Russian fighter Edouard Vartanian In a conversation with , he explained why he chose the “Our Business” league and rejected Dana White’s Contender Series offer.
Vartanyan won the ASA League Grand Prix by defeating Artem Reznikov in June last year. After that, the Russian fighter said he would try to sign a contract with the UFC and negotiated for six months until the summer of 2024. A few days ago, the Our Deal league announced that Vartanyan would fight in a tournament at the end of August against Alexander Grozin under lightweight MMA rules.
— Why is it better to fight Grozin in the “Our Business” league rather than in UFC President Dana White’s personal promotion, Contender Series?
— Material component and media component. And the most important thing is the attitude: when you fight in the promotion of Dana White… and for the amount of money that is offered to you, you are not only taking a step back, you are insulting your history and your path. It is very important. We spend half our lives working for our reputation, and the rest of our lives, our reputation works for you.
— In other words, it offends you that they tell you with such a proposal: “We do not care what you have earned there in Russia. Prove it again.”
— Basically, in America, nobody cares about your achievements outside the United States. A trivial example: Michael Page. They didn’t sign him for six months and only signed him when they found him an opponent. And his fee was $98,000 if he won.
— How did you react when Alexander Grozin was suggested to you as an opponent?
— Skeptical at first, I’ll be honest. But when I heard his attitude, it motivated me. He’s at his peak now. He’s expecting a lot from this confrontation. He really wants to surprise everyone. And his comments about his hunting trips made me look forward to this confrontation.
— Your last three opponents are Yusuf Raisov, Ilunga and Artem Reznikov. Do you think that Alexander Grozin is at the same level as them?
– I think so. If you look at his last fights with Oliveira, Kabardievm and Sadigov, then we can say that I am fighting probably the most titled fighter in the league “Our Business”. I am currently preparing in Moscow with the guys from our club: Anatoly Boyko, Lom-Ali Nalgiev and, in principle, we have a lot of good fighters, “Vartanyan told .
Live broadcasts of mixed martial arts tournaments can be seen on and Match! Fighter, as well as on the websites matchtv.ru and sportbox.ru.
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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.
