Category Archives: M-1

M-1 CHALLENGE 87 WEIGHTS & PICTURES 

SAINT PETERSBURG, Russia (February 8, 2018) — The official weigh in was held todau fpor tomorrow’s M-1 Challenge 87, highlighted by the grand opening of M1 Arena in Saint Petersburg, Russia.
 
MAIN CARD

MAIN EVENT – M-1 CHALLENGE INTERIM FLYWEIGHT CHAMPIONSHIP – 5 X 5
 (L) Mikael “Hulk” Silander

(Finland) 124.56 LB. (56,5 kg.)

vs.
(R) Arman Ashimov (Kazakhstan) – 124.78 LB. (56,6 kg.)

CO-FEATURE – LIGHT HEAVYWEIGHTS – 3 X 5
(L) Kleber Raimundo “Orgulho” Silva (Brazil) – 204.37 LB. (92,7 kg.)
vs.
(R) Dimitry Mikutsa (Ukraine) – 205 LB. (93 kg.)
FEATHERWEIGHTS — 3 X 5
Timur Nagibin (Russia) – 144.62 LB. (65,6 kg.)
vs.
Jadison Dimitry “Tita” Silva (Brazil) – 144.84 LB. (65,7 kg.)
WELTERWEIGHTS – 3 X 5
(R) Shavkat Rakhmonov (Kazakhstan) – 169.76 LB. (77 kg.)
vs.
(L) Levan Solodovnik (Russia) – 168.87 LB. (76.6 kg.)
(L) Pablo Ortmann (Switzerland) – 169.76 LB. (77 kg.)
vs.
(R) Ingiskhan Ozdoev (Russia) – 170 LB. (77.1 kg.)
PRELIMINARY CARD
HEAVYWEIGHTS – 3 X 5
Jose “Agus” Augustin Jimenez Garcia (Spain) – 263.23 LB. (119,4 kg.)
vs.
Adam Bogatyrev (Russia) – 255.74 LB. (116 kg.)
WELTERWEIGHTS – 3 X 5
Charles-Henri Tchoungui (France) – 170 LB. (77.1 kg.)
vs.
Artem Nenakhov (Russia) – 169.54 LB. (76.9 kg.)
Amiran Gogoladze (Georgia) – 170 LB. (77.1 kg.)
vs.
Stanislav “Stas” Podolsky (Russia) – 167.33 LB. (75.9 kg.)
Anderson “Fala Mansa” De Queiroz Diniz (Brazil) – 168.43 LB. (76,4 kg.)
vs.
Danila Prikaza (Russia) – 170 LB. (77.1 kg.)
LIGHTWEIGHTS – 3 X 5
Pavel Gordeev (Russia) – 158.07 LB. (71,7 kg.)
vs.
Bobur “Karshinskiy” Kurbonov (Uzbekistan) – 158.51 LB. (71,9 kg.)
Jani Salmi (Finland) – 154.76 LB. (70,2 kg.)
vs.
Nikolay Goncharov (Russia) – 154.76 LB. (70,2 kg.)
Aleksandar Rakas (Croatia) – 154.54 LB. (70,1 kg.)
vs.
Anatoly Lyagu (Ukraine) – 155 LB. (70,3 kg.)
 
PRE-UNDERCARD
Tino Gilaranz (Spain) – 154.1 LB. (69,9 kg.)
vs.
Valentin Kryzhanovsky (Russia)151.46 LB. (68,7 kg.)
 
(all fights & fighters subject to change)

WHEN:           Friday, February 9, 2018
WHERE:         M-1 Arena, Saint Petersburg, Russia
 
PROMOTER:  M-1 Global
LIVE STREAM: www.m1global.tv (10.30 a.m. ET / 7:30 a.m. PT in USA)
INFORMATION:

Twitter & Instagram:
@M1GlobalNews
@Vadim_finkelchtein
@M1Global
Facebook:
 
UPCOMING EVENTS:
 
Feb. 9 – M-1 Challenge 87: Silander vs. Ashimov, M-1 Arena, Saint Petersburg, Russia
Feb. 22 – M-1 Challenge 88: Ismagulov vs. Tutarauli, Olympic Stadium, Moscow, Russia

