Vladimir Putin paid US fighter 150k
Then he was asked for a SWIFT code—the standard format for transferring money between banks, especially internationally. Ruiz didn’t have a clue.
American middleweight fighter Anthony “A Train” Ruiz tells Bleacher Report Josh Gross and extraordinary story about meeting Russian Premier Vladmir Putin, and what happened next. It happened at Russian promotion S-70 vs. Alexei Zhernakov.
Shlemenko “hit me probably a thousand times,” tallied Ruiz. “My nose was broken all the way to the side in the last round. It was brutal.”
Said Shlemenko: There were a couple times when I knocked him down and could have kept pounding him, but I didn’t do it. I allowed him to stand. I didn’t take advantage of it.
Putin thought enough of the American’s resilience and courage to offer a standing ovation, kind words and significantly more.
Immediately after the fight, with the tone of one friend telling another they have food stuck between their teeth, the Russian president offered this advice in English.
Said Putin: You need to fix your nose.
Two weeks after returning home, mostly recovered by then, Ruiz’s phone rang. The voice on the other end spoke English, although it was obvious this was an intermediary for a Russian party who could be overheard in the background.
Did he need anything?
He was fine, he said.
Then he was asked for a SWIFT code—the standard format for transferring money between banks, especially internationally. Ruiz didn’t have a clue. He visited his bank to inquire why anyone would want to know such a thing.
Two days later, after deciding to play along, $50,000 was wired into his account from the Russian Federation.
Understandably, Ruiz freaked out. He checked with his financial institution and was told, indeed, it’s real money and, better yet, his to keep.
“I couldn’t believe it,” he recalled. “Then the next day, boom, another $50,000.”
For all Ruiz knew, a third wire transfer, also to the tune of $50,000, represented the number of times Shlemenko buried him in Sochi.
The bank was telling me there’s some people who aren’t all that straight doing transfers and stuff like that, he said. I also knew it was coming from Putin, and he’s one of the wealthiest persons in the world. So, really, $150,000 ain’t that much to him. That’s what I’m telling myself to justify it. Sure enough, I kept it in there and left it alone. It was real. It really happened.
When they asked how in the world this could happen, Ruiz answered as best as he could: Well, I offered my life. I was there. I was willing to die. And it showed on film.”
Ruiz purchased a home and paid down debt.