A robber picked on the wrong woman when he tried to steal from an ultimate fighting champion star in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. The thief demanded athlete Polyana Viana hand over her phone, threatening her with what looked like a gun. Not one to be messed with, Viana threw punches, and captured the man in a choke hold. She managed to hold him until the police arrived to pick him up.
When they did, they were surprised to discover that the "gun" the robber has threatened her with was of the... homemade variety. The man had also only recently got out of jail for similar crimes. Viana thinks the man was scared when she turned on him - not surprising, when you consider her fighting prowess. The lesson to any would-be thieves out there? Don't judge a book by its cover!
You may already know what UFC is.
It stands for Ultimate Fighting Championship, and is the largest mix martial arts company in the world.The first UFC event was held in 1993.
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The fighting style is categorised by its minimal rules, plus lack of weight classes between competitors. It's supposed to help identify the most effective forms of martial art in terms of physical combat.It has a reputation for being pretty hardcore.
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UFC fighters are known for being some of the most skilled martial artists on the roster - basically, pretty scary guys.Women can also get a piece of the action.
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In fact, the UFC's decision to open up the contest to female fighters is cited as one of the main reason's for the growth of women's mixed martial arts fighting.Here is Polyana Viana, a female UFC star.
According to Sherdog's stats, she's won ten fights and only lost two - making her one tough lady.Viana's UFC nickname is Dama de Ferro.
This translates as "The Iron Lady." Put simply, she isn't someone you want to mess with.Our story begins in a vary innocuous place.
Viana was waiting for an Uber in Jacarepagua, Rio de Janeiro - a scenario we've pretty much all been in before.A man approached Viana as she waited.
He demanded she hand over her phone, and warned her that he was armed.The thief obviously didn't know who Viana was.
Not to be messed with, instead of meekly handing over the phone, Viana lashed out and threw some serious punches.Viana successfully subdued the thief.
Once she'd thrown him off guard, she used her UFC skills to capture the man in a chokehold to safely restrain him.UFC president, Dana White shared this image.
The robber is totally battered and bruised after his encounter with Viana.That's gotta hurt.
The man's face is severely swollen, plus the impact appears to have broken the skin in a few places. That's what you get for messing with a professional fighter!Viana managed to restrain the man until police arrived.
After he was apprehended, the police discovered the man had been arrested on similar charges before, and was only recently released.It was Viana's quick thinking that kept her safe.
She described the incident to MMA junkie, saying "I thought 'If it's a gun, he won't have time to draw it.'"Her well-practised moves meant she could safely and effectively stop the crime.
Recounting the incident, Viana said, "I stood up. I threw two punches and a kick. He fell, then I caught him in a rear-naked choke. Then I sat him down in the same place we were before and said, ‘Now we’ll wait for the police.’"When the police arrived, they discovered something pretty surprising.
@OMGLove The gun was a cardboard one https://t.co/4VUuLHaNLg— عبدالوهاب (@عبدالوهاب)1546991650.0
Now that's not very smart.
Viana claimed she had suspected the gun may have been a fake, claiming it looked "too soft."Here's another look at the robber's injuries.
Someone wanted to steal the fighter Poliana Viana and this what happened to him. https://t.co/Wsgnh6gQ2q— Hamdan (@Hamdan)1546856971.0
This looks extremely painful.
You almost feel sorry for the guy. Well, until you remember that he brought the whole thing on himself.Anyone who's part of the UFC is pretty much a badass.
We're guessing if he knew about Viana's mixed martial arts skills the robber might have picked a different victim.Twitter users were big fans of the story.
So this piece of trash decides he's so pathetic he's going to threaten a woman and steal her phone. Thing is... tha… https://t.co/wGI9rpwxEo— Giovanni Campea (@Giovanni Campea)1546834804.0
It's clear Viana was the wrong opponent for him to choose.
So this piece of trash decides he's so pathetic he's going to threaten a woman and steal her phone. Thing is... tha… https://t.co/wGI9rpwxEo— Giovanni Campea (@Giovanni Campea)1546834804.0
Even celebrities got in on the story.
You should never mug people! You should especially never mug women!! And definitely make sure you never ever mug a… https://t.co/ijpTBFanjS— Perez (@Perez)1546908003.0
Others commented that women in general are surprisingly tough.
Don't mess with women. Surefire way to get your top-storey furniture rearranged. #PolyanaViana #Kickass… https://t.co/medbqpqMxP— Sportstar (@Sportstar)1546940826.0
Polyana Viana, you're an inspiration.
Next time someone says you fight #LikeAGirl that's fine if you fight like Polyana Viana https://t.co/QUIfkHE6VW— Terrence L Daniels (@Terrence L Daniels)1546920596.0