Mineev’s nose was broken in the first round. The Russian was taken aback by the power of his opponent

Vladimir Mineev and Artem Vakhitov / Photo: © Kuzbass Thai Boxing Federation / Kirill Kukhmar

On November 18, Russian Vladimir Mineev will meet one of the most prominent representatives of our MMA, Ivan Shtyrkov. Volzhanin has already repeatedly fought with top opponents from our country, and it did not always end well for him.

In the championship match, his opponent destroyed Vladimir in the first round, breaking his face and breaking his nose.

World Champion – Rivals

In 2013, Mineev made waves in kickboxing and Thai boxing. There was a year left before his debut in mixed martial arts. In August, Volzhanin went to the Russian Muay Thai Championship, where he was considered one of the favorites.

The Kemerovo competitions then brought together many leaders of Russian martial arts. In the same weight category as Mineev, local athlete Artyom Vakhitov competed, who by that time had achieved significant success in Thai boxing and kickboxing. He was a multiple world and European champion.

Many martial arts fans were waiting for the confrontation between Mineev and Vakhitov, and it took place. In the semi-finals, Mineev faced Alexey Sidorenko. Volzhanin met no resistance, knocking down his opponent twice in three rounds and winning by decision.

Vakhitov started the tournament straight from the final. For him, these competitions were of paramount importance, because victory guaranteed a ticket to the 2013 World Martial Arts Games.

— I want to qualify in my weight category, up to 91 kg, at the Russian Championship and not miss my chance to become the champion of the second Games. For me and the Kemerovo Thai boxers, the main goal for the season is to qualify for the competition in St. Petersburg and achieve victory there,” the website of the World Martial Arts Games quotes Vakhitov as saying.

“Heavy bleeding began”

The format of the Russian Championship included a three-round match, but the opponents fought hard from the very first seconds. Artyom knew Vladimir’s weak points very well and tried to use them effectively. Vakhitov entered the clinch twice and effectively threw Volzhanin to the floor.

“I knew that he didn’t have much experience in Thai boxing and the clinch was his weak point,” Vakhitov explained the tactics for the fight in an interview with Arguments and Facts.

After this, Mineev began to act more carefully. Due to his advantage in size, he tried to keep his opponent at a distance, but Artyom got closer over and over again and delivered a series of blows. After one of them, Mineev suffered severe nosebleeds, which is why the judge even stopped the fight.

This episode cheered up both athletes. Vakhitov rushed to finish off his opponent, and Volzhanin wanted to rehabilitate himself. The real slaughter began without regard for defense. A hail of heavy blows came from both sides. As a result of the exchange, the fight had to be stopped again, this time permanently. The reason was Mineev’s broken nose.

— The road home and a couple of weeks of rest are ahead! An injury in the last fight did not allow me to continue the fight, putting a comma in this story for me. There’s just peace and tranquility inside now,” Mineev wrote on social networks after the tournament.

For Vakhitov, the early victory was unexpected. He was preparing for a difficult confrontation with a dangerous opponent.

“Severe bleeding began and the battle was stopped. “I didn’t expect and didn’t expect to finish the fight early, since the opponent was of a good level,” Vakhitov said after the fight.

Since then, both Vakhitov and Mineev have achieved serious success in various types of martial arts. There was often talk of revenge. Both sides challenged and claimed that the fight would definitely take place, but so far this has not happened.

Live broadcasts of mixed martial arts and boxing tournaments are held on the federal channel “Match TV” and thematic channels of the holding, as well as on the websites matchtv.ru and sportbox.ru.

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