Stars coming out for M-1 Challenge 88

 
Two M-1 Challenge title fights
Damir Ismagulov vs. Raul Tutarauli
Movsar Evloev vs. Sergey Morozov
Feb. 22 in Moscow
SAINT PETERSBURG, Russia (January 31, 2018) – A pair of M-1 Challenge title fights, along with the return of a former champion, are shock-and-awe fights on M-1 Challenge 88, February 22 at Olympic Stadium in Moscow, Russia.
M-1 Challenge 88 will be live-streamed from Russia in high definition on www.M1Global.TV. Viewers will be able to watch the preliminary fights and main card by logging on to register at www.M1Global.TV. Fans may watch all the action on their computers, as well as on Android and Apple smart phones and tablets.
M-1 Challenge lightweight champion Damir Ismaguluv (14-2-0, M-1: 8-1-0), the Kazakhstan native fighting out of Russia, defends his title against Georgian challenger Raul Tutarauli (18-3-0, M-1: 6-1-0) in the main event.
The 26-year-old Ismagulov is riding a nine-fight win streak, dating back more than 2 ½ years, including a third-round knockout of Tutarauli on May 27, 2016 in the M-1 Challenge 66 Fight of the Night. Ismagulov also won the M-1 Challenge 72 Fight of the Year, by way of a third-round unanimous decision on November 18, 2016.
Tutarauli, 25, has reeled off eight victories in a row since he lost to Ismagulov, including decisions wins last year over Artur Lemos at M-1 Challenge 77 and Vladimir Kanunnikov at M-1 Challenge 83.
In the co-main event, undefeated M-1 Challenge bantamweight title holder Movsar Evloev (8-0-0, M-1: 8-0-0) puts his perfect professional MMA record on the line against his Kazakh challenger, Sergey Morozov (10-3-0, M-1: 5-2-0).
Evloev has been unbeatable since his M-1 Global and professional debut on November 25, 2014, when the gifted Russian choked Jianwei Ha into a second-round submission at M-1 Challenge 53. At M-1 Challenge 76, Evloev captured the Interim M-1 Challenge bantamweight title, knocking out Alexey Nevzorov with a powerful kick last April, followed by an impressive five-round decision over veteran Pavel Vitruk this past July at M-1 Challenge 81 to capture the outright title.
Morozov earned his first title shot with back-to-back victories in 2017 against veteran Brazilian fighters, taking a three-round decision from Fabricio Sarraff at M-1 Challenge 76, and a second-round knockout by punches of Luan Fernandez at M-1 Challenge 83.
Also fighting on the main card is former M-1 Challenge light heavyweight champion Stephan “T-800” Puetz (15-3-0, M-1: 6-2-0), of Germany, vs. Russian foe Khadis Ibragimov (2-0-0, M-1: 0-0-0), Brazilian bantamweight Helton dos Santos Davella(15-5-1, M-1: 0-1-1) vs. Bair Shtepin (5-2-0, M-1: 2-2-0), of Russia, and American middleweight Joseph “Leonidas” Henle (10-3-1, M-1: 0-1-0) vs. Valery “The Russian Hammer” Myasnikov (11-1-2, M-1: 2-1-2).
The preliminary card is loaded, as well, with unbeaten prospects Alexander Osetrov(3-0-0, M-1: 2-0-0) and Sergey Klyuev (5-0-0) in a battle of Russian bantamweights, former M-1 Challenge lightweight champion Maxim Divnich (13-4-0, M-1: 7-4-0), of Russia by way of Ukraine, vs. Busurmankul Abdibait Uulu (9-2-1, M-1: 1-0-1) , of Kyrgyzstan, German heavyweight Frank Tattoo” Kortz (4-4-0, M-1: 0-1-0) vs. unbeaten Russian Maxim Yakobyuk (7-1-0, M-1: 2-0-0), Talekh “The Azerbaijan Terminator” Nadzhafadze (6-2-1, M-1: 2-1-1) vs. Russian middleweight Vitaliy Slipenko (9-1-0, M-1: 1-0-0), and Brazilian lightweight Rubenilton “Rubinho” Pereira (18-5-0, M-1: 2-2-0) vs. Erlan Ulukbekov (7-1-0, M-1: 0-1-0), of Kyrgyzstan.
All fighters and fights are subject to change.
INFORMATION

Twitter & Instagram:
@M1GlobalNews
@Vadim_finkelchtein
@M1Global
Facebook:
 
UPCOMING EVENTS:
 
Feb. 9 – M-1 Challenge 87: Silander vs. Ashimov, M-1 Arena, Saint Petersburg, Russia
Feb. 22 – M-1 Challenge 88: Ismagulov vs. Tutarauli, Olympic Stadium, Moscow, Russia

M-1 Challenge 87: Mikael Silander-Arman Ashimov Interim M-1 Challenge Flyweight title fight headliner

