Despite having roots in Vale Tudo (Everything Goes), contemporary MMA is littered with niche rules.
Only recently were 12-6 elbows unbanned, and the definition of a grounded opponent was changed to eradicate fight-stalling positions, but some rules will always apply.
The Unified Rules of MMA state that a fighter shouldn’t deliberately strike or grab their opponent’s trachea. However, one fighter didn’t get the memo. Paulo Henrique Laia vs. Vladimir Kanunnikov at LFA 201 was overturned after Kanunnikov secured the knockout on his opponent while grabbing him by the throat.
MMA fans befuddled with LFA 201 fight result featuring odd foul
Laia vs. Kannunikov was a once-in-a-while type of fight result, as evidenced by a number of MMA fans who were completely baffled by what happened.
“Can’t say I’ve seen this before,” One user wrote.
“That’s brutal what the hell?” One user commented.
Combat sports journalist Patrick Danna branded the result an “all-around weird situation.”
“What a dog,” Another user was disgusted.
“Awful referee,” Another remarked. “As soon as he grabs the trachea the fight should’ve been stood up. Straight away.”
Watch the full trachea choke knockout from LFA 201
The full finish was uploaded to X, courtesy of Caposa.
Kanunnikov can be seen landing some nasty ground and pound before posturing with his outstretched fingers and palm in Laia’s throat. From here, he pins Laia’s head to the mat and rains down savage elbows that put him to sleep. By the time the referee decides to take action for the foul, Laia is out cold.