Nagoya, September 21, 2026 (Yes Punjab News)
Suchika Tariyal secured India’s first-ever Asian Games medal in mixed martial arts after her historic campaign ended with a controversial semifinal defeat, with coach Nikhil Kunder explaining that the result was ultimately decided by the lesser-weighed contestant rule after arbitration declared the bout a draw.
Suchika was initially awarded a defeat against Singapore’s Hui Hoon Teo, prompting the Indian camp to lodge a protest against the decision.
Following the protest, the bout went into arbitration, where three judges were selected to review and rescore the contest. According to Kunder, the re-evaluation did not produce a winner and the bout was declared a draw.
“We were confident that Suchika had won the fight. According to the rule, when arbitration happens, we select three judges. Those three judges get a chance to score the bout again. After they scored the bout again, it was declared a draw,” Kunder said.
He explained that once the contest was declared a draw, Singapore had the option of seeking counter-arbitration or relying on the weight criterion under the rules of the Asian Mixed Martial Arts Association (AMMA).
“Now when it’s a draw, the opposition team, Singapore here, has an option. They can either counter-arbitrate or they can go with the weight criteria. These are AMMA rules. This is in accordance with the rules of the AMMA Federation,” Kunder said.
“Singapore chose not to pursue counter-arbitration and instead went with the lesser-weighed contestant. Unfortunately, Suchika was 700 grams heavier than her. And on those grounds, this match has been awarded to her opponent,” he added.
Kunder maintained that the weight-based outcome did not reflect his assessment of Suchika’s performance inside the cage.
“But if you look at the technicalities and scoring of the fight, Suchika won,” he said.
Despite the semifinal result, the 36-year-old secured a historic bronze medal for India in MMA at the Asian Games.
Suchika, who has competed in judo, kurash and fighting jiu-jitsu, had earlier defeated Mongolia’s Altanchimeg Baigalmaa 2-0 in the quarterfinals to reach the last four.
MMA is making its Asian Games debut at the Aichi-Nagoya Games, making Suchika’s bronze a landmark achievement for Indian combat sports.
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