Grand Opening of M-1 Arena, Feb. 9
Saint Petersburg, Russia
SAINT PETERSBURG, Russia (January 25, 2018) – The Interim M-1 Challenge flyweight title will be on the line February 9, when Mikael “Hulk” Silander and Arman Ashimov square off in the M-1 Challenge 87 main event, in the grand opening of M-1 Arena in Saint Petersburg, Russia.
Both events will be live-streamed from Russia in high definition on www.M1Global.TV. Viewers will be able to watch the preliminary fights and main card by logging on to register atwww.M1Global.TV. Fans may watch all the action on their computers, as well as on Android and Apple smart phones and tablets.
One of Scandinavia’s all-time best MMA fighters, the 32-year-old Silander (17-5-0, M-1: 1-0-0) earned his title shot by winning a three-round majority decision over Vitaliy Branchuk (23-6-0), last August at M-1 Challenge 82 in his native Finland.
Ashimov (7-2-1, M-1: 2-0-0), fighting out of Almaty, Kazakhstan, is unbeaten in M-1 Global fights having knocked out Rodrigo Melonio this past November at M-1 Challenge 85, and Gadzhimurad Aliev last July at M-1 Challenge 81.
A loaded main card also features undefeated Kazakh welterweight Shavkat Rakhmonov (7-0-0, M-1: 5-0-0) versus his Russian opponent, Levan Solodovnik (5-1-0, M-1: 0-0-0) Juho Valamma (15-4-0, M-1: 1-0-0), Brazilian light heavyweight Kleiber Raimundo “Orgugho” Silva (14-7-0, M-1: 1-0-0) vs. Dmitry Mikutsa (7-3-0, M-1: 1-1-0), of Ukraine, Russian featherweight Timur Nagibin (13-3-0, M-1: 5-2-0) vs. Jadison Dimitry “Tita” Silva (23-8-0, M-1: 0-0-0), of Brazil, and Pavel Gordeev (9-1-0, M-1: 3-0-0), of Russia, TBA.
The preliminary card has undefeated Swiss welterweight prospect Pablo Ortmann (7-0-0, M-1: 1-0-0) vs. Ingiskhan Ozdoev (5-3-0, M-1: 4-3-0), of Russia, unbeaten Russian heavyweight Adam Bogatyrev (5-0-0, M-1: 1-0-0) vs. Jose “Agus” Augustine Jimenez (5-3-0, M-1: 0-0-0), French welterweight Charles-Henri Tchoungui (9-7-1, M-1: 0-1-0), vs. Artem Nenakov (6-2-0, M-1: 0-1-0), of Russia, and Georgian welterweight Amiran Gogoladze (4-1-0, M-1: 1-0-0) vs. Stanislav “Stas” Podolsky (5-1-0, M-1: 1-0-0).
All fighters and fights are subject to change.
INFORMATION:www.M1Global.tv
Twitter & Instagram:
@M1GlobalNews
@Vadim_finkelchtein
@M1Global
Facebook:
 
UPCOMING EVENTS:
 
Feb. 9 – M-1 Challenge 87: Silander vs. Ashimov, M-1 Arena, Saint Petersburg, Russia
Feb. 22 – M-1 Challenge 88: Ismagulov vs. Tutarauli, Olympic Stadium, Moscow, Russia

2017 M-1 Global Prospect of the Year   Rising flyweight star Arman Ashimov

  Arman Ashimov is shown above putting Rodrigo Melonio to sleep
SAINT PETERSBURG, Russia (January 18, 2018) – Rising flyweight Arman Ashimov has been named the 2017 M-1 Global Prospect of the Year.
Ashimov (7-2-1, M-1: 2-0-0), 26, made his M-1 Global debut last July in M-1 Challenge 81, in which he stopped previously undefeated Gadzhimurad Aliev (6-0-0), of Russia, with one punch in round two.
Last November, Ashimov positioned himself for a title shot with an impressive opening-round knockout via punches of Brazilian veteran Rodrigo Melonio (16-3-0) at M-1 Challenge 85.
Five of Ashimov’s seven victories to date have ended by knockout, the other two by decision.
The gifted Kazakh fighter headlines his first M-1 Global event on February 9 against Finnish invader Mikael “Hulk” Silander (17-5-0, M-1: 1-0-0) for the Interim M-1 Global flyweight title, celebrating the opening of the beautiful, state-of-the-art M-1 Arena in Saint Petersburg, Russia.
INFORMATION:

www.M1Global.tv

Twitter & Instagram:
@M1GlobalNews
@Vadim_finkelchtein
@M1Global
Facebook:
 
UPCOMING EVENTS:
 
Feb. 9 – M-1 Challenge 87: Silander vs. Ashimov, M-1 Arena, Saint Petersburg, Russia

Feb. 22 – M-1 Challenge 88: Ismagulov vs. Tutarauli, Olympic Stadium, Moscow, Russia

