title challenger Karaki faced Gianni Melillo. It was Karaki’s promotional debut, an it quickly turned into a nightmare for him.
In a wild, back-and-forth round which had both fighters scoring knockdowns, Melillo extended his fingers into Karaki’s eyes before landing a left hand counter. Karaki immediately held his eye and turned his back to his opponent while walking away, but referee Frank Trigg did not pause the action. When Karaki turned his back, Melillo capitalized by landing a big right hand which knocked him out cold.
Insane KO at UAE Warriors.
Mohammad Karaki and Gianni Melillo both trade knockdowns before Karaki claims there was an eye poke. And well, protect yourself at all times. #UAEWarriors20 pic.twitter.com/yXWOIVP0FH
— caposa (@Grabaka_Hitman) June 19, 2021
Here’s a closer look at the eye poke which started the sequence of unfortunate events for Karaki.
That’s what I’m seeing https://t.co/pb5qqqpjCa pic.twitter.com/9VcWmcf79I
— caposa (@Grabaka_Hitman) June 19, 2021
Following the fight, a disappointed Karaki took to Instagram to appeal the loss, asking for a rematch and the fight to be overturned to a no contest.
“If you are a fan of MMA you definitely know how often this injury happens and if you aren’t a fan of this game and never tasted such a thing let me tell you eye pokes are the worst you can ever have , extremely painful and you just have no chance to do anything your natural body response to it is to cover your eye .
I didn’t know what happened in the fight all i remember was a bright light in my right eye and extreme pain that had me to back up thinking the referee will stop to check on me .. didn’t happen and this was the end !
I ask those in charge of the company to relook at the result and revise the output and be fair ! Not asking for anything else , I know myself very well , I am extremely confident with my skills , I never complain about any output but this one my friends is my total right and I totally deserve a payback !”
“If theres an eye poke , the referee gives the other fighter a warning to keep his fingers intact and give the sufferer fighter a breather to recover . PERIOD !
I don’t care what commentators say or what anyone say I have been in this game for a quite enough time to know rules and regulations and I believe the referee’s only job is to protect two fighters going for a kill inside a closed cage ! I blame no one for this , each one sees it from a different aspect however rules are always set to protect fighters ! And I am claiming what is my total RIGHT ! #nocontest and a rematch for sure . If you also think what I am claiming is right , share this post and tag me also tag @uae_warriors , @franktrigg thank you !”
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VIDEO: Mohammad Karaki gets brutally knocked out at UAE Warriors 20 after referee misses eye poke
