An ex-con Russian MMA brawler needed less than a round to knock out his English opponent on his bare knuckle boxing debut in Moscow.
Fearsome powerhouse Vyacheslav Datsik, who was once part of a banned nationalist party and has spent years in jail for a litany of offenses, appeared to face a tough test in the form of Randy Randayn, a confident challenger with a five-fight perfect record in the discipline.
Known as Kofi King, financial adviser Randayn, from the south-west town of Bournemouth in the UK, claimed he had knocked out the world pit-fighting champion on his way to a meeting with the man who spent five years in prison for shop robberies, serving his time alongside two neo-Nazis he reportedly boxed naked when he fled to Norway in search of asylum from Russia.
Despite clearly clutching his head in pain, Randayn bravely gathered himself after being smashed in the face several times with 90 seconds of the opening round remaining against free-hitting Datsik.
Leaning against the hay blocks making up the ring, Randayn carried on against a backdrop of a baying crowd, only to be swiftly hammered again by at least two huge shots.
The referee stepped in and Randayn appeared to sway around part of the ring before a towel – possibly thrown by his corner – was picked up by the official in the center of the circle.
Datsik was said to have been around 33lbs heavier than his outclassed rival, who is thought to have weighed more than 251lbs.
According to Ren TV, which televised the brutal bout as part of a Top Dog FC card, Datsik set a savage pace from the start and never relented.
Former cell escapee and self-declared ‘white warrior’ Datsik proved his prediction right that Randayn’s pre-fight plan would not work.
The visiting fighter had warned: “I’ve beaten everyone there is to beat in England. I can’t find anyone else who wants to take me on, so I’ve had to travel all the way to Russia.
“I was offered Datsik. I was told he was a man – I was told he was tough. When I got here, he was scared. He said, ‘Please, promoter: can we have some gloves?’
“I can box, I can chop, I can do anything. Datsik thinks that MMA gloves will save him, but no.
“I will knock him out; because of the gloves I will not worry about breaking my hands. There will be blood – I’ll just knock him out.”
Victorious Datsik was declared insane by a court and placed in a psychiatric hospital in St. Petersburg a decade ago and has since served time for attacking an underground brothel.
The 40-year-old’s latest fight took place in a space with a diameter of a maximum of six meters.
Datsik was backed by his devoted wife and representative, Viktoriia, who recently gave birth to his daughter.
Oleksandr Usyk can cement his place in boxing folklore in London on Saturday night. But should he do so, the Ukrainian might not receive the unfettered love that would otherwise be expected back in his homeland.
Usyk is stepping into enemy territory, meeting reigning WBA, WBO, IBF and IBO world heavyweight champion Anthony Joshua in front of around 60,000 fans at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.
The atmosphere will be febrile and firmly in Joshua’s favor – but Usyk is not likely to be cowed.
Already a generational great after unifying all four belts at cruiserweight, the undefeated Ukrainian can carve out an even more remarkable chunk of history if he captures Joshua’s heavyweight gold.
London has been a happy hunting ground during the career of the colorful, gap-toothed Usyk: it was here where he won Olympic heavyweight gold in 2012 – and where in a twist of fate, Joshua did the same at super-heavyweight.
Fight week in London has seen Usyk at his colorful best: donning Joker-style garb for his press conference on Thursday, juggling for the media at open workouts, and generally displaying the eccentricities that mark him out as one of boxing’s most eye-catching characters.
The consensus is that Usyk is not just a formidable boxer, but also a “likeable” guy – perhaps because of his quirks, rather than despite them.
A chest-thumping patriot, Usyk will ensure that the yellow and blue of Ukraine is on display in London this weekend.
Multitudes back home will thank him in return, proud of a man who represents the nation with honor in boxing rings around the world.
It is not, however, a story of complete reciprocity.
Indeed, some in Ukraine will find themselves more conflicted over their support for Usyk, who despite his flag-draped displays has had to contend with criticism in Ukraine to accompany his success – and not because of his craftwork in the ring.
Politics – in this case of the geopolitical nature – have much to do with it.
Usyk was born in the city of Simferopol in Crimea, which rejoined Russia in a landslide referendum in 2014.
Usyk now lives with his wife and children in Kiev, but still visits his family in the peninsula – as he noted in an interview last year.
