Russian president Vladimir Putin is a skilled Judo black belt, and major fan of mixed martial arts. Indeed, it is widely believed that the funding behind the Eurasian Fight Nights is an attempt to curry favor with Putin.
The attempt may have failed, but that’s another story. Sufficed to say, Putin is a fan of MMA, and not just of Russian fighters.
Here he is offering words of praise to South Africa’s Trevor Prangley at a 2013 League S-70 event in Sochi, Russia.
Just how big an MMA fan Putin is was revealed by Josh Gross last year, in a story for B/R.
Back on August 11, 2012, in Sochi (before the Winter Olympics), Putin was ringside at the League S-70: Russian Championship Final. In the main event, Alexander Shlemenko delivered a hellacious three round, 15 minute beating of the terribly game Anthony ‘A-Train’ Ruiz, who made $6,000 for showing.
“He hit me probably a thousand times,” said Ruiz. “My nose was broken all the way to the side in the last round. It was brutal.”
An appreciative Putin offered the fighters a standing ovation, entered the ring, and offered praise.
There were a couple times when I knocked him down and could have kept pounding him, but I didn’t do it,” said Shlemenko later. “I allowed him to stand. I didn’t take advantage of it. Putin was right to tell me I fought nobly—I didn’t want to kill Ruiz in the ring.”
The Russian president also spoke to Ruiz, in English.
You need to fix your nose,” said Putin, accurately.
So Ruiz grabbed his nose and arranged it back in place, more or less.
Then Ruiz returned to America.
Two weeks later, his phone rang. The voice spoke accented English, clearly working for a Russian party who could be heard in the background.
Ruiz was asked about his health.
Did he need anything?
Then he was asked for his SWIFT code. Few people know their SWIFT code, or even what it is – a Business Identifier Code used when transferring money between banks, particularly for international wire transfer.
Ruiz went to his bank to ask why someone would want to know his SWIFT code, and finally provided the information to the caller.
Two days later, $50,000 was wired into his account from Russia.
“Then the next day, boom, another $50,000,” said Ruiz.
Then it happened again, another $50,000. And it was real.
The bank was telling me there’s some people who aren’t all that straight doing transfers and stuff like that, said Ruiz. 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 asked how it could have happened, Ruiz replied like the warrior he truly is.
Well, I offered my life,” he said. “I was there. I was willing to die. And it showed on film.”
At a later S-70 event in 2013, Putin offered his thoughts.
“We have always valued and respected men in Russia, who are able to go to the end,” he said.
$150,000 is a vast sum to someone game to risk their well being for 6/6. Ruiz wisely paid down debt and bought a home.
Alexei Zhernakov, Shlemenko’s manager and League S-70 matchmaker said the $150,000 came from sponsors operating on behalf of “special guest” Putin.
“I would think that I’m not going to get that lucky twice,” said Ruiz, adding, “but you never know.”
This is the fight.
Josh Gross most recently wrote Ali vs. Inoki: The Forgotten Fight That Inspired Mixed Martial Arts and Launched Sports Entertainment, available now on Amazon.
