A man in Moscow reportedly attacked the 16-year-old daughter of heavyweight mixed martial artist Fedor Emelianenko, days after her father quarreled publicly with Ramzan Kadryov, the ruler of the Chechen Republic. The girl was later hospitalized after receiving a blow to her chest, Moscow’s Department of Health told the R-Sport news agency.
There is still some confusion, however, about whether the attack actually took place. Despite multiple reports citing Moscow health officials, the REN TV network says sources close to Emelianenko deny that the fighter’s daughter was beaten.
Earlier on Wednesday, the Moskovsky Komsomolets newspaper reported that the nine-year-old (not 16-year-old) daughter of a famous fighter and repeat heavyweight champion had been attacked in Moscow. The author of that article, Eva Merkacheva, later claimed on Twitter that the victim was Fedor Emelianenko’s daughter. The incident reportedly took place last week, during a public disagreement between Emelianenko and Kadyrov.
Last week, Grozny hosted an MMA fight on the eve of Kadyrov's birthday. To the astonishment of even President Vladimir Putin, Kadyrov's pre-teen children entered the fray. The eldest Kadyrov, Akhmad, knocked his opponent out before an audience of cheering adults. The two other sons also won their competitions.
Following news of the bout, Emelianenko, the head of Russia's MMA union, slammed Kadyrov for allowing children to compete in an MMA tournament. The sport's rules dictate that children under 12 can't even watch.
What followed was a very public dispute about underage MMA fighting, leading Kadyrov to accuse Emelianenko of meddling in his parenting. The Chechen leader also implied that Emelianenko was encouraging children to consume drugs and alcohol, by refusing to let them compete in mixed martial arts fights.
On Oct. 7, after two days of arguing online, Kadyrov called on his Instagram followers to desist from further criticisms of Emelianenko. Kadyrov said he was sure that the former MMA champion “realized his mistake.”
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