This story has almost no analogues, when a children’s trainer, almost single-handedly leading the preparation of an athlete, would bring him to the highest level in professional sports. But Pavel Fedotov was the man who met Shevchenko in the early 90s during the first training session and will step into the octagon with her when Shevchenko defends the belt against Tayla Santos at UFC 275 in Singapore. In January, we were recording another interview with Valentina, and exactly when she was filming screensavers for (you can see them in the fight ads), we spoke to her trainer.
About the comparison with Khabib
What purpose: Khabib took his first steps on the wrestling mat and at the age of four began training under his father. Mom took Valentina to martial arts at age five. Both have become dominant champions in the UFC, and there are perhaps only a handful of people on the planet who are more immersed in the martial arts.
Fedotov: – All the fighters who started from childhood and were controlled by their parents in training, their fates are similar. Especially those who have gone through the school of amateur competitions. And these are hundreds of fights: Valentina took part every week, because in Kyrgyzstan, especially in Bishkek, there are a lot of martial arts. Many of my friends have been presidents of federations and many of my students have had the opportunity to participate in different competitions. But it wasn’t boring. And most importantly, through this, you address the fact that you are going to the competition as a training session. Because sometimes an athlete prepares for six months, not even for the UFC, just for some kind of fight. Ready, on fire. And then it burns, and that’s it. I think a young athlete needs a lot of tournaments, whether he wins or loses. He has to boil in the cauldron of these tournaments in order to feel that he has different opponents, different situations are happening. When he starts competing like a pro, especially in styles like MMA or Muay Thai, it will be a lot easier for him. This approach will bring results.
About the fight
What purpose: Valentina Shevchenko is considered a profile drummer. This is confirmed by 17 world championships won in Thai boxing and the achieved level of the master of sports in boxing. Shevchenko herself says that she practiced almost all types of martial arts, including wrestling. It was hard to believe until we asked the coach if Shevchenko specifically competed in freestyle wrestling.
Fedotov: – Free wrestling and judo. Well, in many other ways. She was in Russia at one point, in 2006 or 2007, won South Russia in freestyle wrestling, went through five fights, won three ahead of schedule, and won two by points. I also trained her myself and invited my friends who could provide training partners to help with the form, along with some tips. It was in Krasnodar, it is interesting to remember now. In Russia, we covered such a range of competitions from the beginning of 2005 to 2008 (at that time the Shevchenko family lived in Russia). The Sochi city sports committee then suggested to us: “Do you want to compete in freestyle wrestling? We accepted, prepared for a month and executed. In fact, if a fighter was engaged in grappling or some other type of wrestling, he is, in principle, ready. A lot of people think wrestling style is very important, but I believe wrestling improves certain skills that are needed in another form. I even think sometimes that even if guys do boxing, they should go to freestyle wrestling or sambo or grappling. They become stronger, begin to feel close contact. It’s clear that you have to be a good attacker, hit well, but at close range you feel the contact, the strength of your opponent, and the fight gives you strength. Therefore, I believe that wrestling can help someone who is dedicated exclusively to impact sports.
About Ngannou at the first tournament
What purpose: in Shevchenko’s first tournament in the preliminary card, almost unknown Francis Ngannou (he had his first fight in the UFC) and Kamaru Usman (the second fight in the UFC) fought. Valentina says that at that time she hardly remembered anyone.
Fedotov: “We were very focused at the time. Here you need to understand how it all happened. We then trained in Thailand, played in the Legacy organization and, in fact, divided our life between Peru, the United States and Thailand. But that was when we were in Bali, we were training in the same gym there.