Ordinarily that wouldn’t be problematic, but with the Kiev authorities still unwilling to accept the return of Crimea to Russia, trips into ‘occupied territory’ are frowned upon.
Indeed, one of Usyk’s greatest performances in the ring – his cruiserweight title unification fight against Russia’s Murat Gassiev in Moscow three years ago – was accompanied by criticism that he had not used the occasion to tub-thump.
“Many expected from you a statement in the enemy’s lair, which called for the aggressor to stop the war in Donbass, return Crimea to Ukraine, free the political prisoners and prisoners of war and so on,” said Ukrainian MP Vitaly Kupry after initially congratulating Usyk.
“Unfortunately, you never mentioned Ukraine in your post-fight press conference, and immediately after in the ring even thanked the Russian people for their support. And your belated thanks online was obviously done under public pressure.”
Before Usyk’s last fight, against British heavyweight Derek Chisora in London, an opinion piece appeared on fans website The Comeback in which Ukrainian sports editor Alex Sereda explained why he couldn’t support Usyk – and why “many others feel this way.”
Identical accusations have been leveled at another generational boxing great from Ukraine, Vasyl Lomachenko (who is with his friend Usyk in London this week) – not least when he posted a religious message on Instagram apparently featuring Russian special forces.
“Usyk and Lomachenko should stop speaking and acting like those who wouldn’t mind Ukrainian flags being replaced with Russian ones as long as their asses are in warm and safe places, with the cash register still ringing,” said Sereda in his hit piece.
“They haven’t lived up to their real fight in a much more important ring. Waving the national flag or wearing a tracksuit with Ukrainian symbols isn’t enough for people of their public caliber.”
It’s not just politics that has been used against Usyk.
A devout Orthodox Christian, the boxer was seen crossing himself before stepping onto the scales at Friday’s weigh-in in London – just one sign of his faith.
But for some in Ukraine, Usyk and Lomachenko are the wrong kind of Orthodox Christians as the pair remain in a branch of the faith which is connected with the Moscow Patriarchate.
Last year, both boxers appeared in a religious film, ‘Hello, Brother! Christ has risen!’, in which they spoke about the importance of their beliefs. Lomachenko in particular emphasized that he considers Ukrainians, Russians and Belarusians as one and the same people.
The pair were hit with a backlash, being added to the infamous ‘Myrotvorets’ list in Ukraine of supposed ‘enemies of the state’.
Usyk was unrepentant, saying: “My country is Ukraine. I live here, I was born here, I grew up here. If I wanted to leave, I would have done that a long time ago.
“You won’t force me out because it’s my country. Don’t divide people. We are Ukrainian. I’m Ukrainian, it’s written in my passport.”
In 2014, Usyk was on record as saying he considers Crimea to be Ukraine; since then, he has said that Crimea is ‘God’s’, emphasizing that the people who live there are the priority, whatever the politics.
Often, Usyk has dodged political questions with the same artful skill he slips punches in the ring, but he has bitten on some occasions.
“Who have I betrayed? I represent Ukraine all over the world. I raise the Ukrainian flag. The anthem is played. That’s my answer to you provocateurs,” he said in 2018.
Usyk’s wife has Russian citizenship and the boxer uses Russian as his first language – even though he made a point of giving interviews in Ukrainian at his press conferences this week.
He has reportedly turned down offers of Russian citizenship, saying: “I didn’t even think of giving up my Ukrainian passport, because I consider myself a patriot of my native country and sincerely want Ukraine to prosper. Through God, I was born in Ukraine. Therefore, I’ll always remain Ukrainian.”
Usyk did, however, reject the ‘Hero of Ukraine’ award back in 2018, not considering himself worthy of his country’s highest honor.
“A lot of people have done more than me, doctors, teachers, scientists who really deserve this. Thanks to my people, I’m already a hero, I don’t need any stars. I’m a normal guy,” said the boxer.
On Saturday night in London, Usyk will assume the role to which he is so well accustomed – that of a generational boxing talent going about his craft in the ring.
Millions back in Ukraine will support him, willing him on as he attempts to elevate himself to an even more elite boxing Pantheon.
But it is perhaps sad that some will be unable to do so, instead burdening Usyk with caveats and complexities that aim to diminish the man and his achievements.
