Chrom
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 |  Subject: Coach Vladimir Voronov: Fedor won't run away down to 205 (Exclusive Interview) Sun Jul 17, 2011 11:12 pm | |
| - Quote :
- On July 30th, Fedor Emelianenko will step inside the Strikeforce cage
for the 4th time in his career, this time facing the fellow MMA legend
and former PRIDE Champion Dan "Hendo" Henderson at Sears Centre in
Hoffman Estates, Illinois. Fedor will look to bounce back from two
consecutive defeats, against Fabricio Werdum via Submission and Antonio
Silva via TKO (Doctor Stoppage).
The fight against Henderson will be a defining moment in Fedor Emelianenko's illustrious MMA career.
One of the men behind Fedor's success as a Mixed Martial Artist, is
his eternal SAMBO coach and mentor Vladimir Voronov, who trains "The
Last Emperor" since the age of twelve. Voronov holds numerous honors as
SAMBO specialist and coach, including the prestigious "Honoured Coach of
Russia".
We had an opportunity to speak to the SAMBO legend about Fedor
Emelianenko's preparations for Dan Henderson, motivation, the state of
Russian MMA and much more:
You recently returned from the training camp in Kislovodsk,
where Fedor Emelianenko continued his preparations for the fight against
Dan Henderson. What was different in this training camp, comparing to
the last one you had for Antonio Silva?
We
had a very successful training camp in Kislovodsk. There are no big
differences from the previous one. Although we made some adjustments for
Henderson as an opponent and to the intensity of Fedor's training.
Everyone was surprised to see Fedor and Alexander Emelianenko
training together. What kind of effect it had on Fedor's preparation?
Well,
first of all, they are brothers. Alexander wanted to train and he
joined us for this camp. I consider him to be the second best Russian
fighter after Fedor. And that's exactly why having him as a sparring
partner was a very positive thing for Fedor.
Dan Henderson is well known for his "H-Bomb", heavy right
hand that knocked out many opponents throughout history. Do you consider
it to be his main weapon in the fight against Fedor Emelianenko?
It's hard to tell. Every fighter has his own advantages and disadvantages. That's something we'll find out only on July 30th.
Henderson recently stated that he thinks Fedor has problems
with motivation. What can you say about Fedor's motivation coming to
this bout?
Right
now, he's very motivated. It's hard to say what will happen during the
fight, because it all depends on Fedor. As coaches, we have done and are
doing everything in our power to help Fedor reaching the peak of his
physical and psychological condition. Now, everything depends on Fedor.
What in your opinion is the key for victory against Dan Henderson?
The will to win.
Many people in Mixed Martial Arts community think that Fedor
should move down to 205 (93kg). Do you think Fedor will be more
effective as a fighter at that weight?
I
can't see any sense in Fedor moving down to 205. Why would he do it? To
run away from someone? I think that if Fedor returns to the previous
workload, today's Heavyweights will struggle against him. The most
important thing here is to have the right motivation and training
regime. If you want to win, you have to play by the rules.
You're training Fedor since he's 12. What can you say about
his evolution as a fighter, since his first day in your gym, through
PRIDE days and until today?
Obviously,
Fedor grew and matured a lot since his early years in the sport.
There's a lot of changes, psychological and physiological. He still has
the same character. Maybe he's a little tired of the sport. LowKick I don't think it would be running away, I think it would be a well thought out choice for some ones stalling career. We all know HE has a bit of a spare tire he could lose and easily make 205. I have no doubts that he would give anyone in the LHW division fits. | |
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