In a world littered with professional sports where cynicism and cheating are rife, the actions of amateur MMA fighter Mike Pantangco in his flyweight bout against Jeremy Rasner in his Prison City Fight League matchup in Michigan a few weeks back are very refreshing.
Rasner was hopelessly out of his depth against Pantangco, but he wasn’t quitting as we see in the video (despite the battering he was taking and going to continue to take). Instead of going for the kill, and with the referee not stepping in to call a halt to proceedings, Pantangco decided to tap out to save his opponent from unnecessary punishment.
“We don’t get money. We don’t get paid and I know that the only thing I’m going to finish the fight is him to go in the hospital or get hurt. I just feel terrible so I’m just going to give him the win,” said Pantangco.
While Pantangco now technically has a loss on his record after this fight, his decision to put the health of his opponent ahead of his own gain is a rare thing indeed. More power to you, Mike! Check out the video.
