Tag Archives: Vadim Finkelchtein

M-1 Challenge middleweight champ Artem Frolov steps in to fight C.B. Dollaway, Sept. 15, at UFC Moscow

  Artem Frolov (center) is the M-1 Challenge middleweight champion

SAINT PETERSBURG, Russia (September 4, 2018) — Undefeated M-1 Challenge middleweight champion Artem Frolov will make his UFC debut, stepping in on short notice to replace injured Omari Ashkedov against battle-tested C.B. “The Doberman” Dollaway, September 15 on the UFC Moscow card at Olympic Stadium in Moscow.

 

 

 

“I am very happy for Artem,” M-1 Global president Vadim Finkelchtein said, “but a little bit nervous because he accepted the fight on such a short notice, only two weeks before the fitht. I’m sure he will demonstrate his high level once again. I said it before that Artem is the second strongest middleweight in Russia, after Alexander Shlemenko, and he deserves this shot. Some may know that Artem was going to fight Bruno Blindado Silva, who defeated Shlemenko, and I’m happy to say that this fight will happen this fall.”

 

 

 

The 26-year-old Frolov (11-0-0, M-1: 8-0-0), fighting at home out of Russia, captured his M-1 Challenge title belt last October, when he won a unanimous decision against Caio Magalhaes at M-1 Challenge 84. This past June at M-1 Challenge 93, Frolov made his first title defense versus Joe Riggs, who suffered a knee injury that led to a doctor’s stoppage in the second round.

 

 

 

A solid all-around fighter, Frolov has won 5 fights by stoppage, along with four submission victories and two by decision.

 

  Frolov (L) is shown here landing a powerful strike smack on Caio Magalhaes’ chin

 

 

American MMA veteran Dollaway (17-8-0), representing Tempe, Arizona, has been a UFC fighter for the past decade.

 

 

 

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Upcoming M-1 Challenge Event:

Aug. 25 – M-1 Challenge 96: Mikutsa vs. Ibragimov in Saint Petersburg, Russia

“Road to M-1: USA” OFFICIAL RESULTS

Doug “Yamato” Usher stops
David Mundell in 2nd round
 
  Yoislandy Izquierdo landed the kick of the night

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (August 14, 2018) – Georgia middleweight Doug “Yamato” Usher and Yoislandy “Cuba” Izquierdo were knockout-winners this past Saturday night in the “Road to M-1: USA” main event and co-feature, respectively, at Global Mall in Nashville, Tennessee.

 

 

 

“Road to M-1: USA” was presented by M-1 Global USA and Angel Fight Promotions and aired live on worldwide pay per view.

 

 

 

“The Rage,” a hybrid ring/cage, made its American debut in Music City.

 

 

 

“What a great first event for M-1 Global USA,” M-1 Global USA CEO Mike Merriman said. “There were so many obstacles to overcome and lessons to be learned, but the show still went well. The fighters worked hard and the staff worked diligently. I couldn’t have asked for more. We are working on our next show and some possible partnerships that should make a lot of fans smile.”

 

 

 

Usher (10-3-0) overcame a relatively slow opening round to knockout his late replacement opponent, David “Redneck” Mundell (9-4-0), with a powerful right-left combination for his sixth consecutive victory, which snapped Mundell’s three-fight win streak.

 

 

 

Izquierdo (12-4-0), fighting out of Charlotte (NC) by way of Cuba, took care of business early, knocking out Damond Pickney (15-11-0), of Hot Springs, Arkansas, less than a minute into the opening round by way of a vicious head-kick.

 

 

 

Virginia bantamweight Tony Gravely (14-5-0) ruined the courageous comeback of previously undefeated Brazilian fighter Bruno Ferreira (8-1-0), who was making a comeback after successfully battling cancer the past three years. Gravely’s aggressive ground-and-pound attack resulted in a quick first-round technical knockout win.

