I am quite normal about this sport (or not a sport). These are not gladiator slaves, they voluntarily decided to do this. Yes, they are all there for the sake of money and earnings create a show for us. Everyone "goes crazy in his own way" and it is not for me to teach him how it should be. Professional fights for athletes is a chance to earn good money on what they love.

Here's what they talk about what they do ...

Vasily Kurochkin 22

When my mother gave me to karate as a child, I was not serious about sports and skipped training. When something started to work out, and the fights were not easy for me, I got sick with the idea of associating my whole life with wrestling. The section was attended by guys without fathers, and in the hall we received male education. The coach talked to us like with adults and talked a lot about how life works. My professional career started at 18 when I started participating in tournaments for money. Now I have 11 official fights, two of them are defeated.

The hardest part is to lose weight before a fight. Normally, I weigh 92 kilograms, but the day before the competition I should be 77. If I don't reach this weight, I'll get a fine. To achieve these figures in a month and a half, I go on a diet. V the last days I should get about 600 calories: I eat three egg whites with skim milk, for lunch, 100 grams of pearl barley and chicken, vegetables, a glass of skim milk, skim cheese for dinner. When I lived with my mother, it was hard, I had to leave for the whole day and return at night so as not to pay attention to the full refrigerator. Now it is easier for me - I live with a girl, and she keeps a diet with me.

A week before the weigh-in, I start drinking. On the first day, I drink eight liters of water to train the body to remove fluid. I take a 0.75 liter shaker and empty it every hour. It turns out 12 shakers per day. In order not to get lost, I take pictures of them on my phone. I drive the last kilos in the bath. Usually two hours are enough for me to get rid of a couple of kilograms. Some of the guys sit in the bath all day in plastic pants and a jacket and sometimes faint. On the day of weigh-in, you will not recognize me. Then I have a day to recover: I lie under an IV, slowly drink water and start eating again.

When i walked in professional sports, I knew what it would be, although I didn't think how hard it would be. But this is my job, I like it, and I have to endure some difficult moments. Professional level fighter and is distinguished by how he can lose weight and how to quickly recover afterwards and psychologically tune in to the fight.

The euphoria of victory lasts a day or two. If you start starring and skipping workouts, the coach will quickly siege. It is better not to think about defeat and go out into the cage with the mindset to win. I never ask God for victories, but only for strength.

We have a concept of treshstok - this is when fighters bully each other before a fight. I used to love doing shows, shouting something, pushing my opponent's forehead or arms and pushing. The audience loves that. Blood and aggression add drive to combat. Recently I have become calmer - I go out and do my job. But if they bully me, I will not be silent. I would not want to be like Conor McGregor: even though he is the most highly paid fighter MMA says too much. I remember he once said that if Jesus could enter the ring, he would have called him and won.

Egor Golubtsov,29 years

My parents did not want to take me to the karate section on the other side of the city, but when the club opened right at the school, they had no choice. I was drawn to combat sports, I watched films with Bruce Lee, Chuck Norris, Jean-Claude Van Damme, I wanted to be like them. My favorite movie is Mortal Kombat. I recorded it on videotape and watched it every day. Recently it was shown again, and now I understand that there is some kind of circus - unrealistic techniques.

When the section at the school closed, the guys and I did our own work out of inertia: we went to the simulator, practiced blows in a clearing in the forest, because it was uncomfortable in the yard - everyone was watching. But there was no coach, and the sport came to naught. I started making friends with girls, preparing for exams. Then student life began, and until the third year I did not return to fighting. But after a five-year break, I began to work hard, and since then I have not quit fighting.

For five years I worked as an engineer at a factory during the day, and in the evening I went to trainings, opened my own section. The first time I went to a professional fight was in 2011. My debut lasted ten seconds: I went out and immediately got it in my head. Then he played at small MMA tournaments, where there was no cage or ring. Since I worked in parallel, my rating was not very good, victories and defeats were about the same. I could no longer sit at the factory for eight hours and die of boredom, I wanted to do what I loved. And a year and a half ago, I finally quit my job, signed a permanent contract and moved to play only sports. Apparently, I belong to the type of people who need to constantly experience stress and get adrenaline.

Losing weight is a lottery, you can lose weight or you may not. You become angry, you don't smile, you don't react to jokes. At home, you freak out over little things. The maximum I drove is 12 kilograms. Before weighing, he did not sleep, lay in a semi-faint state. Last time it seemed to me that there was a plate on me, I wanted to send everything. Then you convince yourself to wait a little, otherwise the fight will be canceled or points will be added to the opponent.

There is a saying: whoever has not driven weight, does not know the taste of water. After weighing, you can drive into yourself a polka dots, but you still feel like a piece of shit, because the water will begin to act only in a day. To make your recovery faster, you go under a drip with minerals and amino acids. After that, you already turn pink and stop looking like a drug addict with sunken eyes.

Weighing is needed to gain a competitive advantage. Someone copes with it, someone does not. The bigger you are, the easier it will be for you in battle. Now in the category of 77 kilograms there are guys who weigh a hundred. And the audience does not even notice that a big dude comes into the cage, who obviously weighs more than 77.

Due to the adrenaline during the fight, I feel the pain differently. If in training during a painful hold I immediately knock to stop the fight, then in a real fight I endure. Once I won, and when my opponent gave me a submission, I already wanted to knock on the floor. But in my head flashed: "50 thousand for the victory, 50 thousand for the victory." I thought: okay, it doesn't hurt that much, I'll bear with it. In the end, he just spent his strength, and I twisted and won.

After the fight, I check in with the opponents, ask how their health is. During the fight, I do not feel sorry for anyone, and then I sympathize if a person is injured. I was losing by knockout and strangulation. It does not hurt. When the knockout, you boom - and woke up in the locker room. And when they give you a chokehold, you first endure, and then cartoons begin to appear, and you fall asleep. You wake up already from ammonia.

Evgeny Ignatiev,22

I went to karate after my older brother. Since then I have been working with the same coach. From karate he switched to pankration, then to hand-to-hand combat, then into the army hand-to-hand. I am a master of sports in four combat areas. I like mixed martial arts the most.

The strongest buzz I get is when I go out into the cage and the stadium screams. I strive to win, so that the audience will like it, so that the fan base grows and I am recognized on the street. People remember only spectacular battles. If in amateur sports you are fighting for regalia, then rating and money are of paramount importance.

I lost my first professional fight. I was uncomfortable in the cage, the audience was around, I was worried and fidgeting. If there is a nervousness, then it is hard to think. We must try to deceive and catch the opponent, and for this there must be a plan and concentration.

I am not afraid of pain and am ready to find myself in abrasions and bruises. I remember how after one fight I did not get out of bed and barely reached the toilet, so I beat off my feet. The most unpleasant thing was when I was finished off two rounds, the opponent sat on top and thrashed, then my head was all red.

