Vasily 'Dumpling' Khamotskiy is "waiting for an invitation" from Dana White after the UFC head honcho announced he wanted to take the Russian 'Slapping Champion' onto the organization's Fight Pass streaming service.
Khamotskiy shot to viral fame after footage of his KO victories on his way to winning the inaugural Russian Slapping Championships at the Siberian Strength Show 2019 held in his native Siberia, which was later retweeted by UFC commentator Joe Rogan.
Also on rt.com 'It sent me into a mini coma!' Russian Slapping Champion 'Dumpling' KO'd & hospitalized in defeat (VIDEO)What followed was calls for the new hardcore Russian sport to be entered into the Olympic Games and further videos of the 6ft 3in, 370lbs Khamotskiy defending his champion title in similar devastating fashion.
A new wave of attention focussed on the simple farmer from the quiet village of Ilyansky in Siberia, whose nickname stems from his animalistic appetite and penchant for the Russian national delicacies, known as 'pelmeni'.
However, it wasn't until Dumpling tasted his frist defeat that the interest hit its peak. The bearded behemoth slap champ was brutally KO's in a recent slap battle with an opponent, by a strike he said sent him into a "mini coma".
It looks as though Slapping Championships will be heading to the UFC, rather than to the Olympics, as UFC head honcho Dana White saw the video and made the seemingly inevitable step of floating the idea to make a fight between the two competitors in the UFC.
"These guys SLAP the SHIT out of each other!!! The guy in the red is the Champ “Dumpling” and he just lost for the first time. I’m thinking about these guys on UFC Fight Pass what do you think?" White tweeted.
Dimpling is never one to turn down a challenge, and in his usual laconic fashion, replied "waiting for an invitation" to White in an Instagram story.
In an interview with RT Sport at the height of his slapping fame earlier this year, Dumpling expressed uncertainty over whether he was ready for UFC, "I’ve never really even considered going into UFC. I don’t think it’s my thing. They hit hard and I would die I think! WWE is like a show, a stage, it’s not real," he said.
There is alsready one Russian superstar in the UFC, and it seems White wants to build on the success of lightweight champion Khabib Nurmagomedov and incorporate Siberian sport into the biggest promotion in professional MMA.
White also may be interested in the female verison of the Slap Championships, a spin off of Dumpling's exploits - the Booty-Slapping Championships - which would surely interest those interested in slaps thudding off a softer, rounder surface than a bearded siberian farmer's beard.