 

 

 

Georgia flyweight Cee Jay “The Autobot” Hamilton (13-6-0) and California heavyweight Cody “The Moose” Goodale won three-round decisions, respectively, against Puerto Rican Abdiel “The Nightmare” Velazquez (8-6-0) and Nkemdirim “Kim” Oti (2-4-0)

 

 

 

Kentucky welterweight Brandon “The Juggernaut” Bell (9-7-0) registered a first-round, ground-and-pound TKO win over Jacob “Tick-Tock” McClintock (9-3-0), of Arizona, while Chicago welterweight P.J. Cajigas used the same method to defeat previously unbeaten Tennessean James Conway (3-1-0) in round two.

 

 

 

On the preliminary card, Chicago bantamweight Chris “The Jungle” Johnson (5-8-0) knocked out Jerrod “The Hillbilly Hammer” Jennings (2-2-0) in the first round. Kentucky lightweight Kegan Agnew (1-0-0) made an impressive pro debut, locking in a rear naked choke to submit hometown favorite Dwayne Herrelle (0-2-0) in the opening round.

 

 

 

Complete results and photo gallery below:

OFFICIAL RESULTS
MAIN EVENT – MIDDLEWEIGHTS
Doug Usher (10-3-0), College Park, Maryland
WKO2
David Mundell (9-4-0), Orlando, Florida
CO-FEATURE – LIGHTWEIGHTS
Yoislandyu Izquierdo (12-4-0), Charlotte, North Carolina
WKO1
Dawond Pickney (15-11-0), Hot Springs, Arkansas
BANTAMWEIGHTS
Tony Gravely (14-5-0) Radford, Virginia
WTKO1
Bruno Ferreira (8-1-0) Sao Paulo, Brazil
FLYWEIGHTS
Cee Jay Hamilton (13-6-0), Hartwell, Georgia.
WDEC3
Abdiel Velazquez (8-6-0), New Port Richey, Florida
WELTERWEIGHTS
Brandon Bell (9-6-0), Harlan, Kentucky
WTKO1
Jacob McClintock (9-3-0), Tempe, Arizona
P.J. Cajigas (7-7-0), Chicago, Illinois
WTKO2
James Conway (3-1-0), Dickson, Tennessee
HEAVYWEIGHTS
Cody Goodale (6-4-0), Riverside, California.
WDEC3
Nkemdirim Oti (2-4-0), Decatur, Alabama
PRELIMINARY CARD
BANTAMWEIGHTS
Chris Johnson (5-8-0), Chicago, Illinois
WKO1
Jerrod Jennings (2-2-0), Mayfield, Kentucky
LIGHTWEIGHTS
Kegan Agnew (1-0-0), Fredonia, Kentucky
WSUB1 (rear naked choke)
Dwayne Herrelle (0-2-0) Nashville, Tennessee
Doug Usher used a powerful combination to KO David Mundell
Tony Gravely (on top) destroyed Bruno Ferreira’s comeback party
  Heavyweight Cody Goodale (R) punched his way past Nkemdirm Oti
  Brandon Bell (on top) finished off Jacob McClintock
P.J. Cajigas lines up Jacob Conway
Andiel Velazquez (L) & Cee Jay Hamilton put on a show for Nashville MMA fans
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“The Rage” hits Music City “Road to M-1: USA” in Nashville

This Saturday LIVE on worldwide Pay Per View

 

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (August 18, 2018) – “The Rage,” a hybrid ring/cage, will make its American debut this Saturday night in the Music City, when the “Road to M-1: USA” professional mixed-martial-arts event is held at Global Mall in Nashville, Tennessee.

 

 

 

“Road to M-1″ USA”, presented by M-1 Global USA and Angel Fight Promotions, will air live on worldwide pay-per-view.starting at 9 p.m. ET / 6 p.m. PT. Integrated Sports Media will distribute “Road to M-1: USA” in North America on cable, satellite and digital pay-per-view via iN Demand, Vubiquity, DIRECTV and DISH in the United States, in addition to Rogers, SaskTel, and Shaw PPV in Canada, and live-streamed worldwide on the FITE.TV app and website (www.fite.tv), each way for a suggested retail price of only $19.95.

