Russian MMA fighter Vitaly Minakov missed the emotions that sport brings, and this motivated him to return to fighting. He told Izvestia about this on Friday, March 29, at a press conference on the eve of the REN TV Fight Club super series tournament, where he will meet in the ring with the British Oli Thompson.
“What motivated me to come back? I was absent from the sports field for not three, but two years. Before it was still a simple decent one. It seemed that I probably made the decision to end my sports career some time ago. It was all connected, probably a rather emotional decision at that time, because after all <...> there were several futile attempts to get an American visa. Because everyone knows that I have a contract with Bellator (American promotion – Ed.),” said Minakov.
He noted that these several attempts ended in refusals, and at some point it seemed to the fighter that there was no longer any point in continuing to look for ways to return to the ring.
According to the fighter, he has been in the sport for about 30 years, and it brings him pleasure, despite the fact that he has other activities. Having done a lot of work in training, Minakov receives a surge of dopamine, experiences unforgettable sensations and emotions, and this is what makes him go forward, achieving large and small goals. The fighter lacked precisely these emotions that sport brings in his life.
“During these years of inactivity, I realized that I really miss these emotions, this, not so much adrenaline, but the drive in life, the surge, communication, probably, with the circle of people with whom I lived for wonderful 30 years in sports, that is, people I understand, who are as pleasant as possible, and that sports atmosphere is healthy. This probably motivated me to a greater extent,” Minakov explained.
At the same time, the material component did not have a very noticeable influence on the fighter’s decision to return, although he believes that it is also important for him, like for any person.
“To a greater extent, it’s still <...> motivation to return to my usual environment, to my physical condition, because in my case, to find the motivation to come to the gym and work hard, without the possibility of any confrontation or any kind on the horizon -competitions, it was very difficult to motivate yourself, to force yourself. I was looking for different opportunities in team sports, in hockey, but it’s still not the same,” the athlete summed up.
39-year-old Vitaly Minakov is a former Bellator champion, a four-time world champion in sports sambo, and also a master of sports in judo. He is called one of the best heavyweights in MMA. His opponent in the upcoming fight, 44-year-old Oliver Thompson, competes in the heavyweight MMA division. In 2006, he won the title of Britain's Strongest Man.
The day before, participants in the new super series of REN TV Fight Club went through the weigh-in procedure. It turned out that Minakov weighs 118.1 kg, and his opponent Thompson weighs 107 kg. The competition will take place at the Dynamo volleyball arena in Moscow on March 29.
Earlier that same day, Izvestia correspondent Semyon Eremin showed an open training session for participants in the REN TV Fight Club in Moscow.
Thompson promised on March 20 that he would knock out Minakov in seconds in a fight, and he would only receive scratches. However, kickboxer Pyotr Romankevich said on the same day that he sees Minakov as the favorite in the fight. According to Romankevich, this meeting in the ring is of great interest to him, because he, like Thompson and Minakov, also fights in the heavyweight division.
Buy tickets for the tournament “Fight Club REN TV. Super series. Vitaly Minakov – Oli Thompson” is available on the Ticketland website. In the co-main event of the tournament, the fight will be fought by the finalists of the REN TV Fight Club Grand Prix, Sergei Khrisanov and Sergei Romanov. In addition, Artem Tarasov and Ali Heibati, as well as Victor “Fighter from the Morgue” Boronin and Artem Rofal will fight in the show.
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