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M-1 Global President Vadim Finkelstein was recently interviewed by Jack Bratcher from the American MMA website ProMMANow. Finkelstein spoke about his relationship with Fedor, the fighters future, and the future of M-1 Global.
The following is an excerpt from the interview.
PRO MMA NOW: Hello Vadim, thank you for taking time to speak with us again at PRO MMA NOW (www.prommanow.com). I hope you had a pleasant flight home to Russia. Overall, how was your trip to the U.S. this time and what are your thoughts on the overall event and the production and how everything was run for the event at M-1 Global and Strikeforce present “Fedor vs. Silva”?
VADIM FINKELSTEIN: If we talk about the fights, the battle between Sergei Kharitonov and Arlovski was one of the best. As for the event overall, it has long been known that U.S. shows are some of the best produced and this was confirmed once again. The crowd cheered for Fedor as he walked out. After the fight, it was clear the crowd was upset as well and even more so when Fedor spoke with emotion about possibly retiring. No one wanted to hear that. When we returned back to the hotel, Fedor was met with applause by fans and fellow fighters.
PRO MMA NOW: During Fedor’s fight with Bigfoot Silva, the first round was rather close, but many people had Fedor winning the first and Bigfoot winning the second. What was going through your mind during round two, were you worried they were going to stop the fight when Bigfoot was on top in full mount landing punches?
VADIM FINKELSTEIN: I was very worried during the fight. I was rooting for Fedor, waiting for the moment he would throw his opponent.
PRO MMA NOW: Why do you think Bigfoot had so much success in the second round?
VADIM FINKELSTEIN: Silva has advantages as an expert in jiu-jitsu and has a significant weight advantage over Fedor.
PRO MMA NOW: Are you glad they stopped the fight in order to save Fedor’s health? Was it the right thing to do?
VADIM FINKELSTEIN: I completely agree. The health of the fighter is first and foremost. It is better to get a technical defeat than suffer an injury by fighting blindly.
PRO MMA NOW: What was Fedor’s mood like after the fight, was he sad or disappointed? And was he critical of his performance?
You can read the rest of the itnterview here.
