Rafael Aronov, a 29-year-old mixed martial artist who served as a police officer in Beersheba and was nicknamed “The Officer,” and who fought Hamas terrorists in Ofakim on October 7, won his sixth professional mixed martial arts (MMA) victory in London earlier this month.
Aronoff's win came against British fighter Jamie Richardson at the Cage Warriors 174 event.
talk Jerusalem PostAronoff spoke about fighting for Israel both in the Octagon and on the front lines during the Jewish state's darkest hours.
“I will wear the Israeli flag, [Bring Them Home Now] “I wore this necklace. I received a lot of booing from the crowd, but their cheers only encouraged me to win the fight and raise the flag as high as possible in front of them,” Aronov said. “Before I entered the cage, I recited Shema Yisrael, as I always do, and then I remembered my friends who died in combat: Aleksey Bodovsky, Oriel Avraham, Ran Gvili and Shaiel Knafo. They all died on October 7th.”
The first round started in Aronoff's favor, he was landing heavy, hard punches and scoring a few hits, but it didn't last long as Richardson, the clear crowd favorite, began to pick up the victory with a succession of clean, accurate punches that wore down Aronoff.
The round ended on the ground, with Richardson pressing his left arm against Aronoff's neck and looking for an opening to punch the Israeli in the face with his right fist.
“It was pretty tough, but I tried not to show it too much,” Aronoff admitted. “Most of my matches I start pretty badly, but then I usually overcome the adversity and come back.”
And that's exactly what happened.
Round 2
The second round started much like the first, with Aronoff's aggressive attitude setting the tone, but this time, whatever momentum Richardson had in the first round to turn the tide had been used up.
One minute and three seconds into the second round, Aronoff landed a powerful jab that broke his British opponent's guard and sent him staggering back.
A futile attempt to protect his face did little to stop the ensuing jab, and then a right uppercut.
A quick hook combination then dropped Richardson to the mat, and seconds later, Aronoff applied a triangle choke, forcing Richardson to tap out.
The silence that pervaded the room was quickly broken by screams of joy from Aronoff's brother, Eli, and his wife, Lior, who had been watching from a corner just a few feet away.
Israeli mixed martial artist Rafael Aronov after his victory at Cage Warriors 174 in London, England, July 24, 2024. (Photo by cagewarriors)
“When I won, they were all silent,” Aronoff recalled, “but then I got up and walked over to the side of the cage and they started yelling, 'Free Palestine,' and booing. Some people even gave me the finger. So I looked at the people in the crowd who were giving me the finger and I gave them the finger back. Then I went to my brother, Eli, and I said, 'Bring me an Israeli flag.' And he did, and I went over to the crowd and held it as high as I could.”
As the referee announced the bout's final decision, Aronov stood proudly, holding an Israeli flag in one hand and the tag hanging from his neck in the other, while Lior stood behind him, holding the Israeli flag in front of him.
Aronoff said his history of service and defeat early in his professional career and on the battlefield has motivated him to succeed in the Octagon.
Aronov spoke about his experiences on October 7th of last year in the hope of raising awareness about the conditions of hostages held by Hamas and the situation of the Israeli military fighting terrorism in Gaza.
“I was woken up by my alarm at 6:30am,” he said, explaining that at first he and his wife didn't think much of it and were thinking about going back to sleep, “and then the alarm went off again. And then the alarm went off again. I started getting a lot of videos on WhatsApp and Telegram and I started to realise something big was happening.
“I was in uniform and heading off to battle before I was even told anything. My whole unit was called to battle. We were told terrorists were invading the country.
“At the police station we gathered a team of four and were sent to Ofakim,” Aronov continued, “There I fought at the famous house of Rachel, the lady with the cookies, and also at another location in Ofakim. Two of my team members were wounded by grenades, so I took command of the remaining team and continued the fight.”
After that, we tried to go to Reims, where we knew other comrades from our unit were fighting. Two of my best friends died there: Alexei Bodovsky and Oriel Abraham. We got that information on the scene. We brought their bodies from there.”
Aronoff explained that with the help of his wife, Lior, he was able to overcome injuries and losses early in his career to become the fighter he is today and to “put Israel on the map” by pursuing his passion.
“I can represent Israel in a good way, let people know about the hostage crisis, let them know that we are on the right side and fighting a just fight,” he said.
Moreover, he didn't seem to mind people booing him because of his nationality.
“Our real victory over them is to keep doing what we're doing,” Aronoff said. “Let's keep flying the flag, keep winning, keep showing that even though there's war, we're still doing what we love. Our lives aren't at a standstill. Even though we mourn our dead, we keep going, we keep dancing. That's our real victory over anti-Semitism.”
At the end of the interview, Aronov asked me to once again mention my fallen friends and comrades, Alexei Bodovsky, Oriel Abraham, Ran Gvili, and Shaiel Knafo.
He also urged readers to pray for the safe return of Israeli soldiers and hostages.