My girlfriend watches all my fights and is not afraid. He does not pity me, because pity is the lot of the weak. But my mother is very worried and cannot look. When I need to lose weight, I lose 14 kilograms. I'm already used to keeping a diet and drinking. Only I really want sweets, especially sweets.

At the beginning of my career, I received little, 6-10 thousand rubles per fight. Now - 20 times more. I studied to be an engineer, but I have always believed in sports. Of course, if I couldn't do anything else, I would go to work at a plant as an engineer for 25 thousand rubles. And so I chose sports and managed to always close the sessions. I think that for a simple guy from a small town, a professional sports career Is a success.

So, in more detail about salaries.

0 - 100 dollars

At the request "got for the first fight" you can find the story of Sergei Khandozhko, who paid 500 rubles for the first fight. The amount of the fee for participating in the tournament.

5,000 rubles ($ 70) may be a perfectly normal fee for a not-so-famous fighter at the beginning of his career, performing in a small tournament. Rasul Mirzaev voiced exactly this amount, talking about the fight in 2008. Artemy Sitenkov, who once defeated Conor McGregor, calls the smallest fee 45 euros. The victory over McGregor brought the Lithuanian 500 euros. Denis Smoldarev, speaking about the first fee, calls the figure 40 dollars.

100 - 1000 dollars

“One fairly famous promotion pays what the fighter agrees to. If a guy from Kostroma or Voronezh agrees to get out for 20,000 rubles, they will pay that much, "says one of the Russian fighters MMA about the tournament, which can be seen in prime time on the federal channel.

The range from $ 100 to $ 1000 will probably be the most heterogeneous in the composition of the participants. $ 200 can be earned in a tournament, the video from which will not even appear on the Internet. $ 1,000 is a normal fee for an athlete from the main card of an M-1 or FightNights tournament.

A lot depends on the manager of the fighter, on the status and prospects of the athlete, in what role he enters the tournament: for example, he can be subscribed to a specific fight as an opponent for a more famous fighter, or he is seen in the future as a local star, or he already appears to her. There may be a situation in which a person generally conducts the first fight in MMA, but he is known in the city, for example, due to his achievements in another sport (wrestling, kickboxing, etc.), or is generally known in the non-sports field. Here you can talk about a fee of more than $ 1000 even for a debut fight

$ 1,000 - $ 10,000

Main battle or pre-main battle Russian tournament with famous athlete... Fights in the main draw of a good American promotion: Abubakar Nurmagomedov - $ 1,500 + 1,500 (guaranteed payment and payment in case of a win - Matchtv.ru), Islam Mamedov - $ 4,000 + 4,000 at WSOF 22.

A promising fighter in M-1 could start from 2000 dollars in 2009.

A publicly known Russian without a star status in the industry in the Russian promotion of the DIA can earn $ 5,000 - and this is considered almost the maximum amount in Russia for a promising athlete.

Today, for Russia and Europe, a fee in the region of $ 5,000 is considered quite worthy. For example, at the KSW tournament (a popular Polish promotion. - Matchtv.ru) 5,000 euros can be received by the rival of a local fighter in one of the main battles of the tournament.

At tournaments like Titan FC or Legacy (US promotions - Matchtv.ru), the participants of the main battle of the evening can receive fees in the amount of 5000 + 5000 dollars.

There can be many different payment options in Asia. Most promotions in Japan (with the exception of Rizin and WSOF-GC) tend to have fairly modest fees. In China, a local fighter can make good money, especially if he is popular and has experience in the same UFC.

In the UFC today, according to the standard contract, the fighter for the first fight receives a fee of $ 10,000 + $ 10,000.

$ 10,000 - $ 100,000

For the Russian promotion, this will be an exceptional fee: according to unofficial information, $ 50,000 was worth one of last speeches Alexandra Emelianenko. Alexey Oleinik was paid 30 thousand dollars at the Oplot tournament for the fight against Jeff Monson in 2013.

$ 50,000 (in addition to the fighting fees) will be paid to the winner of the M-1Global Middleweight Grand Prix in the summer of 2016, where Alexander Shlemenko will face the winner of the Emeev-Falcao pair in the final.

Most of the payouts in Western promotions will fall between ten and one hundred thousand. 20 + 20 - Fee for the second or third fight in the UFC. Until 2014, Bellator hosted grand prix tournaments, where winning three fights in about two months could earn $ 100,000.

The UFC has a bonus system - for the best fight, knockout and reception of the evening, an athlete can receive $ 50,000.

You also need to take into account tax geography. UFC light heavyweight Nikita Krylov says that after a fight in a tournament in the USA or Canada, you can give 30-40% of the fee, in Sweden - 15%, but in Ireland you get the full amount.

There will be no more than ten fighters in Russia, whose fees are measured in tens of thousands of dollars (if we talk about athletes performing in Russian promotions).

$ 100,000 - $ 1,000,000

Fee for a popular UFC fighter with a good win-loss ratio. It is difficult to formulate otherwise. Ali Bagautinov, even fighting for the title in his weight (up to 56 kg), received $ 14,000. Known for his wrestling performances, Brock Lesnar received $ 250,000 in his first fight in the UFC. Boxer James Toney, who agreed to compete in MMA - half a million. Plus, fighters at this level, as a rule, can receive payments from the percentage of the sale of paid broadcasts and special bonuses that are not announced publicly.

Dutch manager Bas Boone, speaking about Feodor Emelianenko's fees in Japan, calls a figure of $ 115,000, but does not specify whether this was the maximum amount.

Bellator has had only one PPV (pay-per-view) tournament so far, so it's too early to talk about the amount of interest payments to the fighters of this promotion. Now the main focus is on the media, the fighter's recognition, which often means more than his level as an athlete. For example, the tournament where Kimbo Slice and Ken Shamrock held their fights against Royce Gracie showed very good rating, and it is he who is taken into account when it comes about fees.

Over 1,000,000 dollars

At UFC 196, Conor McGregor became the organization's first millionaire fighter to be officially released to the public.

Earlier, for a fight against Dan Henderson in Strikeforce, Fedor Emelianenko received one and a half million. At the same time, a contract with the UFC with top fighters implies a lot of conditions that allow you to earn much more than officially announced fees. Earlier it was said that the same Conor McGregor earned about $ 5 million for the fight against Jose Aldo.

The UFC has a very practical fee policy. If an athlete makes a lot of money, it means that he is making a lot of money for the organization through paid streaming sales, high ratings on the FOX channel and tickets to tournaments with his participation.

Some media now say that Conor McGregor was the first to make a million dollars as an MMA fighter. This is not true. Other fighters (such as Anderson Silva, Georges Saint-Pierre, Ronda Rousey, John Jones, Kane Velasquez, Brock Lesnar, etc.) received and receive serious sums.

sources

A muzzle without rules ... And according to the law ?!