2017 M-1 Global Fighter of the Year   M-1 Challenge Lightweight Champion   Damir Ismagulov

SAINT PETERSBURG, Russia (January 16, 2018) — M-1 Challenge lightweight champion Damir Ismagulov has been selected by mixed-martial-arts fans around the world as the 2017 M-1 Global Fighter of the Year.
Fighting out of Orenburg, Russia, the 26-year-old Ismagulov (14-2-0, M-1: 8-1-0) was 3-0-0 in 2017, all in M-1 Global action, including his M-1 Challenge lightweight title-winning performance, followed by one successful title defense.
Ismagulov, a native of Kazakhstan, started 2017 in grand style, knocking out Morgan Heraod of France, in the third round last February at M-1 Challenge 74.
Last May, Ismagulov faced former M-1 Challenge champion Maxim Divnich (13-2-0), at home, in Orenburg, for the vacant M-1 Challenge lightweight championship.
Their title fight commenced with a “feeling-out process” of simple exchanges of blows with Ismagulov working more with his feet, but the opening round ended with the hometown favorite holding a slight advantage.
Ismagulov, however, dominated the next three rounds and Divnich, whose severely damaged, bloody face showed the ill effects of Ismagulov’s continued assault, was unable to turn things around in the fifth. As the finish neared, Ismagulov failed to submit his game opponent until a barrage of unanswered punched rained on a defenseless Divnich. The referee halted the action with 13-seconds remaining on the clock for a hard-fought Ismagulov win by technical knockout.
After the fight 5,000 fans celebrated, roaring their approval for Ismagulov, who said, “I’m from the Orenburg region. I won the belt! Thanks for coming. I want to thank the MMA Orenburg, my coach,Victor Frolov, who saw me as a talent, and Alexander Shlemenko for believing in me. I thank my coaches, my family, and our fans.
“I’ve proved that a simple guy from a small village without the Internet can become champion. If I can, you can. The belt is in Orenburg, where it should be.”
Ismagulov is shown here in a ground-and-pound attack vs. Rogero Matias da Conceicao
Ismagulov won a hard-fought main event battle against upset-minded Rogero “Karranca” Matias da Conceicao, of Brazil, by way of a non-title, unanimous decision at M-1 Challenge 85.
Ismagulov defends his M-1 Challenge lightweight title February 22, when he takes on his Georgian challenger, Raul Tuturauli (18-3-0, M-1: 6-1-0), in the M-1 Challenge 88 main event at Olympic Stadium in Moscow.

 

 

INFORMATION:

www.M1Global.tv

Twitter & Instagram:
@M1GlobalNews
@Vadim_finkelchtein
@M1Global
Facebook:
 
UPCOMING EVENTS:
 
Feb. 9 – M-1 Challenge 87: Silander vs. Ashimov, M-1 Arena, Saint Petersburg, Russia
Feb. 22 – M-1 Challenge 88: Ismagulov vs. Tutarauli, Olympic Stadium, Moscow, Russia

M-1 Global kicks-off 2018 in February with M-1 Challenge 87 & 88

SAINT PETERSBURG, Russia (January 8, 2018) – M-1 Global will kick-off its 21stseason with a pair of international events in February, M-1 Challenge 87 and M-1 Challenge 88, respectively, Feb. 9 in Saint Petersburg and Feb. 22 in Moscow.
Both events will be live-streamed from Russia in high definition on www.M1Global.TV. Viewers will be able to watch the preliminary fights and main card by logging on to register at www.M1Global.TV. Fans may watch all the action on their computers, as well as on Android and Apple smart phones and tablets.
Finnish flyweight Mikael “Hulk” Silander (17-5-0, M-1: 1-0-0) takes on Kazakh fighter Ariman Ashimov (10-2-1, M-1: 2-0-0) in the lone fight announced this far for M-1 Challenge 87, which will feature the grand opening of M-1 Arena. The Silander-Ashimov winner will be positioned for a potential title shot against M-1 Challenge flyweight champion Aleksander Doskalchuk, of Ukraine.
Mikael Silander (R) will be making his Russian MMA debut Feb. 9 in Saint Petersburg
  Ariman Ashimov hopes to improve to 3-0-0 in M-1 Challenge competition on Feb. 9
Two M-1 Challenge title fights have been announced as the M-1 Challenge 88 co-main events on Feb. 22 in Moscow.
M-1 Challenge Lightweight Champion Damir Ismagulov (14-2-0, M-1: 8-1-0), of Russia, defends his belt against his dangerous Georgian challenger, Raul Tutarauli(18-3-0, M-1: 6-1-0), while M-1 Challenge Bantamweight Champion Movsar Evloev (8-0-0, M-1: 8-0-0) puts his perfect pro record on the line against Kazakhstan-native Sergey Morozov (10-3-0, M-1: 5-2-0), who also fights out of Russia.
  Damir Ismagulov (on top) makes his second title defense Feb. 22
Raul Tutarauli (on top) gets his first title shot Feb. 22
Movsar Evloev (L) plans to keep his prefect record intact
  
 Sergey Morozov is hoping to upset Movar Evloev to become M-1 Challenge Bantamweight Champion
All fights and fighters are subject to change. Additional matches for M-1 Challenge 87and M-1 Challenge 88 will soon be announced.
INFORMATION:
 
Twitter & Instagram:
@M1GlobalNews
@Vadim_finkelchtein
@M1Global
Facebook:

M-1 Arena grand opening and M-1 Challenge 100 to highlight 21st season for M-1 Global

