From the fight Adam Bogatyreva And Evgenia Goncharova At the ACA Heavyweight Grand Prix final, much was expected: Bogatyrev was on a four-game winning streak, Goncharov won six times in a row. But after the first round, something broke in the challenger’s tactics: Bogatyrev began to be afraid of the champion, retreated a lot and created almost nothing in the attack. This led to the fact that on August 17 at 00:28, Evgeny Goncharov’s hand was raised, recognizing him as the winner of the Grand Prix, retaining the title of ASA heavyweight champion. Goncharov received 15 million rubles for winning the tournament and $ 25,000 (about 2.2 million rubles) from the founder of the organization Mairbek Khasiev as a bonus.
Moreover, viewers can rightfully consider Goncharov the strongest heavyweight in the Russian leagues. Since April 2016, he has lost only one fight out of 19 (and took revenge), defeating a huge number of people whose appearance and hometown can be described in one word: Grozny. Goncharov holds the belt of the Akhmat Absolute Championship (ACA) and even in such an organization it is increasingly difficult for him to find opponents.
Less than an hour after the victory, Evgeny Goncharov gave an interview, standing in the tribune:
“Either I broke my nose or I was going to break it.”
— What did you expect from Adam Bogatyrev and what did you plan to do in battle?
“I planned everything as it happened during the fight, but I thought I would get to the second or third round and he would fall. But he started the bike and it became difficult for me to catch him, he kept going.
— Was there a blow such that he resisted and surprised you with it?
“I caught him with a glance once, but it was still a glance. And with that blow, I either broke his nose or I even broke it. But I haven’t seen people knock their opponents out with punches in the nose. As it was, I didn’t hit him hard in the chin or temple.
“After a while, people will see how you and Adam stirred up this fight and think you have a bad relationship.” Let’s clarify: Is Adam Bogatyrev a good person for you?
“I said back in the cage, ‘Support Adam.’ He helped promote that fight. And there was a lot of interest in that fight, not only because I’m a champion and I’m defending my belt, but also because of his aggression. We had that fight together. So respect to him, after the fight I wished him good luck.
— At the press conference after the fight, the names of Vitaly Minakov and Yoel Romero were heard. But if you look at the dates of birth, Russian heavyweight Sergei Kharitonov is three years younger than Romero. Could he interest you?
– Why not? I recently named Sergei Kharitonov among the three best Russian heavyweights in history. When I started playing, I watched his fights at Pride.
— Who is the more serious opposition: him or Vitaly Minakov?
— Minakov is younger, more powerful. He has a very solid base. I think we just need to give him time to prepare. So he is a dangerous opponent who can defeat anyone.
— Who would you prepare it with?
— I would prepare boxing with Dmitry Kudryashov. And I think I would have been better at stand-up. And if he wanted to fight? Well… fighting with me is a kind of work.
— In the winter of 2022, you called Jon Jones the strongest heavyweight fighter. Some time has passed since then. Who do you think is the strongest heavyweight in the world right now?
– I think Alexander Volkov is the strongest heavyweight in the world. In my opinion. Volkov will win against Gan with a probability of 70%, and Aspinella can also win
– What place would you put yourself in?
“I don’t want to put myself anywhere.” So far, I’m number one in Russia. If I’m abroad, we’ll watch. I think I can compete with anyone. Even Tom Aspinall, I don’t see anything special in him. I don’t see him as invincible.
— You wanted to try boxing: who do you think you could box with?
“I think I can box with anyone.” After fighting with Dmitry Kudryashov, I feel exactly that. My coach says that I have a very hard shot. Especially when I hit with 10-ounce professional gloves. It seems to me that in boxing I would knock out the audience, because there you can’t fight.
— You have devoted a lot of time to sports, fulfilling the standard of a master of sports in boxing. Does it make you laugh when you see bloggers Jake Paul and Logan Paul making money by getting in the ring?
“In the beginning, these people had money. They are famous bloggers and have made a lot of money from their channels. Now they organize their own fights, create their own shows and pay for them themselves. In a sense, they pay their own expenses.
—According to visual estimates, how long would they stay by your side?
— I can’t tell you, because I don’t follow their work. I’ve seen them beat older UFC fighters. And that’s all I can say. I think I’d beat them.
“Black Sea Coast, Rendezvous”
— You look very strong and muscular at 38, even though you fight often. At this age and after 26 professional fights, do you have any injuries?
— Thank God, there are no serious injuries, I’m doing great. And in training camp I know what diet I need, I have long found the golden mean, I understand how to train correctly. I combine physical, boxing and wrestling. And I only enjoy the training process. I don’t exhaust myself in the off-season and that’s why I preserve myself so well.
— What does your first training after the fight look like?
— On the bark: I come to swing, to work the bag for my pleasure.
— Has it ever happened that you came to the gym to work out and the men working out looked at you as if you were an ordinary visitor to the gym?
– Yes, it happened several times. In Rostov, I came to the gym and no one knew that I was an ASA champion and that I was competing. They just looked at me as if I was some kind of athlete.
— Could you come and say, ‘Can you support me?’
– Yes, it happened.
— Before the fight, you said your five-year-old daughter was watching the show. Did you watch this one?
“I can only tell you what I said to her today: ‘Daughter, wait for me, I’ll bring two new nice belts.’ She asked when we’re going to the sea. I said: ‘I’ll come tomorrow, we’ll pack our bags and leave.’
— There are several stations that are mentioned more often than others and are generally considered the best. Do you want to go to a place like this?
— I would go to many places with pleasure, but my son is five months old. And it is not very safe to carry him. So, most likely, meet us on the Black Sea coast.
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.
TV Match
More sports news in our telegram channel .
Source : MatchTV
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.
