Chatri bans coach, fighter from ONE Championship after Haggerty altercation

ONE Championship boss Chatri Sityodtong has banned coach Mehdi Zatout and fighter Alaverdi Ramazanov from attending events for 6 months after they climbed into the ring on Saturday to confront Jonathan Haggerty in Bangkok.

Haggerty had just knocked out Fabricio Andrade in the main event of ONE Fight Night 16 to claim the vacant bantamweight kickboxing title and become a two-sport champ in the martial arts promotion.

The 26-year-old Briton, who also holds the Muay Thai title in the same weight class, received a double US$100,000 performance bonus for his second round finish of MMA champion Andrade.

But the moment was soured somewhat after Venum Training Camp co-owner Zatout, a former fighter in ONE, and former title challenger Ramazanov bypassed security and looked to stage a dramatic confrontation with the new champion.

“ONE has suspended both Mehdi Zatout and Alaverdi Ramazanov for six months,” Chatri told the post soon after the end of Saturday’s event.

“They will not be allowed to attend ONE events during this time period, effective today.

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“After the main event, they breached security and forced themselves into the ring despite attempts by security to prevent them from doing so. It is unacceptable behaviour and jeopardises the safety of everyone in the stadium.

“I expect our athletes, coaches, managers, and everyone else to behave in a professional manner at all times towards ONE staff and to respect the rules and regulations employed by ONE. Safety is our highest priority.”

Ramazanov, who lost via third-round TKO to former champ Nong-O Hama in January, grabbed the mic from commentator Mitch Chilson during Haggerty’s celebrations, while the event – being streamed on Amazon Prime Video in the US – was still live on the ait.

“I want to say something. You see! He’s scared of me. Scared. Scared. Just tell me. Why are you scared of me?” the Russian kickboxer said.

“I mean, this guy is just trying to get a fight,” Haggerty responded. “We’ve seen him on Instagram calling out Liam Harrison. We’ve seen him calling out everyone under the sun. I don’t know how he got in this ring but somebody get him out.”

Haggerty was seemingly nonplussed by the altercation when he spoke to media after his win.

“Who the hell let him in the ring?” he told the Post, smiling.

“He just looked like an idiot. A little bit of an idiot. I mean I get it, you’ve got to sell a fight. He’s got to do what he’s got to do.

“But there’s a time and a place and that time there, he looked like an idiot.”

Chairman and CEO Chatri insisted the Pattaya-based Venum gym’s fighters were still allowed to compete on ONE events as normal.

“To be clear, I have zero issues with athletes challenging one another or creating beef for whatever reason,” he added.

“This punishment pertains directly to Mehdi and Alaverdi recklessly barging into the ring against security without approval and without any regard to the rules and regulations of ONE.”