In January the new M-1 Arena is scheduled to open in Saint Petersburg
SAINT PETERSBURG, Russia (December 29, 2017) — The grand opening of the state-of-the-art M-1 Arena in Saint Petersburgh, in addition to the celebration of M-1 Challenge 100 later in 2018, will highlight M-1 Global’s 21st season.
Plans in 2018 also include more events, expansion into new countries and, as the No. 2 MMA organization in the world, to keep giving its fans world-class competition, entertaining match-ups, innovative developments and even a few surprises.
M-1 Global president Vadim Finkelchtein discussed a few of these subjects (see below) prior to the holidays.
Can you tell us about the new M-1 Arena?
VF: “M-1 Arena is an absolutely unique structure seating a maximum of 3000. It is built in the form of the Colosseum, stone and wood, with an incredible dome made of glulam, which gives the place perfect acoustics. Not only can we promote sporting events, but also music concerts. M-1 Arena allows us to have even more events and realize new ideas like, for example, a reality show. M-1 Arena will be multifunctional but martial arts will be the main form of entertainment held there.”
M-1 Challenge was more international last year in terms of showcasing more fighters from different countries like USA, Portugal, UK, Canada, South Korea, China, etc.  Do you plan to expand your fighter base even more this year and, if so, what countries are you targeting for fighters?
VF: “Usually, we hire fighters from countries where our events are being broadcasted. If we have new contracts with the countries from where we don’t have representative fighters, or only have a few of them, we are going to increase their number. The same for countries where we’ve held events because fans desire to see the local athletes fighting in the Rage. We give them an opportunity to see that.”
With the success of female MMA stars around the world do you plan to add a female division in 2018?
VF: “One day we will probably create a female division in M-1 Global. Right now, though, we don’t have enough strong female fighters to do it, yet. As soon as we are ready to make this happen, it will be done, but we don’t want to open a new division just to check the box. We want the best fighters to compete at the highest level.”
M-1 Global is closing in on your 100th M-1 Challenge event.  Do you plan to promote your 100th event in 2018?  If so can you provide any additional information about when, where, special plans, etc.
VF: M-1 Global has already promoted more than 200 events, including 85 M-1 Challenges, which was created in 2008. I think that this event will happen either in Saint-Petersburg or in Moscow, but we still have a lot of time left and a dozen other events before it. We are going to take care of it a bit later.”
M-1 has developed fighters who’ve moved on to the UFC and other organizations.  How do you feel about that trend?  Does it frustrate you that you to spend time building a fighter and then have him move on, or do you look at it as a compliment that M-1 Global develops fighters who can compete in the UFC and any other organization?
VF: “We can consider this situation from different perspectives. I’m not happy to let my best fighters go, of course, but it is what it is, and we are not ready to compete with UFC yet. Sometimes our fighters leave us. From another perspective, we are happy that our fighters who leave keep winning fights and become the top competitors in other promotions. It proves that the level of M-1 Global fighters is equal to the level of UFC fighters. The top athletes who left M-1 Global for UFC are in top positions there and other promotions don’t have such results. Other organization may make their fighters popular but, as soon as they move to UFC, they start losing and get released.
“Our company is probably the second MMA promotion in the world and when some fighters move to the strongest league on the planet, they take a step forward, which I like much better than when they move to weaker promotions than M-1 Global just to make more money.”
Any plans to do anything different this year than in the past, outside of the grand opening of the M-1 arena and possible 100th event?
VF: “The main difference will be that we are going to have our own home, M-1 Arena, which means we will be able to hold even more events. We’d like to have two events each month, 24 events a year. We opened our own TV channel (M1global.tv) and next year, MMA fans from former Soviet Republics will have an opportunity to watch all the fights. Using our iOS and Android App, viewers from all over the world can watch old and new fights right now, and next year we are going to make it even better. We are also going to create our own studio to produce different content, probably a new reality show with fighters from different countries.”
Will you have showcase M-1 Medieval fights this coming year?
VF: “Apparently, we will have some medieval fights in 2018, but the only issue is that we have a lot of fighters under contract, so it is not easy to find a place for M-1 Medieval fights on our cards. We make knight fights in regions where they are popular, like in Ingushetia and Finland in 2017, because fans demonstrated to us that they want to see them. I hope one day we’ll have more resources for them.”

INFORMATION:
Twitter & Instagram:
@M1GlobalNews
@Vadim_finkelchtein
@M1Global
Facebook:

