MOSCOW (Martie 27, 2017) – Russian heavyweight Sergei “Paratrooper” Kharitonov has committed to fighting Iunie 15 pe M-1 Challenge 80 card in Harbin, China. Kharitonov will square-off against veteran Brazilian MMA fighter Marcus Viniciuds “Munte” Lopes în evenimentul principal.
Kharitonov (23-6-0, M-1: 3-0-0) is undefeated in three M-1 Challenge events having defeated former M-1 Challenge heavyweight champion Kenny “Egalitate de puncte” Acumula de două ori, at M-1 Provocare 59 în 2015 at Kazakhstan (WKO/TKO4 – pumni) și M-1 Challenge 43 în 2013 at China, (KO/TKO3 – injury), și la Finanțe Alexei la M-1 Challenge 53 în 2014 Rusia (KO2).
Kharitonov, who has also fought in Strikeforce and PRIDE, has defeated some of the greatest heavyweight MMA fighters of all-time, inclusiv Allistair Overeem, Andrei Arlovski, Fabricio Werdum și Pedro Rizzo.
Lopes (15-0-0, M-1: 2-1-0) învins Evgeni Myakinkin by three-round unanimous decision this past February at M-1 Challenge 74. Lopes won a three-round unanimous decision over Kurban Ibragimov in his M-1 debut last July. His lone M-1 loss came at M-1 Challenge 71 this past October to former M-1 Challenge light heavyweight champion Stephan Puetz, who used a choke hold for a third-round submission victory.
A pressure fighter and solid striker, Lopes is a jiu-jitsu champion in his native Brazil, where most of his MMA fights have been held during his 6 1/2-years professional career.
In a recent interview with M-1 Global News, Kharitonov said, “I received a lot of offers but I prefer to fight in M-1 Global.” Below is the complete Q & A with Kharitonov:
Do you know who your opponent will be at M-1 Challenge and, dacă nu, what are your expectations?
SK: “I don’t not know anything yet. I received an offer from M-1 to fight in China. Since I have been talking with (Președintele M-1 Global) Vadim Finkelchtein for a long time and understand each other, I gave my consent Vadim said I am popular in China and that he wanted me to represent Russia in this tournament. At this moment, I have no thoughts or assumptions about this fight because I’m focused on my upcoming Bellator fight. This is my main objective right now and after that fight I will think about the M-1 fight.”
Bellator did not give permission for a fight last December in Russia. What changed this time and was it difficult to get permission to fight again in M-1?
SK: “There were no problems. I do not want to comment on how we came to an agreement, bit one thing is for sure, I’ve received permission and after my next Bellator fight I will fight at M-1 Challenge 80 in China.”
You fought in China at M-1 Challenge 53. How do you like the local audience there and what are your overall impressions of the tournament?
SK: “Everything was fine. I liked the level of organization, fani’ attitude toward the athletes, and the response from the public. I think M-1 has good experience in terms of holding tournaments in China, so this time they can make it an even bigger show.”
Do you accept offers to fight from other Russian organizations and why did you decided to fight in M-1?
SK: “Da, I received a lot of offers, especially recently. I won’t say specifically but they were from major Russian MMA organizations. But I have a long relationship with M-1 and me and Vadim know each other well. We get along well and trust each other. Prin urmare, O prefer to fight in M-1 Global.”
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