“Fighting without rules is in vogue now. They say they are held in the homes of wealthy people, they place bets. But this is a risky thing, injury is possible. I have even heard of one death as a result of such a duel. I have a question: are the organizers of such fights liable before the law? And in general, are such fights allowed? Or a scuffle, even one that led to the most dire consequences, is allowed if there is mutual agreement? "

FOR YOUR AND OUR RIGHTS!

Stanislav Razgonov, Yekaterinburg

I want to note right away that fights without rules have existed for a long time. Just recently, such a tournament was held in Moscow between athletes from Russia and the United States, which, by the way, ended in a convincing victory. Russian athletes(4: 1). However, this competition was held in strict accordance with the current legislation of Russia, and the organizers, of course, were responsible for compliance with all laws.

Conducting such unauthorized events threatens with very harsh sanctions.

According to the requirements Article 4 of Federal Law No. 128-FZ of 08.08.01 "On Licensing Certain Types of Activities" licensed types of activity include those types, the implementation of which may entail damage to the rights, legitimate interests, health of citizens, defense and security of the state, cultural heritage of peoples Russian Federation.

Part 1 of Article 17 definitely requires obtaining a license in the event of organizing and maintaining sweepstakes and gambling establishments.

If it is established that the activities of fighting without rules were carried out without making a profit, which of course is unlikely, then its organizers may be brought to administrative responsibility under Article 19.20 of the Code of Administrative Offenses of the Russian Federation and punished with an administrative fine in the amount of five up to two hundred minimum wages (depending on the person involved: citizen, official, legal entity).

If the relevant authorities establish that the activity of conducting unauthorized fights without rules was aimed at making a profit, then not the administrative, but the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation will come into force, which will “reward” such enterprising citizens with a whole bunch of its articles.

In such circumstances, liability for article 171 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation, establishing responsibility for illegal business. If, in the course of such events, harm is caused to someone, then the person who is directly guilty of this will be prosecuted for harm to health or murder, and the organizers will be subject to prosecution for complicity in the crime.

And at the end of the topic, for some reason, I recalled the words of the German scientist and publicist Wilhelm Schwebel: "If violence is carried out with the help of money, morality and law are silent!" What is it for?

BY THE WAY

5 THOUSAND BUCKS AND ...

Professional boxing, of course, is not a fight without rules. But here, too, money harshly determines the fervor of the battle. A law passed many years ago in the United States prohibits pro to fight in the ring for free. The minimum bet you cannot go below is $ 50. 49 - is already being prosecuted, up to and including imprisonment. However, today the boxer's prize bet for just one fight happens to exceed $ 20 million.

The Russians also enter the professional ring to earn money. True, this money is "ridiculous" in comparison with the fees of overseas boxers. The record rate of prize money paid to the champion of Russia among professionals in the entire short history of these fights was, according to various sources, 5-6 thousand dollars.

The magic of Camila. Together with Liu Valieva, she defeated Trusova, Kostornaya, and Shcherbakova. The last, third gold of the junior world championship in Tallinn, Russia was brought by 13-year-old Kamila Valieva. With the "junior" (so far) world record. 03/07/2020 22:00 Figure skating Tigai Lev

"Tennis, I say goodbye to you ...". Maria Sharapova's column Maria Sharapova announced her breakup with big sports in a touching letter published by VanityFair. 02/26/2020 18:00 Tennis Anisimov Vadim

Alexander Kokorin: We need to finish off this virus, and then finish the championship The victory of Sochi over Krasnodar brought Zenit closer to the championship (the blue-white-blue were again nine points ahead). Much credit for this belongs to the forward of the St. Petersburg club, who stands for Sochi on loan. 03/15/2020 18:07 Football Sergeev Ivan

He is attracted to the top 20, but not to the top 10. Kuznetsova lost to Benchich Third day WTA Tournament in St. Petersburg brought victory to Anastasia Potapova, but turned into a defeat for Svetlana Kuznetsova. 02/12/2020 22:00 Tennis Mysin Nikolay

Stop the sport! Author's column by Dmitry Kuznetsov On Saturday afternoon there was news that the Finnish Jokerit refused to further participate in the Gagarin Cup and, of course, the coronavirus is to blame. 03/14/2020 16:36 Hockey Kuznetsov Dmitry

COMPETITIONS
FIGHTERS
MIXED FIGHTING

This article is dedicated to safety during competitions in mixed martial arts... It sets out the main points related to the organization and participation in mixed martial arts competitions at various levels.

Organization of safety measures during athletics competitions
The influence of sambo wrestling on the training of employees of the State Fire Service of the Ministry of Emergency Situations of Russia

"Mixed Martial arts"(English MMA - Mixed Martial Arts) - the type of contact combat sports, which uses different striking and wrestling techniques. The MMA fight is conducted both in a standing position and on the ground (parterre). Previously, MMA was called "ultimate fighting", but this term is outdated, since in martial arts there are rules and regulations to ensure the safety of fighters.

The history of the emergence of mixed martial arts

The first "fights without rules" or pankration were carried out in the ancient world, in Ancient Greece on Olympic Games representing a fight where it was possible to apply various blows legs and arms, carry out grabs and throws, do choke techniques.

Figure 1. Pankration

Already at the end of the nineteenth century, all over the world it was possible to observe the battles that were carried out between representatives different types martial arts. At the beginning of the twentieth century, the Gracie family, known throughout the world of mixed martial arts, organized fights in mixed style, which were called "Gracie Challenge". Gracie offered anyone who wanted to fight with their fighter, so they proved to everyone that Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu is the champion of all world martial arts.

In the second half of the twentieth century, the mixing of different styles was promoted by the famous actor and fighter Bruce Lee, whom, many years later, the president of the UFC MMA, Dana White, will call "the father of all mixed martial arts."

Bruce Lee has repeatedly stated that the best fighter is the one who combines different styles when conducting combat with the enemy, can freely apply powerful blows hands and feet, possesses the skills of wrestling, and representatives of only one type of martial arts, such as boxing, wrestling, karate and others, will be less dangerous, since they are specialists in only one direction.

In the 70s, Japanese Kanji Inoki conducted mixed martial arts fights in his country. The most difficult opponent for him was the legendary boxer Mohammed Ali. Inoki's fighting interested his friend Satoru Sayame so much that he decided to unite the mixed martial arts fighters into the world's first organization called Shotoo.

Mixed martial arts in the form in which we see them now originated in 1993, when the first fights were organized by the UFC. These fights were called "fights without rules", the fighters went into the octagon for a duel without any equipment, protection of arms, legs, head, then there were no time limits and rounds, the fight lasted until the knockout or until the opponent surrendered.

