“Fighting in the UFC is probably impossible.” Vladimir Mineev – about his brother, the fight in Ulyanovsk and the return to Donetsk

Behind Vladimir Mineev, there is a cage where Konstantin Glukhov and Mikhail Gazaev had just fought. It was Kamil Hajiyev who decided it would be fun to give them a rematch after nine years. The day before, he also said that Mineev would hold the next fight on September 15. Vladimir himself seriously notes that his leave is over, and his wife is about to give birth to a daughter.

– Do you have a dream to fight with someone specific in Ulyanovsk?

– We wanted to do a fight with Konstantin Glukhov at a certain time, then this idea was not supported and the fight did not take place. Kamil Gadzhiev said at the weigh-in that I had to have the final fight in Ulyanovsk, but everything about martial arts in Ulyanovsk is such a big charity. So I don’t even think about it. And so much charity from me in Ulyanovsk in the field of martial arts. And it’s very difficult to fight at home. You have to understand why to do it. I don’t understand yet.

– A large number of people will come who know you from childhood, with whom you trained.

“They come to my fights anyway. In Moscow, in Sochi. We organize tournaments in Ulyanovsk, but the city is just beginning to get used to sporting events of this level. Assembling a stadium in Mordovia and setting a record, because there is a big sports facility there after the World Cup, that’s interesting.

We are talking late in the evening of June 14th. On the 16th you should be in position. How are you going to spend the 15th?

– On the 15th I will have to return to Moscow, and now I will go to my room and get some sleep. We will now agree with you, then I will have another dialogue, then another, then we will take stock of the event, all of this will be at the hotel. And so as not to return later on the other side and not wake up the child, I prefer to sleep at the hotel.

– Do you need to pack a lot of things?

– No, I just have to come myself. I have everything there, in Donetsk. I arrived in sports clothes, in simple civilian clothes, I don’t go around the airport in military clothes. I try to put myself in order as much as possible: wash myself, shave, cut my nails. I see that there are people who say: “Here, it looks too good.” I always imagine that the person who writes comments under my videos is a colonel general who knows everything and understands everything. At the same time, he is so overgrown, unshaven, dirty, all in uniform, he has four wounds, he is very intelligent and a very big strong patriot.

– My colleague Ildar Satdinov wrote about the fact that you received a summons when he called you to react to the fight between Emelianenko and Datsik, and you said that you should come to the military enlistment office.

– Well, yes, the mobilization had just started there. I’ve been asked about Emelianenko and Datsik, but I have something else on my mind. I sit down and look at this agenda.

What was your first thought when it came?

– That a new stage of life has arrived. There was no doubt.

– In 2021 in Sochi you fought with Magomed Ismailov, this is probably your most famous fight. During this tournament, during many events, there was your brother, who died in February 2022. Is it important for you now that he is on these videos, or is it difficult to watch them on the contrary?

Both painful and important. Two in one.

Do you keep in touch with any of his close friends?

— Yes, of course, we communicate.

– We met a month after the tragedy, and it was clear that it was not easy for you. When did it become emotionally easier?

– Over time, of course, the sharpness fades, but it will never completely disappear. It just takes longer to be swept away by the memories again. You’re certainly a little insensitive, but this pain… it’s phantom.

“We were born at the same time, and in our teens it seemed much better to move to any western country. When did you realize you didn’t want to move?

– In principle, I never wanted to go to America, I was brought up in the family of a Soviet officer, although my father had the opportunity to move. He received an invitation to move to Malta (Vladimir’s father was a military doctor – about “”), but he had a clear position and he was proud to be an officer. And we were brought up in a patriotic spirit, I constantly saw Alexei Kashaev in front of me, he came in a vest, such a “heavy military man”. Therefore, I absolutely did not want to leave, I wanted to serve in the airborne forces.

– Who is your son with now (Mineev’s wife is expecting the birth of her second child at the time of the conversation – about “”)?

– Mom was at the tournament, so with the nanny.

– Have you already understood in which first section he will go?

– I think he will be engaged in classic wrestling. He is already super mega energetic. In Ulyanovsk there is a very serious wrestling school – at one time it was one of the best in the Union. We had such a coach – Vinnik. He raised many good children.

– According to a well-known story, your first coach, Evgeny Vasilyevich Golovikhin, arrested two criminals in 1987 and was stabbed in the heart. Remember when you heard that story from him?

– We were in a sports camp for children, it was naturally hot there during the day, we were training without T-shirts, and he has this scar all over his chest. Of course we asked the question. He said. But without details, without colors. I learn more from the interviews.

– All successful Russian fighters who did not fight in the UFC are asked about possible fights in this organization. You don’t care if you fight there anymore?

– I do not have such an item on the checklist, I look at this life differently, and my life is not limited to martial arts. Fighting in the UFC…is probably impossible.

– Is it important to have such a fight or a series of fights to be able to consider oneself as the best or one of the best middleweights in the world?

– I feel myself. A year ago I trained with the guys: Roman Kopylov, Muslim Magomedov, Nasrudin Nasrudinov, Armen Petrosyan. They are all good fighters. I’ve fought with everyone and they’re all pretty much the same. And they’re doing well in the league right now. Naturally, the UFC is a cool fashion machine, but we are no worse, and to feel your level, you can just train with them.

June 18 at 01:55 (Moscow time) “Match! Fighter” will show the UFC Vettori vs Cannonier tournament, where Arman Tsarukyan and Joaquim Silva will also fight. Other broadcasts of mixed martial arts tournaments take place on and Match! Fighter”, as well as on the sites matchtv.ru and sportbox.ru.