By Liam Tyler
The statements, views and opinions expressed in this column are solely those of the author and do not necessarily represent those of RT.
Valentina Shevchenko has issued a stirring endorsement of Halle Berry’s MMA skills after starring alongside the Oscar-winning actor in the forthcoming Netflix movie ‘Bruised’.
Shevchenko, who also stars in the film set to be released on November 24, says that she was tasked with helping Berry, 55, prepare for fighting scenes in the mixed martial arts film – but quickly discovered that there was no quick fix to do so without undertaking what she said was essentially a full-scale MMA training camp.
The Kyrgyzstani-Peruvian said that she couldn’t have been more impressed by Berry’s commitment – not just to to the role, but also to her mixed martial arts training.
“If you are speaking about training, she went not only just a few months for this movie. She went through all of this training for a couple of years,” the UFC women’s flyweight champion explained to MMA Fighting.
Halle Berry congratulating her friend and training partner Valentina Shevchenko after her dominate #UFC247 title defense. pic.twitter.com/UzHMRppP2l
“She was training for three or four years. She was training Muay Thai. She was training jiu-jitsu. She did a lot of preparation before the movie started.
“That’s why about her toughness, I can say a lot. We were training leading into the [filming]. Filming days, we were training in New York for about two months and every single day we were working five hours straight, no rest.
“We were working different combinations, striking, punching, everything. She was doing this same every month. No resting, no saying anything, just doing it.“
Ahead of the movie’s release, Berry has spoken of the gruelling training regimen she undertook – but unlike most major stunts in Hollywood movies, the injuries Berry says she sustained were very real.
Berry, who won an Academy Award for her performance in 2002’s ‘Monster’s Ball’, has confirmed that she broke some ribs while filming scenes – and much like in an MMA training camp, the show had to go on.
That was something which impressed Shevchenko greatly.
“You have to make it not only look real, you have to actually do it real,” she said. “The tiny line between a real fight and a movie fight, you have to work with your partner to feel each other.
“You have to feel each other to make her confident that it looks like you are throwing with your whole power but you have to know that you’re never going to damage her.
“But definitely when it’s filming days, we were working for like 12 hours straight doing all the sequences and everyone was tired and, definitely, it was a lot of pressure. Physical pressure.
“When you are tired, this is when injuries happen because you are kind of defending the same way that you have to and it’s the same everywhere. When you’re tired – very tired – there are more chances you’re going to get injured.
“We did real sparring. We did real training for the fight scenes in the movie. It was an amazing experience working with her.”
While Shevchenko explained that the fight scenes were just that – scenes – she says that it is impossible to avoid a few punches slipping through, and she confirmed that Berry has legitimate power in her hands.
“I’m honest. She has a lot of power,” Shevchenko said about Berry. “She has a lot of flexibility. She catches techniques very quick, very fast. She has everything. She has everything for being a fighter.”
And after a career spent in the spotlight, Shevchenko also dismissed any questions of nerves ahead of the release of what is her feature film debut in less than two months’ time.
“Nervous? Definitely no,” the fighter known as ‘Bullet’ said. “I saw myself on screen how I look there – it’s kind of angry.
“A lot of fury in there. I’m very excited. I’m very excited to see the full movie.”
A gang of thieves who allegedly stole a Russian Olympic champion’s medals in a calculated raid on her home have reportedly returned them less than two weeks later alongside an apology and a box of chocolates.
Burglars are said to have attacked tennis hero Elena Vesnina’s home last month, making off with her gold doubles medal from the Rio 2016 Games and the mixed doubles silver she won in Tokyo this summer among their haul.
The intruders allegedly scaled a fence in broad daylight and swiped the precious honors while the former world doubles number one and husband Pavel Tabunstov had gone out for dinner.
Now the heartbreaking incident appears to have had a happier ending. According to kp.ru, a police source has revealed that the medals have been returned to a checkpoint in the Moscow region where Vesnina lives.
Elena #Vesnina's medals, both gold and silver, were stolen from her house when she and her husband were out for dinner. She said she didn't put medals into a safe because she showed them to kids in a tennis club. But the safe was cracked and some jewelry were stolen as well. pic.twitter.com/bYBp84w6FX
“Together with the medals, they also left a box of chocolates,” the source is said to have added.
“They also put in a note of apology. But I did not see it – I cannot say what the content was.”