A significant step towards the formation of MMA as an independent sport was made in 2000, when all the basic rules were formulated, which all MMA promotions are guided by today.

The first Russian representative and UFC champion became Oleg Taktarov, nicknamed "Russian Bear".

Today the President of the MMA Union of Russia is multiple champion world and Russia in mixed martial arts and combat sambo Fedor Emelianenko.

Drawing. 2. Union of MMA of Russia

The tactics of the fight have also undergone significant changes: previously, fighters entered the ring to prove that their style was the best, now fighters are trying to develop all skills at the same time, to be ready to take a fight, both in standing and on the ground.

The place and significance of mixed martial arts in the system of physical education

Mixed martial arts classes improve the impact on the physical, emotional state of an athlete: dexterity, strength develops in him, endurance increases, the body becomes more plastic. According to medical research, mixed martial arts classes improve the state of the circulatory system and respiratory system, turn on all the muscles of a person, and accelerate the metabolic process in cells. From this it follows that MMA (mixed martial arts) classes are useful for citizens of all age categories, since regular classes will have an effective impact on maintaining a person's health and capacity. Unfortunately, cruelty, violence is the most frequent occurrence today. Almost all schools of mixed martial arts have their own methods of self-defense, by owning them, a person develops self-confidence and self-confidence, increases his self-esteem, and, consequently, creates a favorable situation for mental and emotional comfort of the individual. Mixed martial arts classes not only train the body, but also help to gain control over one's weaknesses, forget about aggression, cultivate strength of mind, and learn to live in harmony with oneself. People leave the hall less angry, leaving their aggression and anger there.

Competition planning

Preparation for holding competitions in mixed martial arts begins in advance of their holding with the preparation of calendar plan competition and competition regulations. The ideal holding of mixed martial arts competitions largely depends on the timely and high-quality preparation of these documents.

The competition schedule is drawn up by the organization responsible for the competition and in accordance with the following features:

The gender of the participants, their age group and the qualifications of the athlete.
The number of competitions for their entire period.
Competitions will be held at the same time as last year.

Preparation for the competition

Preparation for holding mixed martial arts competitions begins long before their start. Not only the organization responsible for their conduct is involved, but also the panel of judges, physical culture activists, the federation of mixed martial arts. For large-scale competitions, an organizing committee is created depending on the size of the competition.

The organizing committee creates a credentials committee and a panel of judges.

At the venue of the competition, it is necessary to provide premises for changing the clothes of the participants, for panel of judges and separately for the doctor of the competition, for the buffets, serving the participants, spectators and judges. Allocate a room for storing clothes (wardrobe), a sufficient number of washbasins and toilets, etc.

A prerequisite is the presence of a doctor at the competition, it is necessary for the medical examination of the participants in the competition and constant monitoring throughout the competition.

Depending on the level of the competition, athletes are tested for the use of prohibited drugs (doping test).

It is also necessary to organize public order and ensure the safety of participants and spectators of the competition.

Logistics of the competition

According to the rules for holding MMA competitions, fights are held in the ring or in an octagonal cage (octagon).

The ring (arena) is equipped with stretched ropes made of soft material. The floor should extend 45 cm beyond the ropes. Gymnastics mats should be placed on the floor with a thickness of at least 3 cm. The platform rises 12 cm above the floor level. On each side of the ring there must be five rows of ropes with a diameter of at least 3 cm, covered with soft material. Distance from the surface of the ring to bottom rope- 36cm. There should be no foreign objects in the ring.

Fighters' equipment and protective accessories:

Boxing pants (shorts).
Special gloves with open fingers (such half-gloves allow fighters to box and perform various techniques) to protect their fists.
Mouthguard to protect teeth.
Groin shell (worn under shorts) to protect the groin.
Protective shields to protect the shin and foot on impact.

Drawing. 4. Competitions in MMA

Participation in competitions

Competitions are held in sports facilities that meet the requirements of the relevant regulatory legal acts in force on the territory of the Russian Federation and are aimed at ensuring public order and safety of participants and spectators, as well as in the presence of acts of readiness of the sports facility for holding competitions, approved in the prescribed manner.

Participation in the competition is carried out only if there is an agreement (original) on life and health insurance against accidents of the competitor, which is submitted to the credentials committee for each fighter. Insurance can be carried out at the expense of budgetary and extrabudgetary funds, in accordance with the current legislation of the Russian Federation.

The provision of emergency medical care is carried out in accordance with the order of the Ministry of Health and Social Development of the Russian Federation dated 09.08.2010, No. 613n "On the approval of the procedure for the provision of medical care during physical culture and sports events."

Mandatory doping control for sporting events is carried out in compliance with the requirements of the international standard for testing participants in the competition, determined by the international organization carrying out the fight against doping and recognized by the International Olympic Committee.

Each participant in the competition must have a valid medical admission to a sports dispensary or a one-time medical certificate to participate in competitions, which are the basis for admission to sports competitions.

Bandaging of hands and shins, except for the cases permitted by the tournament organizing committee, is prohibited.

It is forbidden to apply any oils and creams to the body.

Fingernails and toenails should be trimmed short.

Bibliography

Order of the Ministry of Health and Social Development of the Russian Federation dated 09.08.2010 No. 613n "On the approval of the procedure for the provision of medical care during physical culture and sports events."
Full Contact Fighter August 2001 News Archives / Fcfighter.com - FULL CONTACT FIGHTER site.
http://tigrismma.ru/cto-takoe-mma/ - site of the mixed martial arts club. Member of the MMA Federation of Moscow.
http://www.mixfight.ru - site of mixed martial arts
http://unionmma.ru - site of the Russian MMA union.
https: //www/sports.ru/tribuna/blogs/m ... is the site of the flagship project of the digital sports publishing house Tribuna Digital.

In 2015, Forbes magazine estimated the fortune of Ziyavudin Magomedov at $ 800 million. He owns the Summa group, which owns 25% of the Novorossiysk Commercial Sea Port, 49.99% of the Fesco transport group, the Transengineering engineering company, the gas production Yakutsk Fuel and Energy Company, and 50% minus one share of the United Grain Company. In a number of Summa assets, for example, in NCSP and in the engineering business, Magomed Magomedov, Ziyavudin's brother, has a share.

Eurasia Fight Nights (FN) clearly stands out from the rest of Magomedov's assets. The businessman became its owner a few months ago. The club was founded in 2010 by the absolute world kickboxing champion Batu Khasikov, vice-president of the Moscow federation of mixed martial arts MMA Kamil Gadzhiev and captain of the KVN team "RUDN National Team" Sangadzhi Tarbaev. Later, managing director of the Moscow office of the investment bank Goldman Sachs Sergei Arsenyev and designer Sergei Shanovich were among the co-owners of the club.

What is mixed martial arts

Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) is a kind of martial arts that is a symbiosis of different martial techniques and schools and answers the question of interest to many: "If a boxer and a wrestler meet, who will win?"