M-1 Global’s 20th anniversary a smashing success in 2017

M-1 Global president Vadim Finkelchtein
SAINT PETERSBURG, Russia (December 27, 2017) — M-1 Global celebrated its 20thanniversary in style this past year, reestablishing itself as the preeminent mixed-martial-arts organization in Europe and Russia.
M-1 promoted 13 Challenges in 2017, 11 across Russia, as well as one each in China and Finland. Fighters from around the world competed including MMA superstars such as Sergey Kharitonov and Alexander Shlemenko, as well as rising stars Alexey Kunchenko and Artem Frolov.
M-1 Global founder and president Vadim Finkelchtein reviewed the 2017 season, answering a series of questions below:
Overall, how do you evaluate the 2017 M-1 Challenge season in terms of achievements and accomplishments as a promotional company?
VF: “First of all, we increased the number of events. Some were even rated among top 5 monthly sporting events on television, which is really an incredible achievement. We’ve almost finished building our new M-1 Arena and produced our own M-1 Be Strong Protein milkshake.”
You promoted events in different countries this past year like Finland.  Was M-1 embraced by those fans and, if so, why do you think so?
VF: “We held our first event in Finland and it was really successful. M-1 Challenge 82took place in Hartwall Arena, one of the largest venues in Finland, located in the capital of Helsinki. Many fans came to watch our promotion’s debut in that country and it became one of the biggest MMA events in Finland history. Scandinavia is a very interesting region for us. We have many fighters from Finland and next year we are going to hold another event there.
“We also had a big event in Harbin, China, which was a part of cultural program of Economic Forum. Many VIP visitors and thousands of fans gathered to watch the fights and it was a superb event. China is a prospective MMA market and we are going to work further, featuring more fighters from this country, and promote one or two event a year there.
“Next year, we are going to promote even more events in other countries, planning to hold M-1 Challenge shows in Georgia, Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Turkey, China, Finland, Germany and the USA.”
What was the M-1 highlight of the year?
VF: “This past year we had a lot of remarkable events and fights, so it’s very difficult to choose just one highlight. If I had to choose, the rematch between Alexander Shlemenko and Brandon Halsey was the highlight of the year. Thousands of people in Saint Petersburg on June 1st came to see the rematch and that liver-kick Alexander delivered made the crowd go crazy. In the first fight, Brandon won in 35 seconds, so Alexander wanted to revenge fast and it took him just 25 seconds. That was unbelievable and unforgettable!”
Compared to past years in what areas did M-1 improve in 2017?
VF: “Each year we have more high-level fighters and that is the main difference. MMA has been developing around the world and the competition is always getting tougher. Only the best fighters receive an opportunity to sign a contract with M-1 Global. We have an opportunity to choose the best fighters, increasing the level of fights, to make it impossible to predict the winners in advance. Furthermore, we increased the number of events and TV coverage with some new TV contracts worldwide.”
This was your 20th year.  When you started 20 years ago did you envision the success M-1 has had in MMA?
VF: “I could not imagine MMA would become so popular. I went through the entire MMA evolution and the past 20 years I’ve been working on the promotion to make it better each year. The path was not easy because many years ago this kind of sport was considered criminal. Many called it fights without rules and I had to work hard to make people think about it as a legitimate sport.”
M-1 added the flyweight division this past year.  Why and was it successful in the eyes of fans?
VF: “Flyweight fighters can produce incredible performances. It was necessary for us to create this division because we knew that there were lot of good flyweight fighters. They wanted to fight in M-1 and we made it happen. We already have the first champion and a several tough contenders. In 2018, the flyweight division will be very interesting.”
M-1 CHALLENGE CHAMPIONS
HEAVYWEIGHT (265 lbs., 120,2 kg)
VACANT
LIGHT HEAVYWEIGHT (205 lbs., 93,0 kg)
VACANT
MIDDLEWEIGHT (185 lbs., 83,9 kg)
 
Artem Frolov (10-0-0 (M-1: 7-0-0), Russia
WELTERWEIGHT (170 lbs., 77,1 kg)
 
Alexey Kunchenko (17-0-0 (M-1: 9-0-0), Russia
LIGHTWEIGHT (155 lbs., 70,3 kg)
 
Damir Ismagulov (14-2-0 (M-1: 9-1-0), Russia by way of Kazakhstan
FEATHERWEIGHT (145 lbs., 65,8 kg)
 
Khamzat Dalgiev (10-1-0 (M-1: 7-1-0), Russia
BANTAMWEIGHT (135 lbs., 61,2 kg)
 
Movsar Evloev (8-0-0 (M-1: 8-0-0), Russia
 
FLYWEIGHT (125 lbs., 56,7 kg)
 
Aleksander Doskalchuk (8-1-0 (M-1: 3-4-1), Ukraine
INFORMATION:
Twitter & Instagram:
@M1GlobalNews
@Vadim_finkelchtein
@M1Global
Facebook:

