All Andre Soukhamthath had to do was step backwards and let Sean O’Malley defeat himself.
Soukhamthath was well aware of the fact that he was on his way to a loss in the third and final round of his bantamweight clash with O’Malley on the main card of UFC 222 on Saturday night.
But when opportunity knocked, Soukhamthath didn’t answer the door.
O’Malley had just badly injured his right foot while kicking his opponent and hobbled backwards, clearly unable to stand and compete on the feet for a moment longer.
With any composure, Soukhamthath would have kept the contest standing and urged O’Malley to walk forward, something which he would have been unable to do.
Well that's new… @SugaSeanMMA gets the decision while being treated for an injured foot at #UFC222 pic.twitter.com/7cea9Vsfkc
— UFC Europe (@UFCEurope) March 4, 2018
One glance at the referee would have been enough for Soukhamthath to convince the official that ‘Sugar’ Sean was unable to intelligently defend himself but that’s not the route that the former took.
Instead, Soukhamthath decided to take O’Malley down, off his injured foot, and see out the final moments on the mat.
When the judges’ scorecards arrived, O’Malley was predictably declared the victor by unanimous decision but, even then, he didn’t have it in him to stand up and he even had to conduct his post-fight interview from his back.
Well, this was… Different 😂
Joe Rogan interviews a victorious Sean O'Malley while he receives treatment for a suspected broken foot.
"Welcome to the Sugar show everybodyyyyyyy!"
📺 BT Sport 2 HD pic.twitter.com/rbGy0UC365
— UFC on TNT Sports (@ufcontnt) March 4, 2018
Soukamthath’s friend Rashad Evans was discussing the fight on Fox Sports and he was in disbelief over the decision to award an injured opponent a way out.
.@sugarashadevans absolutely LOST IT watching the third round of @sugaseanmma vs. @AndreSoukMMA! You agree with Rashad? 😅😂#UFC222 pic.twitter.com/F0tCyRhHaI
— FOX Sports: UFC (@UFCONFOX) March 4, 2018
Having been criticised by several pundits for his tactical misstep, Soukamthath has acknowledged the error of his ways.
“I’m getting trolled right now by so many people,” Soukamthath told ESPN. “They are calling me the dumbest fighter in MMA. The dumbest fighter in UFC history. Even my friend Rashad. Everyone is wondering why I decided to wrestle, and I’m wondering the same thing.”
Soukamthath now finds himself 1-3 under the UFC banner and could be in danger of being cut by the organisation.
However, the 29-year-old is hopeful of getting another chance in the Octagon and we reckon there’s no possibility of him repeating his mistake the next time he sees an opponent hurt.
“Even if people are still talking about my fight, I’m not really hearing it,” Soukhamthath added. “I know what I did wrong. I realise what I did. I’m going to capitalise on my mistakes and learn from this.
“I’m not going to let opinions of others get in the way of my life. I’ve been through this before, and I’m not going to let it bring me down.”
