Bare-knuckle boxer Tai Emery, who made international headlines when she flashed the crowd after her debut win, makes her return to action this afternoon.
Emery is promising a similar, if more explosive, celebration if she lands a second victory in Bangkok when she faces the debuting Chisakan Ariphipat on the undercard of BKFC Thailand 4. Emery is 1-0 in in bare-knuckle boxing having started as an amateur MMA fighter, and made waves in the sport when she removed her top following her victory over Rung-Arun Khunchai in September.
She hadn't won a fight in MMA, having drawn and lost her first two amateur bouts, but completely overmatched Khunchai, knocking her out in the first round. And fans were stunned when Emery ran to the turnbuckle, stood atop the ropes and pulled her shirt up to reveal her breasts to the crowd.
“Welcome to Bare Knuckle Fighting Championship, Tai Emery!” One commentator exclaimed on the night. “Interesting celebration right there by Tai Emery - we haven’t seen that one yet before.” The BKFC Twitter account (@bareknucklefc) wrote: “Welp, that’s one way to celebrate a win. Welcome to BKFC!”
Now, she's back in action, and the Nevada native vows to make similar waves should she land another massive victory. “Life has definitely taken a turn just by me being my crazy little self,” Emery told MMA Junkie after the viral moment. “Honestly, it’s been super positive.
"Everybody feels super liberated by such an act. Hashtags like ‘rebel’ and ‘free,’ and I think that’s really cool. Just by doing something that’s really at the end of the day so silly, if it’s making people feel that positive vibe, then yeah, roll with it. It’s time to do whatever I want. I earned it.
What did you make of Tai Emery's outlandish celebration? Let us know your thoughts in the comments section below!
“So, if I want to flash my t**s again, people, I’m going to do whatever I want. … One hundred percent I’m probably going to do something even stupider. That’s the whole point of this. Like I said, in that moment I get to KO someone like, knock them out, I get to own that point of time for myself.”
However, she has admitted that she landed herself in hot water with BKFC management after the last one, and has been threatened with a fine if she pulls the exact same trick. “So they said that I’m going to be fined if I pull a stunt," she told MMA Fighting. "That word has been locked in my head, because I’ve been pulled into the principal’s office once again.
“Nothing’s changed. I’ve been told that the stunt that I pulled will not be allowed. Their talking millions of bahts in fines, but what’s good? We’ll see what happens.”
The fighter's following on social media almost trebled after the stunt, as she became one of the most talked about fighters in BKFC and landed over 134,000 fans. She has since shared videos of the likes of Joe Rogan discussing her fights, and has had a number of fighters reaching out to her.