M-1 CHALLENGE 86 OFFICIAL RESULTS

Khamzat Dalgiev stops defending champion
Ivan Buchinger in opening round to capture
M-1 Challenge featherweight title
And the new M-1 Challenge featherweight champion…..Khamzat Dalgiev
INGUSHETIA, Russia (November 25, 2017) — Russian challenge Khamzat Dalgievended the three-year plus reign of Ivan “Buki” Bunchinger as M-1 Challenge featherweight champion, knocking the Slovakian in the opening round in last night’s M-1 Challenge 86: Battle of the Narts” main event, in Ingushetia, Russia.
M-1 Challenge 86 showcased MMA fighters from a dozen different countries: Russia, USA, Slovakia, Finland, Canada, France, Brazil, Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan, Ukraine, Azerbaijan and Georgia.
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Buchinger (32-6-0, M-1: 7-2-0) originally captured his M-1 Challenge featherweight title more than three years ago, when he knocked out Tural Ragimov in the fourth round of their M-1 Challenge 52 Fight of the Night, also held in Ingushetia. Buchinger had made two title defenses, winning a five-round unanimous decision over Mansour Barnaoui atM-1 Challenge 62 on October 10, 2016, as well as in his last action this past June atM-1 Challenge 80 in China, at which he locked in a choke to defeat Timor Nagibin by fourth-round submission this past June.
The newly crowned M-1 Challenge featherweight champion, Dalgiev (10-1-0, M-1: 6-2-0), extended his win streak to 10 consecutive victories since he lost his pro debut.
Russian Mikhail Ragozin (9-3-0), M-1: 2-1-0) knocked out American Joseph “Leonidas” Henle (10-3-1, M-1: 1-1-0), who made his M-1 Global debut, on punches in the third round of the co-featured event that was contested at a 196-pound catchweight.
Finnish lightweight Aleksi Mantykivi (11-4-0, M-1: 1-0-0) and Canadian bantamweightChris “The Greek Assassin” Kelades (12-3-0, M-1: 1-0-0) both made strong statements against their Russian opponents in their M-1 Global debuts with submission victories. Mantykivi used a Guillotine choke to defeat Bashier Gagiev (5-3-0, M-1: 2-1-0), of Russia, in the second round, while Kelades employed a Kimura for his win over Russian Oleg Lichkovakha (8-2-0, M-1: 1-1-0) in the third frame.
In the main card opener, Kyrgyzstan featherweight) Busurmankut Abdibait Uulu (9-2-1, M-1: 1-0-1) punched out his Brazilian foe, veteran Diego Davella (18-7-1, M-1: 1-2-1), in the opening round.
On the preliminary card, Ukrainian welterweight Alexander “Iron Capture” Butenko(45-12-3, M-1: 11-2-1) registered the 45th win of his professional MMA career, when the doctor halted the action after one round versus Elerzhan Narmurzaev (4-1-0, M-1: 0-1-0), of Kyrgyzstan. Georgian featherweight Soso “Stechkin” Nizharadze (5-4-0, M-1: 2-0-0) took a three-round unanimous decision over Russian Adam Gagiev (3-3-1, M-1: 2-2-0), Azerbaijan heavyweight Zaur Gadzhibabyev (6-1-0, M-1: 4-0-0) knocked outNikolay Savilov, of Russia, in the first round on punches, and Brazilian lightweightRubenilton “Rubinho” Pereira (8-5-0, M-1: 2-2-0) put Russian Lom Al-Nalgiev (14-6-0, M-1: 5-1-0) to sleep via punches in the opening round.
In a pair of pre-undercard fights, Russian bantamweight prospect Selem Evloev (4-0-0, M-1: 4-0-0) kept his perfect record intact, unloading a bevy of punches on UkrainianDmitry Orlov (2-4-1, M-1: 1-1-0) for a first-round technical knockout, while UkrainianYuri Chobuka (8-1-0, M-1: 2-0-0) improved his record to 8-1-1 with a first-round submission triumph by way of Guillotine choke versus Akhmadkhan Bokov (2-3-0, M-1: 2-1-0), of Russia, at a 150-pound catchweight.
Complete results, video of each fight, and more pictures below:
MAIN CARD
MAIN EVENT – M-1 CHALLENGE FEATHERWEIGHT CHAMPIONSHIP
Khamzat Dalgiev (10-1-0, M-1: 7-1-0), Russia
WKO1 (Punches – 2:35)
Ivan Buchinger(32-6-0, M-1: 7-2-0), Slovakia
(Dalgiev won M-1 Challenge featherweight title)
CO-FEATURE – 196 LBS. CATCHWEIGHT
Mikhail Ragozin (9-3-0, M-1: 3-1-0), Russia
WKO3 (Punches – 4:59)
Joseph Henle (10-3-1, M-1: 0-1-0), USA
LIGHTWEIGHTS
Aleksi Mantykivi, Finland
WSUB2 (Guillotine Choke – 1:06)
Bashir Gagiev (5-3-0, M-1: 2-1-), Russia
BANTAMWEIGHTS
Chris Kelades 12-3-0, M-1: 1-0-0), Canada
WSUB3 (Kimura – 1:37)
Oleg Lichkovakha (8-2-0, M-1: 1-1-0), Russia
FEATHERWEIGHTS
Busurmankut Abdibait Uulu (9-2-1, M-1: 1-0-1), Kyrgyzstan
WTKO (Punches – 4:12)
Diego Davella (18-6-1, M-1: 1-2-1), Brazil
PRELIMINARY CARD
LIGHTWEIGHTS
Arnaud Kherfallakh (5-1-0, M-1: 2-0-0), France
WSUB1 (Guillotine Choke – 1:48)
Vaha Shankhoev (5-4-0, M-1: 4-3-0), Russia
FEATHERWEIGHTS
Soso Nizharadze (5-4-0, M-1: 2-0-0), Georgia
WDEC3
Adam Gagiev (3-3-1, M-1: 2-2-0), Russia
HEAVYWEIGHTS
Zaur Gadzhibabyev (6-1-0, 4-0-0), Azerbaijan
WKO1 (Punch – 4:33)
Nikolay Savilov (10-3-0, M-1: 3-1-0), Russia
WELTERWEIGHTS
Alexander Butenko (45-12-3, M-1: 11-2-1), Russia
WSUB1 (Arm-bar – 5:00)
Elerzhan Narmurzaev (4-1-0, M-1: 0-1-0), Kyrgyzstan
LIGHTWEIGHTS
Rubenilton Pereira (18-5-0, M-1: 2-2-0)
WKO1 (Punch – 3:08)
Lom-Ali Nalgiev (14-6-0, M-1: 5-1-0)
PRE – UNDERCARD
BANTAMWEIGHTS
Selem Evloev (3-0-0, M-1 3-0-0), Russia
WTKO1 (Punches 4:36)
Dmitry Orlov (2-3-0, M-1: 1-1-0) , Ukraine
150 LBS. CATCHWEIGHT
Yuri Chobuka (8-1-0, M-1: 1-0-0), Ukraine
WSUB1 (Guillotine Choke – 2:14)
Akhmadkhan Bokov (2-3-0, M-1: 2-1-0), Russia
 