 

 

 

“The Rage, used by M-1 Global throughout Europe and Asia, measures 23-feet across and 24” inches from the floor to first rope, and then there are three additional ropes above that. Fans in attendance and watching on PPV will have optimum viewing of a ring and fighters the safety associated with a cage.

 

 

 

“Road to M-1: USA” is headlined by a middleweight fight between Florida veteran fighter David “Redneck” Mundell (9-3-0), who replaced injured Reggie “The Regulator” Pena, and against Georgia middleweight Doug “Yamato” Usher (9-3-0).  Both fighters are hot, Usher riding a five-fight win streak, dating back 2 ½ years, and Mundell has won his last three fights.

 

 

 

In the co-featured event, veteran Arkansas fighter Dawond Pickney (15-10-0) faces his Cuban opponent, Yoislandy “Cuba” Izquierdo (11-4-0), who is fighting out of Charlotte, North Carolina.

 

 

 

The feelgood story of the show is undefeated Brazilian MMA fighter Bruno Ferreira (8-0-0), who has successfully beaten testicular cancer, returning to fight after three long years, versus always tough Tony Gravely (12-5-0), of Virginia.

 

 

 

Other main-card fights include Georgia flyweight C.J. “The Autobot” Hamilton (12-6-0) vs. Floridian fighter Abdiel “The Nightmare” Velazquez (8-5-0), Kentucky welterweight Brandon “The Juggernaut” Bell (5-6-0) vs. Jacob “Tick-Tock” McLintock (9-2-0), of Arizona; and Tennessee welterweight James Conway (3-0-0) vs. P.J. Cajigas (5-7-0), of Chicago.

 

 

 

Undercard bouts include California heavyweight Cody “The Moose” Goodale (5-4-0) vs. Nkemdirim “Kim” Oti (2-3-0), of Alabama, New Brunswick, Canada bantamweight Chris Johnson (5-6-0) vs. Jerrod “The Hillbilly Hammer” Jennings (2-1-0), of Kentucky, and Nashville favorite Dwayne Herrelle (0-1-0) vs. pro-debuting Kentucky lightweight Kegan Agnew.

 

 

 

All fights and fighters are subject to change.

 

 

 

INFORMATION:

 

 

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David Mundall new main event opponent for Doug Usher at “Road to M-1: USA”

 
Aug. 11th worldwide Pay Per View from Nashville

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (July 31, 2018) – Florida veteran MMA fighter David “Redneck” Mundell has replaced injured Reggie “The Regulator” Pena in the main event against Georgia middleweight Doug “Yamato” Usher, August 11 at “Road to M-1″ USA”, presented by M-1 Global USA and Angel Fight Promotions, to air live on worldwide pay-per-view from Global Mall in Nashville, Tennessee.

 

 

 

Integrated Sports Media will distribute “Road to M-1: USA” in North America on cable, satellite and digital pay-per-view via iN Demand, Vubiquity, DIRECTV and DISH in the United States, as well as Rogers, SaskTel, and Shaw PPV in Canada, and live-streamed worldwide on the FITE.TV app and website (www.fite.tv), starting at 9 p.m. ET / 6 p.m. PT, for a suggested retail price of only $19.95.

 

 

 

Usher (9-3-0), fighting out of Georgia, is riding a five-fight win streak, dating back 2 ½ years, while Mundell (9-3-0) has been victorious in his last three fights.

 

 

 

Veteran Arkansas fighter Dawond Pickney (15-10-0) has replaced Russian lightweight Vadim Ogar (6-3-0) in the co-featured event versus Yoislandy “Cuba” Izquierdo (11-4-0).

