The petite, explosive cage fighter

WHEN she is not administering care and aid to animals as a veterinary nurse, 18-year-old Hayatun Najihin busies herself with pummelling and grappling her opponents into submission as she hones her craft; mixed martial arts.
An established force in the local cage fighting scene, and with a presence that is quickly gaining traction overseas, Hayatun’s first exposure to MMA was through the South Korean reality show Roommate in 2014.
“There was a female fighter named Song Ga Yeon, with one episode showing both her gym and her fighting in it. That was what sparked my curiosity,” she said.
With her sister then funding her gym’s fees as a birthday present and countless bruises over the course of three years, Hayatun – her height clocking in at 158cm – would go on to make and win her professional debut in Ultimate Beatdown 23 on July 15, after which she was quickly snatched up by ONE Championship, the biggest MMA promotion in Asia.

In your Ultimate Beatdown 23 professional debut, after defeating Masrina Hamka of Indonesia, you displayed generous sportsmanship. Have you ever been in a match where your opponent behaved completely opposite to that?
Yes, I’ve been in that situation before, where my opponent behaved completely opposite to sportsmanship. In every fight, I try to act ruthless, because I’m aware that others underestimate me as I don’t look intimidating, or seem like I don’t know how to fight. But I’ve proved them wrong with my knowledge of different martial art disciplines. In the end, they see how I’m a natural in the cage.
Do you use anger as a motivator for each match? If not, what fuels your desire to win?
I never use anger as a motivator while fighting. The people surrounding me show their belief in me, and even though I know I’m well-prepared for every fight, I still have some self-doubt. I often end up thinking about my coach, teammates, families, and friends. Their lingering supportive words would also play in my mind before matches.
Most professional fighters seem to dedicate themselves to fighting full-time. So, how do you balance your time between working and training, especially with the much shorter recovery window?
As I rarely have time to spend with friends, and coupled with how I’m still young, my body finds it faster to recover. I’ve gotten used to both, and it’s part of my daily routine now.
As part of a long line of women who are smashing gender and religious barriers with the sport, did you face criticism by others when you first started ground fighting? Do you still experience it?
I did, but I ignored the criticism, leaving them be as I know what I’m doing, and critics can’t do anything that will me stop me from doing this. I guess I’m better off cage fighting, compared to wasting my life in the company of hooligans.
What was your family’s response to you joining MMA?
They’re very supportive. Even my dad used to drop and fetch me to the gym back when I was still in school as I had no driving licence. Before fights, my mum always says she would pray for me, while cheering me on by calling my full name; “Najihin” means success. Even my brothers and sisters are supportive of me.
How did the nickname “Shadow Cat” come about?
It happened last year, if I’m not mistaken. I was in an all-black attire, and my coach, Melvin Teoh, mentioned how I looked like a cat, before suddenly shouting “Oh, I know already! I should call you ‘Shadow Cat’.”
At the time, I told myself the nickname wouldn’t stick for long, but my teammates started referring to me as “Black Cat”, before it spread like wildfire with other people.
Now that you’ve been signed to ONE Championship and are part of the big leagues, do you have any advice for (younger) fans that look up to you and potentially want to follow in your footsteps?
I want to encourage women to stand up for themselves, to step out of their comfort zones, and to achieve independency. Don’t let other people control what you do because it will help you achieve nothing. It doesn’t matter what type of sport it is, or if it’s not even a sport, you will ultimately get what you want if you work for it.