‘I also remember that on a motorbike, in huge traffic, they went to this room, wrapped in a uniform, because the sun burns quite strongly there. And just the offer came to fight in the UFC, and for this it was necessary to urgently fly to the fight. We had this plan: from Indonesia to fly to Bangkok, to Bangkok to go through a medical board, which is quite difficult for a UFC fight, and then fly to the USA. And do it all very quickly. Just for this reason, Valentina was focused on the fight, and we remember very few people from the first tournament.
professional shooting
What purpose: this story is quite popular in the press. The coach of Valentina and Antonina Shevchenko during an armed robbery in a restaurant in the city of Lima (the capital of Peru) tried to stop the robbers and was shot and wounded. At the same time, Fedotov mortally wounded an attacker and struck another of the four criminals. Valentina was nearby at the time, Antonina was at the competition. Pavel says he doesn’t like talking about this moment.
Fedotov: – If we talk specifically about Lima, it is a place where 12 million people are concentrated and the crime rate is quite high. The gun was still with me. Here is a situation. He took it as a duel in martial arts. A person who goes into battle with or without a weapon perceives it about the same (Pavel Fedotov was seriously engaged in practical shooting. – “”). People in martial arts have been trained all their lives in the fact that situations can be different: in the ring or not in the ring. And you always have to be ready for it.
– Is it true that you were promised revenge for the murdered thief and that you were threatened afterwards?
“Listen, I was taken to the hospital. And then, yes, the threats started coming. We realized that we should try to move to another hospital. I was completely covered with a sheet and realized in the form of… in the form of… in general, you understand yourself, in the form of someone. They were transferred to another hospital and armed guards were already stationed there.
– When you were injured, did you immediately understand that it was not life-threatening?
– Well, at first you usually focus on the fact that the danger has not yet passed and needs to be dealt with, then you are already looking at what has happened to you.
– You were conscious all the time, but, in fact, you were injured in the abdomen. Does it hurt very much at all?
– Well, of course … unpleasant.
About tips during battle
What purpose: During Shevchenko fights, Pavel Fedotov usually gives the simplest possible instructions. Often you can hear the words “be careful” or “be careful in the position” from the trainer. We decided to find out what Paul thinks about the criticism of this approach.
Fedotov: – The fact is that I believe that for a top athlete, it is [сложные подсказки] unnecessary and can be harmful. The athlete himself feels the situation that arises. Why, you say, “Cut his head off.” And they will hit him towards him with a straight line, and it turns out that you only made it worse. Or your athlete will obsess over certain details and lose other nuances in the situation.
Another thing is that if I understand that the opponent will definitely go to heels or start fighting, then I will warn him in advance. But I can’t know exactly when it will be or how it will be done exactly.
And you also need to understand that before the fight we work out all the situations in general. We are even working on things like the opponent will drastically change the fight plan due to stress. We even assume that the opponent can strike as soon as she shakes her hand or after the “stop” command or bumps her head and makes a cut. Before the fight, we all work together. As in aviation, for example, there is a checklist, where every day you check a certain set of parameters for an aircraft. We have the same. Therefore, in the battle itself, “it is superfluous to say something superfluous.” It is more important for me to say how the fight is going, because the athlete does not always evaluate adequately. Sometimes you think you are leading, but you are actually losing. Or, for example, you understand that the adversary is going to do something or intends to do something, because she has the potential to do so. These are things I pay attention to.
About iron working
What purpose: it is almost impossible to find a photo of Valentina Shevchenko with a barbell or training on bouldering simulators.
Fedotov: “I believe wrestling can give you strength. It seems to me that even if a boxer lacks physical strength, he can get a charge if he struggles, then he will gain strength and with that he will acquire an additional skill. We do strength training: when we are in nature, we can take heavy stones and perform a certain series of exercises with them. I can even show you. When you don’t have a training partner, it really makes sense to use weights, and your ligaments will get stronger, your muscles will get stronger.
But in general, working with a sparring partner and with their weight gives you both strength and grip, and everything you need.
Source : MatchTV
I am Sandra Jackson, a journalist and content creator with extensive experience in the news industry. I have been working in the news media for over five years. During this time, I have worked as an author and editor at various outlets producing high-quality content that attracts readers from different demographics.