 

 

 

Undefeated Brazilian MMA fighter Bruno Ferreira (8-0-0), who has successfully beaten cancer, returns to action for the first time in three years against dangerous Tony Gravely(12-5-0), of Virginia, at “Road to M-1: USA”.

 

 

 

Other main-card fights include Georgia flyweight C.J. “The Autobot” Hamilton (12-6-0) vs. Floridian fighter Abdiel “The Nightmare” Velazquez (8-5-0), Kentucky welterweight Brandon “The Juggernaut” Bell (5-6-0) vs. Jacob “Tick-Tock” McLintock (9-2-0), of Arizona; and Tennessee welterweight James Conway (3-0-0) vs. P.J. Cajigas (5-7-0), of Chicago.

 

 

 

Undercard bouts include California heavyweight Cody “The Moose” Goodale (5-4-0) vs. Nkemdirim “Kim” Oti (2-3-0), of Alabama, New Brunswick, Canada bantamweight Chris Johnson (5-6-0) vs. Jerrod “The Hillbilly Hammer” Jennings (2-1-0), of Kentucky, and Nashville favorite Dwayne Herrelle (0-1-0) vs. pro-debuting Kentucky lightweight Kegan Agnew.

 

 

 

All fights and fighters are subject to change.

 

 

 

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UFC & M-1 Global announce partnership UFC RUSSIA

 

SAINT PETERSBURG, Russia (July 18) – The Russian-Chinese investment fund, Mubadala Investment Company, and Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) have jointly announced the foundation of UFC Russia. The new company will promote MMA and organize new shows in Russia and the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS).  M-1 Global is going to be a partner, responsible for scouting and signing Russian athletes to prepare them to fight in the UFC. M-1 Challenge champions will have a unique opportunity to sign contracts with the UFC.

 

 

 

“We are looking forward to further cooperation with the UFC and the Russian-Chinese investment fund working on developing young Russian talents,” M-1 Global president Vadim Finkelchtein said. “This partnership will benefit our sport very much. MMA is a very popular sport and cooperation of the UFC, investment fund and M-1 Global can take MMA in Russia to a new level. Competition in M-1 Global is going to be even tougher and that means we are going to see even more excellent and spectacular fights!”

 

 

 

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Upcoming M-1 Challenge Events:

July 21 – M-1 Challenge 95 in Ingushetia, Russia

“Road to M-1: USA” August 11 in Nashville  

Showcasing the American debut of “The Rage”
 
Worldwide Pay Per View from Music City
NASHVILLE, Tenn. (June 28, 2018) – “Road to M-1: USA”, presented by M-1 Global USA and Angel Fight Promotions, will be held August 11, airing on worldwide pay-per-view live from Global Mall in Nashville, Tennessee.

 

 

 

Russia-based M-1 Global has been promoting professional MMA events in Russia, China, Finland and other countries for the past 21 years, featuring many of the sport’s greatest fighters, including Fedor EmelianenkoAndrei Arlovski, Gegard MousasiAlistair Overeem and Sergei Kharitonov, among the more notables.

 

 

 

In the past, M-1 Global has promoted seven M-1 Challenges and four M-1 Selection events in the United States.

 

 

 

“We are excited to come back to the USA,” M-1 Global president Vadim Finkelchtein commented. “It’s been almost seven years since M-1 Global held its last show in the United States and the upcoming Road to M-1 is going to be the first step on our way back into American MMA. We’ve been working hard together with our American representatives, Angel Natal and Mike Merriman, to make it happen and on August 11th we are going to have a show to remember!”

 

 

 

A hybrid ring-cage, “The Rage”, will make its American debut at “Road to M-1: USA”, which allows fans optimum viewing, while fighters have the safety associated with a cage.

 

 

 

Integrated Sports Media will distribute “Road to M-1: USA” in North America on cable, satellite and digital pay-per-view via iN Demand, Vubiquity, DIRECTV and DISH in the United States, as well as SaskTel and other outlets to be announced in Canada, and live-streamed worldwide on the FITE.TV app and website (www.fite.tv), starting at 9 p.m. ET / 6 p.m. PT, for a suggested retail price of only $19.95.