Fights in MMA are conducted in full contact, fighters can use both striking and wrestling techniques. A standard fight lasts three rounds of five minutes, with breaks for one minute, title fight- five rounds. Fights are held in a "cage" - on an 8x8 m site with a fence that does not allow fighters to leave the ring.

On initial stage MMA tournaments were sometimes promoted as “fighting without rules”, which was an advertising slogan and was not true. According to a 2015 report by the American Association of Ringside Physicians (ARP) in professional boxing over the past 25 years, an average of 4.8 athletes per year have died in the ring, in the UFC (the main American organization of MMA) - 0.28 athletes per year for 15 years.

Russia recognized mixed martial arts as an official sport in 2012.

It is not clear what the Fight Nights club was like as a business before the deal with Magomedov. According to Kamil Gadzhiev, FN's annual turnover is 350 million rubles. and even before the deal with Magomedov, the business had reached self-sufficiency. But it is impossible to verify his words. In the SPARK-Interfax database, the financial indicators of Fight Knights LLC, whose founders are Khasikov and Gadzhiev, are completely identical in 2013 and 2014: revenue - 9.517 million rubles, net loss - 18.7 million rubles. Other companies associated with Fight Nights through the founders - Fight Knights Jim, Fight Knights Global, Fight Knights Entertainment, Eurasia Sport and Summa Sport - do not publish reports. In addition, most of them were created in 2013-2014.

What exactly Magomedov bought is also unclear: how the deal was legally formalized, neither Magomedov himself nor his representatives comment. Taking into account the previous investments in the club - this is sponsorship of the club's fighters, assistance in organizing events and advertising - the deal amounted to "several tens of millions of dollars", said Kamil Gadzhiev to RBC, whose words were confirmed by Magomedov's representative.

"Sum" is the first in the list of "general partners" on the club's website. The group, for example, sponsored the opening sports club FN in Makhachkala: Magomedov personally attended the Fight Nights Dagestan tournament. The businessman himself says that he trains several times a week, often in the Moscow club Fight Nights.

Combat profit

In addition to the club on Kutuzovsky Prospekt, FN has three more - in Elista, Makhachkala and Bryansk. The Moscow club hosts trainings not only in mixed martial arts, but also in boxing, cross-fit, and even yoga and Pilates. In the corporate online store, you can order with delivery clothes and sports accessories with FN logos and autographs of stars. But the main business of Fight Nights is the organization of mixed martial arts fights: in 2014, FN fighters took part in five fights, in 2015 - in nine (including in St. Petersburg, Sochi and Kaspiysk). Fight Nights also hosted its own club championship in Moscow.

The main income, according to Hajiyev, comes from ticket sales, television broadcasts and advertising. Tickets for the final event of FN "Battle 20" in Luzhniki on December 11 cost from 1,000 to 70,000 rubles. To places in the stalls at a price of 5 thousand rubles. there were also “two master classes with a champion”. According to Hajiyev, it was possible to attract 6-7 thousand spectators to previous events of this level, that is, FN will be able to earn about 15-20 million rubles on tickets. But this will not cover the costs of organizing the event - it costs no less than 30 million rubles, Hajiyev admits.

To the fight organized by Fight Nights between Russian Mikhail Mokhnatkin and Brazilian Ednaldo Oliveira on October 23 in St. Petersburg Ice Palace 6 thousand tickets were sold, Hajiyev says. Ticket revenue is unlikely to cover 30% of total costs, the rest should theoretically be covered by television broadcasts and advertising. In addition to broadcasts on Match TV, all top FN battles are broadcasted for a fee on the Internet, jointly with Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) channel UFC Fight Pass - the cost of watching an average of $ 10 per night. On what conditions the channel broadcasts the battles, Match TV does not comment.

The world's largest promoter of MMA, the American UFC holds about 40 fights a year, not only in the North and Latin America but also in Europe, Australia and the UAE. For viewers, this is not cheap entertainment: for example, tickets for the fight between Aldo and McGregor on December 12 at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas at the time of preparation of this material could be purchased with tickets costing from $ 505 to $ 6,900. At the same time, the UFC cannot boast of high business profitability.

UFC above all

Ultimate Fighting Championship(UFC) is a US-based promotion company, the world's largest organizer of MMA fights. It was originally an experimental, one-off championship. But the success of the first tournament in Denver in 1993 inspired businessman Art Davey and Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu teacher Rorion Gracie to create their own company. In 2001, the company was acquired for $ 2 million by the Fertitta brothers, owners of the Station Casinos casino chain. Boxing promoter Dana White (pictured) is the general producer and president of the UFC.

The Fertitta brothers bought and merged with the UFC most of the world's competitors, including the Pride Fighting Championships. The annual turnover of Zuffa, the parent company of the UFC, is, according to various estimates, from $ 250 million to $ 350 million. According to Forbes magazine, this is 90% of all global MMA revenues.

S&P estimates that up to 75% of the company's revenue comes from the sale of television rights. According to the Zuffa report for 2014, the company's revenues amounted to $ 554 million. According to S&P, the company's EBITDA has been declining since 2010, which is associated with high costs for the purchase of competitors and foreign events. Zuffa's debt is about $ 450 million. At the beginning of 2015, S&P predicted a decrease in EBITDA by another 40% and downgraded Zuffa's rating to BB-.

If the world's largest mixed martial arts promoter does not have a very smooth business, what can the very small Fight Nights club expect from the UFC? Magomedov's investment will "help expand the business" of FN, Hajiyev said. In addition to raising the level of events and broadcasting, FN wants to focus their main efforts on marketing and audience building. This means more advertising, including outdoor advertising. Hajiyev believes that "she shows herself well in the regions."

But for real commercial success sporting events viewers are needed not only at stadiums, but also at screens, then the audience becomes interesting to large advertisers, and TV channels are ready to pay for the rights to broadcast. The UFC television audience reaches 800 million people a year - you can watch fights not only on TV, but also on the Internet (a monthly subscription costs € 7.99). In 2011, the UFC signed a seven-year broadcast contract with Fox Sports. Its amount, according to the newspaper The Telegraph, is $ 700 million.

Ziyavudin Magomedov: "Growing up on the streets of Makhachkala is a sport in itself" (Photo: Yuri Chichikov, Anna Sergeeva for RBC)

Stars and money

In Russia, the top fights of the UFC in the fall began to be broadcast by Match TV, before that they were shown by the Russia 2 channel. “The UFC format is undoubtedly in demand, MMA has its own steadily growing audience in our country,” says a representative of Match TV. The fight between six-time UFC champion Rhonda Rosie and title challenger Holly Holm on November 16 on Match TV was watched by 5.8% of male viewers aged 25-59. “The numbers clearly demonstrated the potential of such a product,” says the channel's representative, but he does not want to talk about the possible prospects for broadcasting Fight Nights.