Vesnina responded: “I can’t confirm anything yet. Investigators are busy. I haven’t received anything yet.”
The 35-year-old, who took time out from tennis to give birth to a daughter in 2018, is said to have not kept the medals locked up because she had taken them out to show to children on a visit to a clinic.
“The robbers broke down the door, knocked down the security cameras, broke into the safe, stole jewelry and grabbed the bag with my medals,” she told the outlet at the time.
“Nobody was hurt. We were not at home. I wrote a statement for the police.”
Elena Vesnina with Ekaterina Makarova with their gold medals from the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio! pic.twitter.com/JuiqsYKMmZ
Vesnina made an impressive return to tennis this year after more than two years away from the professional sport, reaching the final of the French Open alongside fellow Russian star Aslan Karatsev.
Partnering Veronika Kudermetova, she had two match points to win the doubles title despite being in an unseeded pairing, ultimately suffering a narrow defeat to third seeds Hsieh Su-wei and Elise Mertens.
Kudermetova was her partner again at the Tokyo Olympics, where they lost in the semifinals to eventual gold medalists Barbora Krejcikova and Katerina Siniakova on their way to finishing fourth.
Vesnina and Karatsev were then edged out in an epic all-Russian final in the mixed doubles, failing to convert a match point in a third set super-tie break against Andrey Rublev and Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova.
A basketball star has had his request to skip receiving a Covid-19 vaccine for religious reasons denied by NBA chiefs, forcing him to miss his team’s home games in San Francisco until he receives an inoculation.
Due to various Covid-19 restrictions in place in New York and San Francisco, players from the New York Knicks, the Brooklyn Nets and the Golden State Warriors are required to be fully vaccinated in order to gain clearance to play in their home stadiums unless they are granted exemptions for religious or medical reasons.
Golden State Warriors’ Andrew Wiggins, the 26-year-old first pick in the 2014 NBA Draft, had applied for a religious exemption – but that has been flatly denied by league chiefs. Details on the specifics of Wiggins’ request haven’t yet been made public.
“The NBA has reviewed and denied Andrew Wiggins’ request for religious exemption from the San Francisco Department of Public Health’s order requiring Covid-19 vaccination for all participants age 12 and older at large indoor events,” a statement said.
The NBA says it has reviewed and denied Andrew Wiggins’ request for religious exemption from the San Francisco Department of Public Health’s order requiring COVID-19 vaccination for all participants age 12 and older at large indoor events.
“Wiggins will not be able to play in Warriors home games until he fulfils the city’s vaccination requirements.”
The San Francisco Department of Public Health, meanwhile, had also made clear that vaccine exemptions would only be granted in very specific circumstances.
“Under the current order, if unvaccinated, they cannot enter indoor areas regardless of the reason they are unvaccinated and cannot test out of this requirement even if they have a medical or religious exemption,” they said in a statement to the media.
Much like in the NFL, the NBA has announced a series of guidelines for unvaccinated players compared to their vaccinated counterparts including daily testing – but players from teams in New York and San Francisco remain subject to greater demands due to local restrictions.
I’m not an anti-vaxxer, but this is gross. A vaccination should be a choice.
The New York Knicks announced this week that 100% of their roster is fully vaccinated, meaning that none of the local restrictions will apply.
Nets general manager Sean Marks also affirmed that he expected his team to be fully vaccinated by the time the league season begins on October 19.
The aggressive vaccine policy doesn’t apply just to players, with the NBA having struck agreements with practically everyone involved in game days, including coaches, referees and stadium staff, to commit to receiving one of the various vaccines available.
It’s a dumb mandate anyway because the visiting team doesn’t need to be vaccinated. People have lost their minds.
this “freedom” is at the expense of others. not getting the vaccine affects others around him more than it does to him. the NBA is a business, and compromising others because you wont get a shot is an objective liability. it's really not that hard.
As ever with the issue of the impact of Covid-19 and its vaccines in sport, the reaction to Wiggins’ religious exemption request being denied has been mixed.
“I’m not an anti-vaxxer, but this is gross. A vaccination should be a choice,” said one.
“Shot selection has always been an issue for Andrew Wiggins,” joked another.
“It’s a dumb mandate anyway because the visiting team doesn’t need to be vaccinated. People have lost their minds,” added a third.
