Injuries, transfers and third-party activities: how the fight between Shlemenko and Ismailov risks turning into a soap bubble

The duel between Alexander Shlemenko and Magomed Ismailov promised to be the brightest event of the year in Russian mixed martial arts.

The long-awaited meeting of two top middleweights in a cage expectedly attracted the attention of a huge number of MMA fans, and for its promotion a separate show was organized - a kind of analogue of The Ultimate Fighter, in which fighters led by star mentors fought for contracts with the RCC promotion.

But if the events accompanying the battle are in full swing and without deviations from the schedule, then it will be postponed for the second time and there are no guarantees that this will not happen again.

Initially, the battle was supposed to take place in July, but in the course of preparing for it, Ismailov began to worry about long-standing problems with his knees.

As his brother Ramazan said, he injured one ten years ago when he expressed disagreement with the detention of a friend, for which an OMON fighter hit him on the leg.

He seriously injured his second knee during a sparring match with Rashid Yusupov in 2017.

Subsequently, Magomed underwent surgery, but it was not possible to completely solve the problems.

“Both ligaments are torn.

But he fought with such ligaments ... She (knee injury. -

) made itself felt at moments, but at moments the Mage did not feel pain.

He fought (with Vladimir Mineev. - 

), after which he underwent a tomography, an x-ray ... And they said that he needed an operation ... They did it three days ago in Moscow, ”Ismailov Sr. told Sport-Express.

Then the brother and part-time coach of the athlete assured that recovery could take from two to three weeks, but taking into account age, he also allowed an increase in the rehabilitation period.

As a result, the bout originally scheduled for July was postponed to August 26.

In May, the rivals signed a contract, held a press conference and continued to prepare for a fierce confrontation.

However, two months later, everything changed again.

“The main fight of the year will take place in December, and not in August, as previously planned.

The Bald Predator is ready to enter the cage in September, but the all-star fight will headline the numbered tournament, which will take place shortly before the New Year, ”the RCC press service said.

As Ismailov himself admitted, he personally asked the promotion management to postpone their duel with Shlemenko, as he would not be able to get the necessary shape by the end of August.

According to Magomed, he warned both the league and the future opponent about this in advance, and subsequently was surprised by Alexander's "grand plans".

Initially, he planned to fight him, and a month later he would compete at a tournament in his native Omsk.

“He was going to fight me, and after me, for some reason, he thought that in thirty days he would be able to crawl to another cage ... Well, I don’t know, too self-confident ... I offered him September, but Sasha, as a patriot of his country, Omsk, is going to fight … on the bicentennial of the city… I don't want to step on the same rake.

I have made such mistakes before.

I went out to the confrontation not in condition ... Therefore, excuse me, everyone, ”Ismailov said.

About two weeks ago, Shlemenko personally expressed doubts about Ismailov's readiness to fight at the end of the summer.

He noted that at the time of the last meeting, his opponent was not in the best shape and clearly did not train properly.

Evidence of this was Magomed's overweight - 106 kilograms with an average category limit of 84.

“I myself don’t know if this fight will take place or not.

I can say for sure that I’m not going to sit and wait for Maga… I hope that August 26 is the actual date… Even if Magi isn’t there, then my fight should probably take place, but I’m preparing for it.

At least I have backup options, ”admitted the ex-champion of Bellator Sport24.

It is unlikely that at least someone will now decide to declare with confidence that the fight is guaranteed to take place at the new appointed date.

And the point is not only in the state of Magomed, but also in the aspirations of Alexander to remain active and enter the cage, first in August, and then in September.

And if the fight at the tournament in his native Omsk may well have the status of a warm-up, then the battle at the RCC show promises to be extremely difficult.

This can be assumed based on who exactly the matchmakers are considering as his possible opponent.

According to RCC Executive Director Nikolai Klimenko, the former UFC middleweight No. 1 Ronaldo Souza, who had previously defeated the Russian, can share the cage with Shlemenko.

In 2006, they met at the tournament of the Brazilian promotion Jungle Fight, and then the Brazilian strangled him in 130 seconds.

Yes, 42-year-old Jacaret is no longer the same athlete who instilled fear in opponents in the category up to 84 kg.

He lost his last four fights in the UFC, two of them in the first rounds, was released from his contract, and after that he did not fight for 14 months.

Therefore, it is very difficult to say how ready he is to resist the extremely collected and regularly speaking Shlemenko, even though from the point of view of style he seems to be an extremely uncomfortable opponent for him.

Souza not only holds black belts in Brazilian jiu-jitsu and judo, but also won three ADCC world grappling championships.

If this battle really takes place, it will surely cause a serious stir.

One of the most famous Russian MMA fighters against a former UFC star is more than a worthy sign, even if you do not take into account their history of confrontation.

But there are fears that the fight could put an end to the duel between Shlemenko and Ismailov, which now seems not particularly necessary for both of them.

On the one hand, Shlemenko can be understood.

If Ismailov had not worsened problems with his knees, and the fight had taken place on time, then no difficulties would have arisen.

He would have been able to recover for a show in Omsk, and in three or four months he could fight again.

But with the recent changes, his schedule seems overcrowded.

To fight with Jacare in August and then to please the native fans seems to be a difficult task.

But if you add to this the battle with Magomed in December, then the situation does seem surreal.

Even if the first two fights are relatively simple and end in favor of Shlemenko, no one canceled recovery, preparation and weight race.

To go through all this three times in four months is an extremely difficult test.

And it is far from a fact that 38-year-old Alexander is able to withstand it and approach the “fight of the year” in optimal conditions.

Otherwise, it is unlikely to suit both him and his fans.

In addition, if Storm loses, then using the imperfect state and congestion as excuses will not work.

After all, he himself can provoke all this.

That is why Shlemenko's unwillingness to limit himself to a performance in Omsk and calmly prepare for a duel with Ismailov is surprising.

On the contrary, it seems that he is already bored with this confrontation and does not arouse due interest - and this despite the fee of $ 300 thousand. However, in this case, claims can be made not only to him, but also to Magomed.

And even to a greater extent.

After all, it was he who debuted in boxing in February, and then was going to re-enter the ring.

It is difficult to say what role the battle with Olanrevaju Durodola played in the postponement of the fight with Shlemenko.

Perhaps participation in it did not have any effect on Ismailov's condition, but became only an important stage in preparation.

But the very fact of its organization may suggest certain thoughts, because few people have previously done something similar.

Khabib Nurmagomedov did not fight in grappling tournaments before the principal duel with Conor McGregor, and Pyotr Yan did not compete in the Russian boxing championship before the fight with Jose Aldo for the interim UFC title.

Both purposefully prepared for the most important event at that stage of their careers and were focused on it, and did not try their hand at other sports.

Therefore, a logical question arises: how interesting is this fight for both Shlemenko and Ismailov?

The first is not ready to change his plans, and the second tries himself in boxing, despite the problems with his knees that bother him.

And in this situation, not only the fans suffer, but also the RCC management, which cannot do anything about it and only watches the development of the out of control situation.

In 2022, the Yekaterinburg promotion was one of the main newsmakers in the world of Russian martial arts.

They not only signed a contract with Dmitry Bivol, but also agreed on a fight between Shlemenko and Ismailov.

But since then, the boxer has never fought in the Urals, and given his star status and the ban on title fights in Russia, he is unlikely to do so in the near future.

And if the most anticipated fight of the year does not take place, the situation will worsen.