FN's main Russian competitor is the M-1 Global promotion company. Its founder and largest co-owner, Vadim Finkelstein, said in an interview with RBC that he was not at all sure that the broadcast of mixed martial arts on Russian TV is an item of income, and not additional costs. According to him, TV channels either do not pay for broadcasting rights at all, or pay very little. And for the audience, the image of mixed martial arts is blurred, due to the fact that MMA itself in Russia does not have a clear sports structure and almost everyone can open their own federation. “The viewer no longer remembers his characters and is not ready to pay for viewing,” notes Finkelstein.

But FN believes that world-class events with the participation of Russian athletes will be of interest to both viewers and federal channels. “Ideally, the regions will root for their fighters, the public there is very open and interested. Yes, you will need advertising, but they will be our stars, ”Hajiyev says.

It takes an average of three years and $ 1-2 million to promote one athlete to the level of a media persona that the audience will “go to”, says Hajiyev. For a major event, there must be at least four such fighters. FN does not have a tournament grid, so the top event is one or two star headliner fights, several mid-level fights and an entertaining show with singers, artists and dances. It will be difficult to beat them off only by selling broadcasting rights, says an analyst at a large sports advertising agency. “If some federal channel will buy this broadcast, then even for a top battle more than 3 million rubles. no one will pay, ”he said.

Combat economy

$ 5 million- record UFC royalties, according to Dana White (recipient unknown)

$180 000 - Holly Holm's fee for the victory over Ronda Rosie, November 2015

$24 500 - Average UFC fighter pay per fight

$50 - the price of a paid subscription to broadcast the top battle

Sources: The Economist, UFC

The only chance to at least recoup the costs of organizing the show is to sell sponsorship and advertising packages. In this sense, MMA has good prospects, says Anton Efimov, Managing Director of the OMD Fuse advertising agency: “Their main target audience is men who watch them on TV, and men with high income are the core of the audience attending competitions, and this is a stable marketing platform. for brands that want to build an association with strength and courage. " Taking this into account, the cost of an advertising package for such a show can be from 10 million rubles. and higher within one evening, Efimov counts. But there is another problem, he notes: "There is no fixed schedule in martial arts, like in football or hockey, and it is very difficult to draw up a partnership map even for a year."

A representative of another large advertising agency does not share even this modest optimism: “In Russia, even football broadcasts do not always have a large enough audience to advertise there. And MMA is unlikely to attract serious money. " In his opinion, FN, UFC and other similar organizations do not open their financial statements because it will become obvious to everyone - "there is no income, there is only turnover." The only chance for a promoter in this sense is a large sponsorship contract, in which not only the size of the audience, but also the image component of the sport itself will be important to the advertiser, adds a representative of the advertising agency.

In 2015, the UFC signed the largest sponsorship deal in its 21-year history: Reebok will pay $ 70 million over six years for the right to become an official supplier of equipment. The list of sponsors this year includes Harley-Davidson motorcycles, Bud Light beer, Toyo tires, etc. Ideally, such a contract should be signed by Fight Nights, but while FN is considering the previous stage of the UFC's development - the launch of its own reality show.

The Ultimate Fighter began on American TV in 2005. In the first episodes of the show, 16 fighters from two teams compete with each other, viewers can follow their training and details Everyday life... The losers are eliminated, and in the season finale, two fighters fight for the title of The Ultimate Fighter and a major contract in the UFC. The start of the new season in September 2015 was watched by 745 thousand viewers. The show allowed the UFC not only to expand its television audience, but also to change it, said UFC head Dana White: “When we bought this company, our main audience was men between 18 and 34 years old. After the release of The Ultimate Fighter screens<…>women make up 45% of our viewers. "

“If we want to really gain a critical audience, our fights must become a family show, including for women,” Hajiyev agrees. FN has no specific timeline for launching the show yet. A representative of Match TV declined to comment on this idea.

Training of the fighters of the Moscow Fight Nights club (Photo: Yuri Chichikov, Anna Sergeeva for RBC)

"Images of heroes"

The main Russian star of mixed martial arts Fedor Emelianenko was never able to agree on performances in the UFC. But the American organization has fighters from Russia, for example Khabib Nurmagomedov and Rustam Khabilov. The training of fighters of this level is also the type of income that the co-owners of FN count on.

“We are not only a promotion company, but also a base, a kind of sports incubator for top fighters, which trains world-class MMA stars,” says Hajiyev. So far, FN does not supply fighters to the UFC, but the same Minakov, who won the MMA championship belt according to the American version of Bellator, is the first candidate. “In the UFC, our lightweight Ali Bagautinov is in the lead. I think that in a couple of years our other athletes, such as Volodya Mineev and Sergey Pavlovich, could perform with success in the UFC, and they will strive for this, ”says Magomedov.

The last Emperor

The most titled Russian fighter of mixed martial arts - 39-year-old resident of Stary Oskol, Fyodor Emelianenko, nicknamed The last Emperor... On his account the titles of the four-time world champion in MMA in heavyweight according to the Pride FC version, twice according to the RINGS version and according to the WAMMA version. Attempts to negotiate Fedor's performance in the UFC were unsuccessful.

In the summer of 2015, Emelianenko announced his return to the ring after a three-year pause: the first fight will take place on December 31 in Japan, it will be hosted by the local organization MMA Rizin Fighting Federation. Fedor's rival will be 28-year-old Jaydeep Singh.

Fights of Fedor Emelianenko

34 victories (ten - by knockout, 18 - voluntary submission)

4 defeats (three - by knockout, one - voluntary surrender)

Four hundred dollars. We made it so that some people began to fight with us, others wanted to fight with us and everyone around us started talking about us. It cost us four hundred dollars, - pride sounds in Greg Apinyan's voice.

Apinyan is a 29-year-old resident of St. Petersburg and organizer of the Strelka mixed martial arts championships. Everyone in St. Petersburg knows what an arrow is. There is the Spit of Vasilievsky Island. You can also "score an arrow", that is, call your opponent into a serious conversation. And now the championship is over.

The name is excellent, says Apinyan. - My brother came up with it.

Over the two years of its existence, its fighting tournaments have gone from a get-together worth $ 400 to one of the leading players in the domestic mixed martial arts market (MMA - from English Mixed Martial Arts). Eight million views of Strelka videos on YouTube, victory in the World Press Photo competition in the nomination for Best sports history", Which in 2011 went to the organizers of the championship for filming their tournaments, battles on football pitch stadium "Petrovsky", home field of "Zenith", a sacred place for St. Petersburg residents - these are just some of the achievements of Apinyan and the company.

The secret of Strelka's success is that ordinary amateurs can take part in it, including those who have never fought at all. And second: Strelka is a street championship. Its participants fight in the open air, on sand, grass or on bare ground.

