On August 16, the ACA 178 tournament will be held in Moscow. As part of the event, among others, there will be a fight between the ex-champion of the organization Vitaly Slipenko, who returns to the cage after an unsuccessful attempt to compete in the middleweight division. In an interview with “Championship”, Vitaly explained why he loves weightlifting, spoke about the Grand Prix format in the ASA and noted that he would like to hold a camp in Dmitry Bivol’s team. In addition, Slipenko assessed the prospects of Islam Makhachev in the welterweight division and explained why he does not see anything wrong with the fact that there was a misunderstanding between Sergei Pavlovich and Alexander Volkov.
—You’re returning to welterweight. Isn’t it going to be difficult to cut weight? — I actually like to lose weight, it helps me to concentrate on the fight. This is probably part of my game. I like to be a weightlifter. I just had certain health problems. When I was going for the title, many fights failed and the weight race almost came to the fight, they failed, they were postponed for a month. Therefore, the body gave up a bit. Now everything is fixed, everything is fine. Ready for welterweight again.
—If the middleweight fight had been more successful, would you have stayed there? – No, I don’t think so. Hardly. I feel more comfortable when I fight at welterweight. This is my weight. When you’re on a diet, you’re more focused on the fight.
Vitaly Slipenko
Photo: Valery Sharifulin/TASS
— After the fight with Dipchikov, did you feel that your opponents at middleweight were bigger? “Before that, I generally started my career as a middleweight. In the ASA, I had already started fighting in the welterweight division, but my career up to my eighth professional fight, in my opinion, was in the middleweight division. I feel normal. It is clear that someone there hits harder, someone is more physically powerful. The welterweight division has become more saturated over the year. A lot of new people signed up, the weight became more dynamic. I was thinking of leaving there, because there was a big stagnation in the division. I would practically fight the same people, now there are a lot of new people there. And it is fun to fight.
— You touched on the subject of weight loss. How can you explain in general the fact that in the ASA fighters very often do not make weight? – This is discipline, it seems to me. I have always kept my weight low. If I can’t keep the weight low, I prefer to fight at 84 kg. And then, it seems to me, fighters gain a lot in the off-season and relax. You always need to stay within limits. You can eat there for two weeks after the fight and then recover. There is an overcompensation in the body, because we are trying to gain weight, we put a lot of stress on it and it eats us up. And you literally swell up like a balloon. It seems to me that this is why many people do not control this moment and then it becomes difficult. And the lighter the weight, the more people travel. Those who fight at 70 kg weigh 90 kg, those at 66 kg also weigh 90 kg. And many people drive too much. I think that at most it is necessary to push 10-13 kg. Now I have reduced my diet to 87 kg and I will remove the remaining 10 kg with water.
Losing too much weight can be very harmful to your health:
I lost 25 kilograms and almost died. Wrestler Tumenov landed on the operating table.
— Vinicius Cruz, your next opponent, is also coming off a defeat. What do you expect from him in this fight? “I look forward to his aggressive style, his prolonged movement. My task is to suppress his style with my style and make him run away from me to seek salvation. I will cut corners, I will constantly put pressure on him, I will try to put him on the canvas. Either knock him out or put him on the canvas.
— Cruz is considered a knockout artist. Are you worried that you are recovering from a knockout loss and your opponent is a good hitter? – No, not really. It is clear that there are always fears and worries. Just keep your hands up and concentrate more on your punches. The main thing is to keep your hands on your chin and be alert. Concentration is important. How you will feel in a fight. This is what gives success.
— In 2023, you were named the sensation of the year in Russian MMA. Are you ready to regain this title now? – Yes, I already said that. Today the film crew came, I told them: “You have started to forget about me.” And it pisses me off. It motivates me to remind everyone that I am here and that I am the king here. I am in this state of mind right now… I am hungry, it is as if I am breathing my career, I feel very good right now. This is the most important thing, it seems to me. I will surprise, I will work. Don’t just talk, try to prove everything with actions.
Vitaly Slipenko
Photo: Valery Sharifulin/TASS
— Are there any opponents in the ASA whose fights are important to you? – There are no such principles. The main thing for me now is to win the title and I understand that I can take the belt. Now the champion is Tumenov and I am interested in fighting him. I need to have big fights and prove myself. Many people are waiting for this fight, and he himself is waiting for it, he spoke about it in an interview. So it is an interesting fight, I need to make a good comeback now.
— The ASA has a Grand Prix. What do you think of the format? There are often substitutions and the network collapses. Is there such a thing as the format not being justified? – Yes, a lot of things are slowing down, fights are being interrupted. Even now, how many fights have changed. I think we were counting on something else a little, but it is very difficult to control. It seems to me that it is more convenient not to do all the weights, but just one. Then you can somehow control everything. And at all weights, if fighters fall and get injured quickly, then it is very difficult to maintain this idea. I think that the ASA definitely wanted to end the Grand Prix early. But this is still some kind of new movement, they made a Grand Prix. Some weights will go more, some less. It will still attract some attention.
