- Before the start of the Russian MMA Championship in 2021, you expressed the hope that it will become the best in history. Did the tournament live up to expectations?
- I got great pleasure both from the competition and from the events accompanying it.
Expectations from the championship in Kuzbass were very high, but everything turned out even better.
- What is the reason for the idea of holding fights in two cages - full-size and small-sized?
- Representatives of light weight categories in men, as well as women, usually fight in a six-meter cage.
Those who are heavier fight in the standard one.
But I would not say that the difference is too significant.
- Don't you think that such conditions made life very difficult for the drummers?
- No.
At first I had such suspicions, but then I went downstairs myself, looked, checked.
In my opinion, working in it is equally comfortable for both drummers and wrestlers.
On the contrary, the decrease in the area of the cage led to the fact that the contractions became more dynamic and exciting.
- Perhaps, the fights in the heavyweight category attracted the most attention of the fans. But the question is, what is the future of these athletes? In professional MMA, such a division does not exist, and some fighters will have to significantly lose weight in order to keep within 120 kilograms.
- This weight category has a future.
But above all, our athletes who will perform at the continental and world championships have it.
In my opinion, the biggest reward is when the Russian anthem is played in your honor.
As for promotions, this is another reason for them to think about the need to introduce new divisions.
Heavyweight fights have always been a gem of any show.
- The head of the International MMA Federation (
IMMAF
) Kerrit Brown was present at the 2021 Russian Championship in Kemerovo
.
Have you discussed with him the introduction of new weight categories for women?
- To begin with, Brown welcomes our decision to introduce women's fighting into the national championship program.
We walked for a very long time and prepared for this.
To be honest, not everyone had the correct idea of how to develop women's mixed martial arts.
Many people still consider MMA to be a purely male sport, and when girls are in the cage, certain paradigms break down.
But we must understand that MMA should not lag behind other types, and gender equality is very important for sports in modern society.
No matter how anyone thinks about this, we must respect the desire of girls to achieve the highest results.
- How was the process of including women's MMA in the national championship program?
- Not so easy.
Several times the regulations of the fights were not approved, as a result of which they had to be finalized.
At one of the meetings of the commission of the Ministry of Sports, Odes Khasayevich Baysultanov (deputy head of the Ministry of Sports in charge of martial arts) gave us a trial period of a year so that we could demonstrate how popular and in demand female MMA is.
If successful, it will be entered into the registry.
- When did you realize that it was time to get busy with women's MMA in Russia?
- When I came to the next world championship and saw how many women compete.
I thought, since this has already become an integral part of IMMAF competitions, why should we lag behind, give up positions, deprive ourselves of the chance to win medals?
Especially when messages from girls come from all over Russia asking to give them the opportunity to perform.
From one region came a collective letter from three girls, from another - ten, the third - twenty.
Every day the number of requests only increased.
Moreover, everyone is watching the UFC, Bellator tournaments, in which women are active.
Take the same Valentina Shevchenko, who has achieved tremendous success in professional MMA.
She is a flagship and an example for many girls.
- How do you yourself feel about women's fights?
- Initially, I was against it.
But when he was convinced that it was necessary, he took up the issue 100%.
Better let the girls train in the gym than spend time in a bar or similar establishments.
Perhaps mixed martial arts will become a kind of social lift for them.
- At present, the question of the possible participation of transgender athletes in competitions is increasingly being discussed in the world. As the president of the MMA Union of Russia, have you thought about how you will behave if a transgender person decides to take part in the national championship?
- Thank God, so far no such requests have been received.
On the world stage of MMA, this is not discussed, it is not on the agenda.
So I haven't even thought about it yet.
I pay attention to other, more important tasks.
For example, training of coaches.
Over the next five years, we will make a serious emphasis on this.
- You have already spoken about the ban on the performance of professionals at the Russian championships. But would you like to have at least one show fight between MMA stars in order to attract attention to the tournament?
- At the end of the last championship, fights were held with the participation of professionals, in which fighters from Kemerovo fought with representatives of other countries.
So we are already working in this direction.
We do this so that the athletes themselves and their parents see two aspects of MMA.
- In 2021, the Russian MMA championship was again not broadcast on federal channels. Earlier you mentioned the lack of patriotism among broadcasters as one of the possible reasons. Has your opinion changed?
- No, I haven't changed my point of view. I understand if it was an all-Russian masterful tournament or some kind of championship. But this is the Russian championship. It is used by athletes who will represent our country at international competitions in the future. The channels themselves should strive to broadcast the event. We should not run after them, beg, try to negotiate, and even more so pay big money for the show. It will be watched anyway, because our sport is one of the most versatile and popular in the world. No wonder they say: "You can endlessly look at how the fire burns, the water flows and the MMA fighters are fighting."
For whom were the central channels created?
Is it not for us?
We make a product for them that they are obliged to show.
Vladimir Putin gave instructions to create them not so that they would take money from us for broadcasting, but so that they themselves would look for an opportunity to do it.
So that the tournaments can be watched in Kaliningrad, and in Chukotka, and in Yakutsk.
And when federal channels start asking us for unthinkable money, it is, to say the least, incorrect and stupid.
We, martial artists, do a lot like that.
Everything is ready - all that remains is to come, put the camera and give a signal.
- Consequently, there was a dialogue with TV channels?
- I personally did not communicate on this topic, the representatives of the Kuzbass federation spoke.
Why it was not possible to agree, I cannot say.
- Among other things, the Russian championship was remembered for the performance of rapper Dzhigan. Was this an attempt to attract a new audience to the stands?