This is what distinguishes us favorably from traditional tournaments in MMA, - says Apinyan. - Their format scares off many viewers: an octagon, people in a cage, blood, everything is scary and gloomy. And our championships are quite another matter. Sand, blue sky, sun. And the most ordinary people who sometimes show such strength of mind that one can only wonder.

At the first Strelka, which took place in the summer of 2011, a 40-year-old mustachioed man entered the battle. Compared to the others, he seemed like a grandfather. The guy's name was Alexander Reze, he was an accountant. In the next ten minutes, the "grandfather" gave a real fight to an opponent half his age and eventually won. According to the regulations, battles on Strelka do not have a time limit: they go on until one of the fighters surrenders or until the referee stops the fight. The record fight in the history of the championship lasted 40 minutes without a break. Everything else is just like in classic MMA. Fighters have pads on their hands, they are allowed to hit and kick and wrestle on the ground.

I worked with the M-1 company, filmed Fedya Emelianenko's battles. Then he brought equipment and T-shirts of fighting firms to Russia, had a shop. At first we thought: we will organize our own tournament in order to better sell t-shirts. But very quickly, the fighting pushed the store into the background, says Apinyan.

Information about the first Strelka was spread throughout the mixed martial arts sections. Everyone was invited to participate. The place chosen was the St. Petersburg factory "Red Banner" - once it supplied the country with women's stockings, but now it is not going through better times... We signed an agreement with the management of the factory to lease the land in the courtyard for a period of one day. Friends brought twelve bags of sand, poured it on the ground and leveled it. The ship's ropes were pulled along the perimeter - it turned out to be a ring. Participants of city auto and motorcycle clubs were invited as spectators - for free, Strelka began to take money for tickets later. They came and made a beautiful background: expensive cars, roaring motors, girls in short shorts. There was little to do - to shoot everything on camera and post it on the Internet. All this, according to Apinyan, cost those notorious 400 dollars. Moreover, almost half of this amount was promised as a reward to the fighters.

Five people volunteered to fight. And then I said: there are six thousand rubles left, you can divide by three thousand and have two fights. When these fights were over, the people really turned on. A hat was thrown at the audience and another six thousand were raised. Immediately new people appeared who wanted to try themselves in battles.

Over the past two years, under the auspices of Strelka, eleven tournaments in mixed martial arts have been held. I noticed impudent Petersburgers and took them under my wing American company"Tron", specializing in the organization of MMA tournaments. Apinyan does not disclose the amount for which the Americans bought the right to manage the fighting tournament in Russia. But, judging by his cheerful voice and Napoleonic plans, the deal was just right. He continues to organize battles, but already as a hired employee of the Americans.

Today Strelka offers a franchise to the regions. A person in any city in Russia can use its name, its marketing resources, including a sophisticated website, and host the championship. Two years of using the Strelka brand will cost him three million rubles. No volunteers have been found yet. But they plan to raise the price of the franchise even higher. Because, according to Apinyan, Strelka will continue to develop and become more famous:

There will be no more tournaments in St. Petersburg. We feel confident enough to storm Moscow. And then, if everything goes well, in two or three years we will reach intercontinental development.

Today, 838 people are queuing up to take part in Strelka's battles. This is enough for seven to eight tournaments. Fighters in the championship still don't earn big money, royalties for a victory rarely exceed three to four thousand rubles. However, this does not in the least bother men who want to try their hand at fights without rules. They come from different spheres, with different fighting qualifications. Once even the prisoner called from the prison. He said: "I will go out in four months, I want to fight."

Ali Baba and the robbers

Every week in Russia there are at least a dozen championships in mixed martial arts, in which amateurs can participate. Information about them is disseminated in social networks and forums on martial arts websites such as koicombat.org or mixfight.ru. The geography of these tournaments is extremely wide. This could be the Serednikovo estate near Moscow, the former estate of the Lermontov-Stolypin, where in 2011 they held competitions in the toughest version of the T-1 battles. Or city sports complexes, as was the case in Makhachkala, Barnaul, Birobidzhan, Voronezh, Krasnodar and almost any other city in Russia with a population of fifty thousand or more.

It is not uncommon for the fighters to be brought to restaurants and nightclubs, and then visitors enjoy the duels in the snobbish manner of the "Great Gatsby" - sitting at tables with drinks and food. This was the case, for example, in Kolomna, near Moscow.

Taken together, this means that an impressive number of men, for whom fighting is not a profession, finish their work on Friday, say goodbye to colleagues until Monday and go fists to earn extra money. Or, if money is not offered, prove to yourself and the world everything that men usually prove.

Alexander Anisimov is a 30-year-old employee of a road construction company in Vladimir. For his debut in mixed martial arts, he chose that version of them, which one authoritative sports publication called "cannibalistic" - T-1. The letter “T” means “total”.

According to the T-1 rules, opponents play in shoes with hard soles. It is allowed to strike with the head, to finish off the opponent with his feet, if he does not surrender. The organizers wanted the participants to fight with their bare hands, without gloves, but the fighters themselves were already opposed. “Not everyone was ready to overcome the psychological barrier, to fight with a bare fist,” says Herman Lvov, president of the T-1 league and popularizer of absolute fights. So in the end the fighters were allowed to wrestle with mixfight rubbers.

One of the participants in weight category Alexandra Anisimova dropped out of the tournament, having first received a blow with his forehead on the nose (the nose broke), and then, already lying on the floor, kicked to the head. Alexander was more fortunate. He reached the final and only there, falling for a painful grip, lost.

At different times I was engaged in hand-to-hand combat and wrestling, '' he says. - And then I got carried away with weightlifting.

When asked what made him leave his wife and one and a half-year-old son in Vladimir and go to a foreign land to fight, he says: "It became interesting." However, he immediately adds: "The interest was satisfied." And, at least in the near future, there will be no more battles in his life.

Interest is what attracts many to the amateur mixfight. However, participation in fights can also be a way of earning money. According to the Russian Pankration Federation (this organization seeks to give mixed martial arts Olympic status), the fee for the first place in non-professional tournaments varies across the country in the range from 30 to 50 thousand rubles. The participants themselves name more modest amounts - 10–20 thousand.

The prize fund is collected from sponsorship money or contributions from the participants themselves. Athletes who fight regularly go to two or three tournaments a month. If you win at least one of them, and take second place in the other (for which they often give half the amount), minus travel expenses, you will get a "salary" of about a thousand dollars. This is a lot for the province. And if you win more often, then you can earn more. But there are no such obvious stars in amateur MMA: the winners rotate constantly.

