Tuesday, June 26, 2012
No Holds Barred: Evgeni Kogan on Fedor Retiring and the Future of M-1 Global
On this edition of No Holds Barred, host Eddie Goldman speaks with Evgeni Kogan, the director of operations of M-1 Global.
On June 21, M-1 Global held a major card in St. Petersburg, Russia, headlined by the first-round knockout by the legend Fedor Emelianenko over Pedro Rizzo. Right after that fight, Fedor announced his retirement as an active fighter.
We spoke with Evgeni Kogan by Skype Tuesday about this card and Fedor's retirement. We discussed Fedor's legacy as a fighter, whether or not he can be considered the best MMA fighter of all time, and if anyone else could ever match his ten-year unbeaten streak against top opposition. We also discussed the other fights on this card, including the third-round TKO win by Kenny Garner over Guram Gugenishvili to capture the M-1 heavyweight title, and the first-round heel hook victory by Musa Khamanaev over Daniel Weichel to win the M-1 lightweight title. And we discussed Jeff Monson's submission win over Denis Komkin and Monson's epic ring entrance as the Soviet national anthem played in the arena.
In addition, we discussed what Fedor might do in retirement, his involvement with amateur MMA in Russia, the officiating and governance in M-1, the plans for international expansion, the possibility of a return to American television, the next M-1 cards, and much more.
You can play or download No Holds Barred here. You can also download No Holds Barred here. If one link does not work, please try another. The show is in MP3 format, so may take some time to download.
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The No Holds Barred theme song is called "The Heist", by Ian Carpenter.
No Holds Barred is free to listen to and is sponsored by:
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Labels: Eddie Goldman, Evgeni Kogan, Fedor Emelianenko, Jeff Monson, M-1 Global, MMA, No Holds Barred, Russia
Tuesday, April 05, 2011
No Holds Barred: Evgeni Kogan of M-1 Global
Labels: Eddie Goldman, Evgeni Kogan, M-1 Global, MMA, No Holds Barred
Monday, November 15, 2010
No Holds Barred: Fabricio Werdum, Evgeni Kogan
(Photo of Fabricio Werdum, Eddie Goldman, and Marcelo Garcia, New York, Nov. 12, 2010, by Ricardo Liborio)
On this edition of No Holds Barred, host Eddie Goldman speaks with mixed martial arts fighter and champion grappler Fabricio Werdum, and Evgeni Kogan, the director of operations of M-1 Global. Both these interviews were conducted Saturday, November 13, at the MMA World Expo at the Jacob Javits Center in New York.
We spoke with Fabricio Werdum about his historic victory over Fedor Emelianenko on a Strikeforce-M-1 Global card in June, the first uncontested loss by Fedor in his ten-year mixed martial arts career. We discussed the technique he used to win that fight, using a triangle choke to submit Fedor in just 1:09 of the first round. He explained that he plans to fight three times in 2011 in Strikeforce, starting in March against either Fedor or Strikeforce heavyweight champion Alistair Overeem, and also compete at the 2011 ADCC World Submission Fighting Championships, in which he is a two-time defending champion in the +99 kg weight class.
The future of Fedor, who has one fight left on his contract with Strikeforce, was also a main focus of our discussion with Evgeni Kogan. While in New York, he met with Showtime, which televises Strikeforce cards in the U.S., about signing a new deal extending his contract. On this subject, Evgeni Kogan stated, "I think we're seeing the light at the end of the tunnel" in those negotiations, although no new deal has yet been completed. We thus discussed the future of Fedor and co-promoting with Strikeforce, as well as the plans of M-1 Global to expand their own series of shows and tournaments in the U.S. and Europe.
We also begin by calling for a heavyweight tournament by Strikeforce in 2011, since they currently have the best four heavyweight fighters in mixed martial arts: Fabricio Werdum, Fedor Emelianenko, Alistair Overeem, and Josh Barnett.
You can play or download No Holds Barred here. You can also download No Holds Barred here. If one link does not work, please try another. The show is in MP3 format, so may take some time to download.
The No Holds Barred theme song is called "The Heist", by Ian Carpenter.
No Holds Barred is free to listen to and is sponsored by:
American Top Team. Whether you're a beginner or a champion, train with the champions in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, boxing, wrestling, grappling, and mixed martial arts at American Top Team. Check out their web site at http://americantopteam.com/.
BJJMart.com, your premier source for all Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu gear, videos, books, and much more.
FightBeat.com, for news, results, interviews, and free exclusive videos from the worlds of boxing and mixed martial arts.
Labels: Eddie Goldman, Evgeni Kogan, Fabricio Werdum, MMA, No Holds Barred
Wednesday, July 07, 2010
No Holds Barred: Evgeni Kogan of M-1 Global on Fedor and the Future
We spoke Wednesday by Skype about a number of issues and controversies regarding M-1 Global and mixed martial arts, with Evgeni Kogan speaking from the M-1 Global office in the Netherlands.
Since the loss by M-1 Global star Fedor Emelianenko to Fabricio Werdum on June 26 on a Strikeforce-M-1 Global card, there has been much discussion about what the next fights should be for Fedor, Werdum, and Strikeforce heavyweight champion Alistair Overeem. We hear the position of M-1 Global, that Fedor should be given an immediate match with Werdum, rather than a title fight with Overeem directly after his defeat to Werdum.
We discussed the current relationship between M-1 Global and Strikeforce and Showtime, and Fedor's contract with Strikeforce, which has one fight remaining. We commented of the issue of the possibility of a new contract including a "champion's clause", meaning it would automatically extend if the fighter won or retained a title in the last fight of the contract.
We also focused on the incredible accomplishment Fedor achieved of going ten years without a defeat in mixed martial arts, and how this compares only to that of Alexander Karelin, the three-time Olympic gold medalist and nine-time world champion in Greco-Roman wrestling, who went 13 years without a loss in international competition.
In addition, we discussed the issue of co-promotion in mixed martial arts, the popularity of mixed martial arts in the world compared to football (soccer), some of the top fighters who have fought over the years in M-1 Global, the M-1 Selection events scheduled for July 22 in Moscow and August 7 in Atlantic City, and more.
You can play or download No Holds Barred here. You can also download No Holds Barred here. If one link does not work, please try another. The show is in MP3 format, so may take some time to download.
The No Holds Barred theme song is called "The Heist", by Ian Carpenter.
Make sure to visit the official boxing forum for No Holds Barred, the MySpace Boxing Forum.
No Holds Barred is free to listen to and is sponsored by:
BJJMart.com, your premier source for all Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu gear, videos, books, and much more.
American Top Team. Whether you're a beginner or a champion, train with the champions in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, boxing, wrestling, grappling, and mixed martial arts at American Top Team. Check out their web site at http://americantopteam.com/.
Bragging Rights Corner, for news and always independent opinion about the sport and business of boxing. Check out their web site at http://www.braggingrightscorner.com.
FightBeat.com, for news, results, interviews, and free exclusive videos from the worlds of boxing and mixed martial arts.
Labels: Eddie Goldman, Evgeni Kogan, Fedor Emelianenko, MMA, No Holds Barred