- One of the partners of the MMA Union of Russia, Regionservice, represented by its head Denis Rybakov, invited this performer.
A gift was made to the residents of Kemerovo and to all the participants of the competition.
Why don't famous rappers come and perform their songs live?
It is also important for them that they are not forgotten.
- Did the MMA Union of Russia agree on Djigan's candidacy?
- Sure.
I was asked if I was against his invitation.
He replied no.
- Surely, many saw this situation in this way: at the tournament of the organization, which was previously headed by Fedor Emelianenko, a musician will perform who will soon fight his brother Alexander.
- In this regard, everything is relative.
If you look at this situation from the point of view of the organizer, then the arrival of Dzhigan is viewed exclusively from a cultural, not a sports point of view.
So far, their fight with Alexander has not been officially approved, and it is not a fact that this will happen in the future.
- Have you considered the possibility of inviting rapper Morgenstern to Kemerovo? Recently, he has also been associated with the MMA community, in the light of which his performance at the Russian championship could have caused the effect of an exploding bomb.
- The real "bombs" are the final fights of the tournament. They are so watchable and expected that it makes no sense to promote them additionally. As for Morgenstern, we did not consider his candidacy. It seems to me that we need to stop talking about him, so as not to make a fuss about his name once again. He does nothing positive. I myself am far from this kind of creativity. I saw what claims were made against him with regards to drug propaganda. In my opinion, this should be dealt with by law enforcement agencies, the prosecutor's office, and the Investigative Committee. I hope it will not be related to our events.
We promote patriotism, a healthy lifestyle, we try to instill socially significant qualities in our athletes, and not destroy them.
Amateur mixed martial arts are tens of thousands of athletes, the MMA Union of Russia is responsible for each of them.
- Returning to the possible duel between Emelianenko and Dzhigan. Do you think it will really take place?
- To begin with, I will answer as an athlete.
I have little faith that this battle will take place.
I can hardly imagine how a person who has devoted his life to creativity will enter a cage with a professional MMA fighter.
- At one time Denis received the title of CCM in kickboxing ...
- Yes, but Alexander is an international master of sports in combat sambo, and even an athlete who has performed in the world's largest arenas.
Emelianenko is able to send such a "train" to his head that one can finish both with creativity and with everything else.
It's worth thinking 100 times before fighting a pro.
It is necessary not only to think about the hype, but also to consider what health consequences such a fight can have.
If I were Djigan, I would not be in a hurry.
Took at least a year to master this sport, prepare well: learn to fight, defend, beat, break the distance.
There is no hurry.
If someone thinks that Alexander is a fighter written off for a long time, then he is very mistaken.
He can easily get into shape and is a danger to any heavyweight.
- Do you think such fights are good advertising for MMA?
- It is hard to say.
Perhaps this will attract increased attention to mixed martial arts, but for how long?
The public will be interested, but will people want to play this sport?
- Lately, there have been many fights between representatives of different sports, bloggers and other celebrities. Everyone remembers the fight between Alexander Emelianenko and Mikhail Koklyaev. Ben Askren recently fought Jake Paul and Floyd Mayweather fought Logan. What do you think about it?
- Strongly negative.
When watching such fights I thought: "God forbid someone will get a terrible injury."
I understand, it is interesting to see how a professional fighter fights against someone who has never been friends with sports, has not been to the gym.
I am sure that the participants in such fights must be examined by special commissions.
If something happens to them, the organizers are to blame.
- Almost every such battle was preceded by a large-scale PR campaign, often based on trash talk. In Russia, this phenomenon is traditionally treated negatively.
- Undoubtedly.
If I had my way, I would have banned trash-talk on the territory of Russia.
Let the athletes come out, stand in front of a friend, greet, take pictures and go to the cage to solve issues.
Instead of exchanging insults, affecting national, spiritual and family values.
Sometimes you hear something that you want to give cudgel therapy to some people.
Young people look at them and then begin to imitate them at school, at home.
- Don't you think that Askren seriously spoiled the reputation of mixed martial arts, losing to Paul?
- We must not forget that the battle was held according to different rules.
If an MMA fighter thinks he will go into boxing and continue to win there, then he is wrong.
It is necessary to rebuild the technique, choose the right tactics.
In addition, it should not be ruled out that this blogger plows in the gym every day, works with a good coach.
- Recently, Kerrit Brown has been repeatedly asked a question about the possible inclusion of MMA in the program of the Olympic Games. In your opinion, is this likely to be done in the near future?
- I do not hide the fact that I actively advocate the inclusion of mixed martial arts in the Games program.
Our sport is wildly popular, a huge number of people are engaged in it, and the IMMAF includes more than 70 countries.
I think this allows us to count on an early entry into the Olympic family.
However, the reality is that many in the IOC do not want this.
- Why can the IOC be against MMA? Does the committee consider mixed martial arts too violent?
- No.
Some believe that if MMA is included in the number of Olympic sports, then someone may not have enough space.
But I don’t think such concerns are well founded.
Better to pay attention to the pros.
If mixed martial arts become part of the Games, they will attract additional attention to them.
MMA has its own long-established audience, which may not follow the Olympic competitions, but will want to see their favorite sport in the Games program.
- And if we talk about the timing?
- This will not be done quickly.
It is necessary to finalize the regulations, rules, and many other points.
In addition, much depends on other countries as well.
They must be prepared to provide high competition.
Not only Russia, the USA, Great Britain, China and Japan should fight for gold.
- According to your forecasts, the inclusion of MMA in the Olympic family is most likely in the 2020s or 2030s?
- On my own behalf, I will do everything possible to make this happen within the next ten years.