 

 

 

“I can’t describe how good it feels to be this close to this show airing,” said Merriman, head of operations for M-1 Global USA & Angel Fight Promotions. “Everyone loves to see sweat and blood in the ring, myself included, but so few people see the blood, sweat, and tears spilt while setting something like this up. This show is going to open a lot of eyes… and drop a few jaws!”

 

 

 

The main event pits Georgia middleweight Doug “Yamato” Usher (9-3-0) versus Reggie “The Regulator” Pena (14-6-0), of Florida, while Russian lightweight Vadim Ogar (6-3-0) takes on his Cuban opponent fighting out of North Carolina, Yoislandy “Cuba” Izquierdo(11-4-0) in the co-featured event.

 

 

 

Undefeated Russian bantamweight prospect Saidyokub Kakharamonov (5-0-0), fighting out of Chicago, throws down with Tony Gravely (12-5-0), of Virginia; Georgia flyweight C.J. “The Autobot” Hamilton (12-6-0) faces Floridian fighter Abdiel “The Nightmare” Velazquez (8-5-0), Kentucky welterweight “The Juggernaut” Brandon Bell (5-6-0) meets Jacob “Tick-Tock” McLintock (9-2-0), of Arizona; and Tennessee welterweight James Conway (3-0-0) squares off with P.J. Cajigas (5-7-0), of Chicago, to round out the main card.

 

 

 

Scheduled to fight on the undercard is California heavyweight Cody “The Moose” Goodale (5-4-0) vs. TBA, New Brunswick, Canada bantamweight Chris Johnson (5-6-0) vs. Jerrod “The Hillbilly Hammer” Jennings (2-1-0), of Kentucky, and local Nashville favorite Dwayne Herrelle (0-1-0) vs. pro-debuting Kentucky lightweight Kegan Agnew.

 

 

 

All fights and fighters are subject to change.

 

 

 

CLICK HERE FOR PROMO VIDEO:https://drive.google.com/file/d/18ONIDbekTSAUUPhXXlhIpc_xCVqH5LGM/view?usp=sharing

 

 

 

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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.”

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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
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One-on-One with M-1 Global president  Vadim Finkelchtein


SAINT PETERSBURG, Russia (August 16, 2017) – M-1 Global president Vadim Finkelchtein recently sat down with mixfight.ru to discuss the recent M-1 Challenge 82 in Finland, M-1 Challenge 83 in next month in Kazan, Russia, and what fight he considers to be the most anticipated this autumn.

M-1 Challenge 82 tournament has just ended in Helsinki. Tell us your impressions and did everything go as planned beforehand?

VF: “Yes, the tournament fully met our expectations. We initially set it very high, promotingM-1 Challenge 82 at the largest venue in Finland, Hartwall Arena. In the history of Finland’s MMA tournaments, prior to our show, MMA shows had never been held in large arenas. There were halls for 1,500 to 2,000 viewers, at most, and that’s why M-1 Global had such as a large responsibility. I am very glad that we managed to fill the arena by 70-80 percent, setting record attendance for MMA tournaments in Finland. Our matchmakers did a great job. They managed to gather some of the best Finnish fighters for this tournament and found some worthy opponents for them as well. This attracted a lot of attention to the tournament, of course, for Finnish MMA fans.”

Do you plan to come back to Finland and hold tournaments on a regular basis there?

VF: “Undoubtedly! We have such intentions. We have seen good interest in our tournaments, not only on the part of the audience, but television and the media as well. This year we have signed a contract with one of the leading TV channels of Finland – RUUTU — to broadcast all M-1 Challenge tournaments. I think we will definitely return next year to Finland.”

When is the next M-1 Challenge tournament and where?