The man whose nose was broken on the T-1 is called Ali Baba. His real name is Vyacheslav Yurovskikh, he is 40 years old. Having no fixed place of residence and sometimes spending the night at Moscow train stations, Ali Baba wanders from one Mixfight tournament to another. He looks for information about them on the Internet: he carries a laptop with him, maintains a page on the site mmablog.ru and often sits on social networks.

Ali Baba is thin, wears a beard, a broken nose betrays a person in him who has suffered hard in life. A couple of months ago, they wrote about him in a sports magazine. He gained a reputation among journalists as a difficult person: he refused to give interviews to many, including, in his own words, “many TV men” and “some filmmakers”.

For some time we have been texting on VKontakte. Ali Baba writes from N-ck, his hometown where I went to visit my parents. He hides the real name of N-sk and calls it “Zasransk”: “This is a black hole. Solid Groundhog Day. "

In the 90s, he studied at the Faculty of Journalism of Moscow State University. There he also began to practice sambo in the university section. And when life threw him, a provincial, to the sidelines - without constant work, without money - it was the struggle that became his main occupation. In the mixfight, Ali Baba looks like a bearded spider. He rolls up to the opponent, knits, seeks to take on the throw. "Fights are not a fountain" - this is how he himself speaks of his fights.

VKontakte is one of the few ways to contact Ali Baba. “I threw away the phone last November. There is no Skype either, ”he writes. He says he doesn't give interviews because he wants to be himself. He has no sponsors. And in Moscow he is still homeless: "For complete happiness, there is not enough of his own corner, at least a room." I could write a book about myself, there were suggestions, but I won't. In the near future - tournaments in Rostov-on-Don and Belgorod: "This year I fought almost every weekend."

Very soon the character of Ali Baba makes itself felt. Having learned that he would not be the only hero of the article, he curtailed the correspondence. The heroes will be “enough without me,” says his last message.

Vyacheslav Kashuba, a 25-year-old native of the Leningrad Region, is the complete opposite of Ali Baba. He willingly answers questions, and he is not embarrassed that they are going to write not only about him.

"Mom told me: intellectuals shouldn't fight!" - Three years ago, Kashuba, an engineer specializing in navigation, went on voyages. Sailed to America, Canada, Europe. Then I found out that very close, in St. Petersburg, strange battles on the sand - "Strelka", were being held, and sent an application for participation. “The first letter was not answered. On the second call they called back, and so my adventure began. "

Today he is known in the world of amateur mixfight as Sailor. Although the sea is long gone: Vyacheslav flaunts a daring mohawk on his head, trains every day and dreams of doing professional career v mixed bouts... Behind him four fights at Strelka (three wins, one defeat) and experience in other tournaments. So far, he says, the mixfight is not profitable. But before his eyes is the glory of the UFC tournaments, the main promotion company in MMA.

All of today's mixfight stars are in the ranks of the UFC: black giants John Jones and Anderson Silva, curly fighter with African-Korean roots Benson Henderson, light and hard as steel, Chail Sonnen. All of them receive five-figure royalties and live the lives of real stars. They have broadcasts on cable channels, their own fan sites, they are recognized in any city in the world. But in order to reach these heights, you need to give all of yourself, all your time. Is he ready for this? Vyacheslav Kashuba is not sure about that. While he did the main thing: he overcame himself, went out to fight against rivals who were both more experienced and larger. What was the hardest part? He recalls street battles in St. Petersburg: "The most difficult thing was to scoop out the sand from the whole body!"

Underground

Illegal fights is a topic that somehow pops up as soon as it comes to mixfight. On the request "underground fights in Moscow" the Internet gives out links to a series of journalistic reports. All of them are written extremely harshly, replete with details and, most likely, do not contain even a word of truth.

“In the twilight of a nightclub, guys with fists like sledgehammers gather. Losers often leave the arena on a stretcher, ”writes one author. Another paints the atmosphere even more ominous: “The Moscow police began to discover the corpses of young people. The apparently violent signs of death said the boys had been killed in a fight. But where, how and who - remained a mystery<…>And after a while the terrible truth was revealed<…>Underground battles were held in Moscow. Real battles to the death. "

In the database of the Investigative Committee, the only mention of the victims of the fights is dated 2008. And even then it is not about clandestine battles, but about a completely official championship. A 16-year-old participant in a karate tournament in Kemerovo died of cardiovascular failure after being hit in the chest. The blow was within the rules, no violations were found in the actions of the doctors. In the absence of corpus delicti, they did not initiate a criminal case.

The existence of the bloody underground battles are also denied by the Arbat District Police Department in the capital. In the late 90s, it was about this area that there were legends: supposedly the most terrible tournaments took place in gambling establishments on the Arbat. “If it ever happened, it’s long gone,” says a branch employee who asked not to be named. "Today we have no data on unofficial fighting tournaments."

Vladimir Klenshev, President of the Russian Pankration Federation, agrees with this assessment:

There is more noise around the so-called street fighting games than real facts. Yes, we have information about such tournaments. But almost always this is an initiative of teenagers who have seen enough films. The case there ends with a couple of broken noses, and the next day the teenagers start doing parkour or whatever they saw on TV. In other words, all this is not serious.

Main male work

The boom around amateur mixfight is alarming official organizations.

All these fights lack the main component of sports - children's sections, systematic, comprehensive work with young people. All that I see is a desire to make money, - Vladimir Klenshev laments. - The organizers of amateur tournaments want to protect themselves from responsibility as much as possible. Up to the point that they force the fighters to sign contracts, where they take all possible risks. Does this sound like the way sport should be?

Klenshev suggests taking an example from Fedor Emelianenko, the legendary MMA fighter. Here everything is correct for him, the president believes: Fedor trains young people and by his own example directs them in the right sports direction.

Tolgat, 21, came to Moscow from Uzbekistan, and unlike the president of the Pankration Federation, amateur fighting tournaments cause only enthusiasm. Six days a week, Tolgat repairs the sidewalk on Leninsky Prospekt as part of a construction team. Then, if strength remains, he goes to the site with horizontal bars in Neskuchny Garden. MMA fighters generally love horizontal bars. It is believed that they allow you to build muscle in moderation: so that they do not interfere with the speed of the hands. Tolgat neatly folds a T-shirt with the logo of the M-1 promotion company and starts practicing his shots.

In his homeland, he studied muay thai, not for long - only a year and a half. But in Moscow, he heard, that's enough to enlist for fights and become a star.

Construction is not my life. This is the second, - sums up Tolgat. - And the main thing is the fight.

One hit. Second. Third. Fiftieth ... When it's time for him to get into the mixfight cage, he wants to be in shape.

Like Tolgat, other men practice their blows. They do it in gyms. In parks. In the entrances, while waiting for the elevator. In their own kitchens, while no one sees. They work as programmers, sales managers, freight forwarders, whatever. But the main thing - and even their relatives may not be aware of this - is not their job. The main thing is the fight.

One hit. Second. Fiftieth…