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Ivan Buchinger defends   M-1 Challenge featherweight title vs.  Khamzat Dalgiev to headline M-1 Challenge 86

This Friday in Ingushetia, Russia
Ivan Buchinger (R) has been the M-1 Challenge featherweight champion for 3 years
SAINT PETERSBURG, Russia (November 20, 2017) – M-1 Global holds one of its final events of the year on Friday night, featuring M-1 Challenge featherweight champion Ivan “Buki” Buchinger in his title defense against challenger Khamzat Dalgiev in the M-1 Challenge 86: Battle of the Narts in Ingushetia, Russia.
M-1 Challenge 86 will be streamed live from Ingushetia in high definition on www.M1Global.TV. Viewers will be able to watch the preliminary fights and main card by logging on to register at www.M1Global.TV. Fans may watch all the action on their computers, as well as on Android and Apple smart phones and tablets.
M-1 Challenge 86 will showcase MMA fighters from 12 different countries: Russia, USA, Slovakia, Finland, Canada, France, Brazil, Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan, Ukraine, Azerbaijan and Georgia.
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Buchinger (32-5-0, M-1: 7-1-0), fighting out of Slovakia, captured his M-1 Challenge featherweight title more than three years ago, when he knocked out Tural Ragimov in the fourth round of their M-1 Challenge 52 Fight of the Night, also held in Ingushetia. Buchinger has made two title defenses, winning a five-round unanimous decision over Mansour Barnaoui at M-1 Challenge 62 on October 10, 2016, as well as in his last action this past June at M-1 Challenge 80 in China, at which he locked in a choke to defeat Timor Nagibin by fourth-round submission this past June.
After losing his pro debut, Dalgiev (9-1-0, M-1: 6-1-0), of Russia, has reeled-off nine consecutive victories to position himself as the top M-1 Global featherweight contender. In his last fight Dalgiev submitted Dragan Pesic at M-1 Challenge 79 with a heel hook and before that at M-1 Challenge 73, he earned a bonus Submission of the Night, using a choke to force Christian Holley into a second-round submission (see picture below).

In the co-featured event, to be contested at a 196-pound catch-weight, Russian favorite Mikhail Ragozin (8-3-0, M-1: 2-1-0) takes on debuting M-1 Global American, Joseph “Leonidas” Henle (10-2-1, M-1: 0-0-0).
Also scheduled to fight on the M-1 Challenge 86 main card are Finnish lightweight Aleksi Mantykivi (10-4-0, M-1: 0-0-0) vs. Russian Bashir Gagiev (5-2-0, M-1: 2-0-0), Canadian bantamweight Chris “The Greek Assassin” Kelades (11-3-0, M-1: 0-0-0), also making his M-1 Global debut, vs. Russian Oleg Lichkovakha (8-1-0, M-1: 1-0-0), and Brazilian featherweight Diego Davella (18-6-1, M-1: 1-1-1) vs. Busurmankut Abdibait Uulu (8-2-1, M-1: 0-0-1), of Kyrgyzstan.
The loaded preliminary card has Russian lightweight Lom-Ali Nalgiev (14-5-0, M-1: 5-0-0) vs. Brazilian Rubenilton “Rubinho” Pereira (17-5-0, M-1: 1-2-0), veteran Ukrainian welterweight Alexander “Iron Capture” Butenko (44-12-3, M-1: 10-1-1) vs. Kiamrian “Brazen” Abbasov (18-3-0, M-1: 0-0-0), of Kyrgyzstan, Azerbaijan heavyweight Zaur Gadzhibabyev (5-1-0, M-1: 3-0-0) vs. Russian Nikolay Savilov (10-2-0, M-1: 3-0-0), and Russian featherweight Adam Gagiev (3-2-1, M-1: 2-1-0) vs. Soso “Stechkin” Nizharadze (4-4-0, M-1: 1-0-0), of Georgia.
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M-1 Challenge 86: Nov. 24, 2017 in Ingushetia, Russia