Cyprus Butterfly talked with the favorites of the championship - Magomed Ibragimov, who will enter the ring against the Greek fighter Yiannis Kazantzidis, and Vladimir Ares Zhiltsov, who will fight with the Cypriot Andronikos Evripidou.
Magomed Ibragimov
- Hello, Magomed! Tell our readers how you came to the world of martial arts.
- Hello! I have been in the world of martial arts since childhood, as is customary here in Dagestan, the basic sport is freestyle wrestling, which I have been going to since I was six years old. It was mixed martial arts that I came to after graduating from school.
— Tell us about your training process, how are you preparing for the fight, which will take place in Limassol on May 25? Why do you think you will win?
“The training process is going well, I’m ready to fight, I’m ready to fight for three rounds, I’m confident in my victory. I think I will win early, Giannis is a good fighter and competitor, but he has not yet faced fighters of the same level as me.
— Dagestan has become the leader in the number of athletes in the best MMA leagues in the world. What do you think this is connected with?
— You’re right, Dagestan is a leader in MMA, I think, first of all, this is due to our mentality: our ancestors were warriors and fought all their lives, martial arts are in the blood of Dagestanis and the Caucasus in general. In addition, we don’t like to lose; we have strong and tough selection in each event.
— What advice would you give to aspiring MMA fighters?
— Advice for beginners: to train hard and gain experience. And most importantly, they emphasized wrestling; I believe that wrestling is the foundation of MMA. I think you'll see that in my fight with Giannis. Thank you!
Vladimir Ares Zhiltsov
- Hello, Vladimir! In 2021, you became the European professional kickboxing champion. Tell us about the path you took to achieve this title.
— I boxed one of the WKL representatives at the event in the main fight and won by knockout in the second round! After some time, he called me and said: “Our belt has become vacant, are you ready to fight for the belt?!” I couldn’t refuse this opportunity and won by knockout in the first round.
- They call you Ares. As far as I know, Ares is the god of war in Greek mythology. Where did you get this name?
— The name Ares was given to me in one of the very famous fist fighting leagues, Hardcore Fighting: they interviewed us, I told a story about how I fought in fan fights for a long time. After which they called me that - Ares! But I don’t like this nickname, since Ares is a pagan god, and I’m a simple Orthodox guy!
— You are a boxing and kickboxing coach, at what age do you recommend starting to engage in martial arts? Is it worth going into professional sports and if so, how to understand what is worth it?
— Regarding children, this is a very difficult question, because each child matures in his own way! Some come at age six and stay, others come later and leave. In general, you need to start, of course, a little with other sports, for example gymnastics or swimming!
- You will fight Andronikos Evripidis from Cyprus. As I understand it, the majority will support him. Is it difficult to fight “away”? What do you think will be the outcome of the battle?
“It will be much easier for me to box on foreign territory than at home!” Less responsibility!
— You have a tattoo of Vovka from the cartoon “Vovka in the Far Far Away Kingdom,” why did you decide to make such a funny image?
- Vovka from the Far Far Away Kingdom! I'll tell you a little about this cartoon. The boy always wanted everything done for him, he asked everyone for everything. But in life it doesn't work that way. At the end of the cartoon, he realized that he had to do it himself! And he succeeded. It’s the same with me. Plus he is Vovka and I am Vovka 😂
May 25, 2024 MCP13 in City of Dreams!
The duration of the event will be 5 hours, doors will open at 17:00, and the event itself will begin at 18:00.
Prices:
- Super VIP - 500 euros per person;
- VIP - 300 euros per person;
- Zone A (with a seat at the table) - 100 euros per person;
- Zone B (with a seat at the table) - 75 euros per person;
- Zone C (with a seat at the table) - 50 euros per person.
The number of people at the table should not exceed 4; when booking a table for less than 4 people, all 4 places must be paid for.
A special bottle and snack are provided free of charge.
Tickets can be purchased HERE .
