The MMA community is buzzing over a viral video of the crowd at UFC Tampa this past weekend.
While Michael Johnson’s knockout over Ottman Azaitar in their lightweight showdown had fans on their feet, eagle-eyed fans watching the broadcast at home spotted an interaction as the camera crew recorded crowd reactions.
After Johnson landed the right hand that slept his German counterpart in Round 2 at Amalie Arena, the Florida fans began chanting ‘USA’ to support the veteran fighter.
However, as the camera panned through the audience, a kid appeared to be choking as his father watched the replay on the jumbotron. The boy gagged as he patted his chest and neck, trying to get his guardian’s attention.
The grown man next to him appeared to have a bag of popcorn in hand as his undivided focus remained on the signature knockout that had just occurred.
After Happy Punch posted the clip, which has over 3.4million views, fans took to the comments with mixed reactions.
UFC fans spotted a kid seemingly choking in the crowd at UFC Tampa over the weekend
The incident happened after Michael Johnson scored a crazy knockout over Ottman Azaitar
Some fans reacted comedically, noting how the father had other ‘priorities’ during the event.
‘Kid needs to learn some respect and patience! Your father doesn’t pay all that money for you to complain after a awesome event,’ one user quipped.
‘That’s a very dedicated dad. His son should learn from his example and do better than try to distract from Johnson’s ridiculous KO,’ another added.
‘Bro set priorities. I think he will get trouble at home,’ a third added.
Others expressed concern for the kid, with one user writing ‘Wow, how can a dad miss that.’
Another wrote, ‘WTF. Was this a medical emergency?! When was this?!’
Meanwhile, another set of fans insisted that the kid was aware of the cameras and staged the incident, with one user suggesting ‘Bro was 100% faking.’
‘Bro in this day and age, I wouldn’t be surprised if he was faking it,’ another wrote.
‘Kid looked at the camera lmao,’ a third pointed out.
UFC Tampa was the organization’s final card of 2024. The ESPN fight night drew 18,625 fans to the building with a gate of $3.06million.
The UFC’s year-end finale saw six decisions and seven knockout finishes.
