There are doubts about Alexander’s readiness for a new challenge. The first fears appeared the day before. A video of the fighters’ pre-tournament photoshoot has surfaced on the network. Alexander beat a pear, posing for photographers. And everything looked bad. Alexander worked slowly, and by the end of the one-minute video, it looked like Emelianenko was just tired.
In the summer of 2022, Emelianenko was in his best form for a while. Four months rehabilitated in Yekaterinburg and looked athletic. But the good form did not help in the fight with Datsik in September. Emelianenko was knocked out in 13 seconds. Alexander was slow and could barely stand.
In December, Phoenix lost to blogger Svyatoslav Kovalenko, who weighed 26 kilos less. Outwardly, Alexander looked even worse – he gained weight and did not keep up with his opponent.
“Alexander often said that after the fights there is a moment when everything is fine, there is money and the work is done. At this moment a loop appears which drags Sasha down,” said said the fighter’s manager Nikita Burchak.
Ershov is Emelianenko’s most inexperienced rival. He has been practicing mixed martial arts for several years and does not even shine in MMA pop. Ershov approaches the fight as a favorite of the bookmakers, although initially it was Emelianenko. The quotes changed after the events before the fight.
“It’s not about the opponent, it’s clear that the opponent is not a fighter in principle and not an athlete. That’s one thing. It’s more about the state of Sasha Emelianenko, at least from what I saw in an open training session his interview. can we talk? He looks like someone who needs to go on a very long rehabilitation journey. The feeling that he has a serious health problem. It’s worth talking about how Sasha is getting out of this hole,” said mixed-style fighter Vyacheslav Vasilevsky.
On Thursday, May 25, Emelianenko received official medical clearance before the fight, but the athlete needed additional clearance from doctors.
“Judging by what happened at the press conference, I don’t want to fight with such a person, because I’m afraid for his health. He’s not an athlete, but a monster, but he is in the sports league. He is a great athlete, but in the past”, – said his rival Emelianenko Evgeny Ershov.
Judging by Emelianenko’s current form, Alexander is waiting for another defeat. And if earlier the opponents were more prominent, now he is opposed by an opponent without professional training. And failure can put a big cross on a fighter’s career.
Yahya Gasanov, Athletistic
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Source: Sport
I am Ashley Ortiz and I am a professional journalist working for Athletistic. My specialty is in sports journalism, particularly boxing. I have written articles for some of the most renowned publications on the subject, and my work has been featured across both print and digital media platforms.