VF: “The next tournament will be held in Kazan (Russia) on September 23rd. This will be the first M-1 tournament in this city and we’re thoroughly prepared for it. The main event forM-1 Challenge 83 is a fight between Brandon Halsey and Mikhail Ragozin, one of the most promising Russian heavyweights. Mikhail is a pupil of Alexander Shlemenko, who is also a New Stream team fighter.”

Fans are now excited about the tournament in St. Petersburg, of course, especially the title super-bout between two bright punchers, Alexei Kunchenko and Sergei Romanov. What do you expect from this fight?
 
VF: “I’m sure this fight will be the pinnacle of the entire season in Russian MMA. This will be a duel between the two strongest fighters in this weight category in Russia, but it’s also a fight between two bright and prominent shock-punchers. Kunchenko has never been defeated. He is more experienced of the two, he has already won the belt and has defended it a few times. And Romanov is very hungry, winning fighter, who improves progressively as a professional from fight to fight. And, of course, there will be crowded fan sectors on his side in St. Petersburg. Already, as of today, 2 ½ months before the tournament, Sergey’s fans have bought more than 1000 tickets! I myself am looking forward to this fight!”

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M-1 Challenge Middleweight Champion Ramazan Emeev vs. Anatoly Tokov to Headline M-1 Challenge 73: Battle of Narts

 

December 9 in Ingushetia
(L-R) – Anatoly Tokov and Ramazan Emeev
ST. PETERSBURG, Russia (October 13, 2016) – M-1 Global has announced a super showdown between M-1 Challenge middleweight champion Ramazan Emeev and knockout artist Anatoly Tokov to headline the December 9th M-1 Challenge 73: Battle of Narts in Ingushetia, Russia.
M-1 Challenge 73 will be streamed live from Ingushetia in high definition onwww.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 of the action on their computers, as well as on Android and Apple smart phones and tablets.
“The fight between Ramazan Emeev and Anatoly Tokov is the most anticipated fight in Russian MMA, “M-1 Global president Vadim Finkelchtein said. “Both Tokov and Emeev are fighters of the elite level, not only in Russia, but in the world.  This fight is being held to achieve our main goal: to make the most spectacular match-ups between the strongest MMA fighters of our time.”
Emeev (14-3-0, M-1: 8-1-0), who was the M-1 Global 2015 Fighter of the Year, returns to action after suffering a torn ligament in his elbow, which forced the Azerbaijan native to withdraw from his scheduled M-1 Grand Prix Middleweight Championship fight withAlexander Shlemenko.
The 29-year-old Emeev, fighting out of Makhachkala, Russia, first captured the vacant M-1 Challenge middleweight title in 2012, taking a 5-round unanimous decision from Mario Miranda at M-1 Challenge 35, and he successfully won the rematch five months later atM-1 Challenge 38, stopping Miranda via strikes in the third round.
In 2014, Emeev lost his title belt to Vyacheslav Vasilevsky by way of a fourth-round knockout (punches) at M-1 Challenge 51 in 2014.  The resilient Emeev, however, bounced back to regain his throne as M-1 Challenge middleweight champion, using a choke hold to submit Vasilevsky in the opening round at
M-1 Challenge 56.
Emeev has successfully defended his title against Luigi Fioravanti, who was unable to continue after four rounds at M-1 Challenge 63, and this past April Emeev defeated Brazilian Maiquel Falcao (see picture above) at M-1 Challenge 65 in the first round by submission (choke).
Tokov (24-2-0, M-1: 9-1-0), 26, is a former ABC champion who fights out of Stary Oskol, Russia. He is riding a 17-fight win streak, including knockouts of Enoc Solves Torres atM-1 Challenge 54 and Albert Duraev at M-1 Challenge 46.
A feared striker with tremendous power, Tokov has stopped 14 of his 24 victims to date, resulting in him developing into one of MMA’s most spectacular fighters and a true rising MMA star throughout Russia and Europe.
Tokov can give and take
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