Dana White has seen a lot of crazy shit.
The UFC president has been sat cageside for some of the most thrilling moments in the history of the UFC, where the cream of the crop of the world’s most thrilling combat sport go to earn a living.
White was there when Anderson Silva front-kicked Vitor Belfort in the face. White was there when Conor McGregor required just thirteen seconds to put an end to Jose Aldo’s undefeated streak. And White was even there in the TUF gym when Uriah Hall pulled off one of the most devastating knockouts in the reality show’s history back in 2013.
That’s a lot of crazy shit.
But this!
This is different.
White has only just got wind of a kickboxing clip that, over the past few days, has gone uber-viral.
This is the craziest shit I have ever seen!!!!! pic.twitter.com/m1qevc5IE6
— danawhite (@danawhite) February 2, 2017
The dodge came via Rafael Fiziev, a Muay Thai practitioner who hails from Kyrgyzstan, and although he lost a decision, he has now seen his ninja-like brilliance watched by millions of fight fans the world over.
As his opponent, Sorgraw Petyindeeacademy, unleashed a lightning quick roundhouse kick in the direction of Fiziev’s chin, we witnessed something truly special.
The kick was coming too quikly for Fiziev to get his forearms up to block. The speed was such that Fiziev would not have been able to slide out of harm’s way either.
So he simply summoned his inner Keanu Reeves, bent backwards and smiled as the kick came whizzing over his chest before the referee stepped in to bring a close to the round.
Fiziev is understood to be entertaining the idea of swapping kickboxing for MMA in the foreseeable future and now that he’s on Dana White’s radar, who’s to say that we won’t see some similar defensive genius inside the Octagon down the line.