– You have an original nickname: Zhinkin the Lion. Do you still receive angry comments about this or has everyone accepted it? – I’m fine with this. There’s nothing shameful about it. Still, this is my specific image. I don’t take what people write on the Internet too personally. I know who I am, my family knows who I am, but what they write on the Internet isn’t important. I’m enjoying myself. If I didn’t want this, I wouldn’t say it.
How Slipenko lost his championship title:
Even Yan was not robbed like that. Gadzhidaudov suffered with Slipenko, but became the new ACA champion
— At one point you argued with Nikita Krylov. What did he look like? He is still a light heavyweight. – Yes, we have been working with him for a long time. I was just starting my journey then; we trained in Moscow. Everything is fine, he didn’t work at full strength, but we got along well. It’s always interesting to work with him. He weighs about 103 kg, I weigh 93-94 kg. So the difference is not that big, but the blows are hard. It’s interesting to try your luck with different fighters. I’m glad to have this experience.
—Are there certain fighters you would like to camp and train with? — In the off-season, I thought about talking to my friends and trying to fly to some off-season camp with Dmitry Bivol. Try it at a boxing camp. I watch it on the Internet, on YouTube. I would take a plane to try to move with the boxers. I would like this not to be my main preparation, but, for example, if I have a fight in four months, then go there for a month and move around. This, it seems to me, will give good experience. His coach has an interesting technique.
– Who would you bet on, Bivol or Beterbiev? – Tough. When they join forces, there will be a war of styles. Two different styles, and we will see in the first rounds who will win the fight. If Bivol imposes his style, Beterbiev will not be able to adapt and, consequently, vice versa. It is difficult to make a prediction. We are all looking forward to this fight.
— You once worked as a security guard in a nightclub. Is it true that this is the best place to collect a lot of interesting stories? — Yes, it is the best place to collect stories, and it is a psychologically difficult place. Especially when you are a boy, you are 20 years old and they threaten you with a knife, they try to inflict some kind of injury on you, because you are the most negative character for those on vacation. But then, based on experience, you can draw a psychological portrait of people. What actions can you take, etc. At some point in my life, this work experience even helped and strengthened me.
— The ASA often opposes the UFC. In what areas is the league already better and in what areas does it need to improve? — There is no cooler league in Russia than ASA, that’s for sure. It is now going through its best years, the peak of popularity, because the stadiums are full, a lot of people come, there is a rush. The media machine works well in UFC, the image is different, the promotion, the characters are completely different. Here in ASA there is a more Caucasian mentality, but it is still more difficult to promote than in America. But in terms of level and fights, ASA is in no way inferior.
— Where would you place yourself in the UFC welterweight rankings if you competed there? – It’s hard to say. I really can’t. When I compete in the UFC, I’ll tell you then. Is there such a goal? Life is like that, I set higher goals for myself and anything can happen. Everything is possible.
UFC Welterweight Champion Changes:
Habib’s school in action! Belal defeated Edwards to become the new UFC champion
—Do you keep track of your weight class in other leagues? How carefully? — I watch the UFC, but not the PFL. I don’t follow them, I don’t know how they fight. I don’t understand their promotion. And the fights are hard to watch. And in the UFC I watch fights, I watch my weight class. It’s interesting to imagine how I would fight a certain opponent in my weight class. I love watching fights, I watch reviews with interest.
— The UFC has just overhauled the 77kg title. Do you like the result? Did you expect this? – I didn’t expect it. Edwards has a kind of melancholic character. If something goes wrong or he comes out in a bad mood, he can simply quit the fight. It’s clear that Belal imposed his game, pressure, fight, but Edwards just walked without punches, pressed against the net. He came out without any emotion, maybe something happened, maybe he wasn’t in the right emotional mood somehow. I just quit the fight. And I didn’t expect this. Even the bets didn’t work. I like to stage a bit of a scene for fun, to analyze.
— Belal has now won and closed the way for Islam Makhachev at 77 kg. How competitive would Islam be at this weight? — I think it would be interesting to see who the fight will be with Belal. But it would actually be difficult for Islam. Because the dimensions are different and Muhammad can also take the initiative in the fight. According to Islam, in the fight with Volkanovski it was clear that his fight is not the same as Khabib’s and he doesn’t weigh down his opponents much. He has such a plastic fight. So I think it would be a bit difficult to move up to welterweight. At lightweight he is fine.
Islam Makhachev with UFC belt
Photo: Fake Images
— Islam’s manager and trainer are now talking about middleweight. – Well, average weight is definitely unlikely. There are such gorillas there. Islam is unlikely to be able to do anything there with punches, well, it will still be possible to fight one round, but then it will be difficult.
— Islam’s main competitor now is Tsarukyan. You fought Arman, as far as I know. What chances would you give him for the belt? — Arman is a very competent fighter. We had fights with him, there was no such sparring. He is very smart, he prepares well and he has every chance to win the belt. He knows how to correctly structure the training process and correctly analyze fights. This will be a very interesting fight and he has a good chance to win the belt.
— If you bet, who will you bet on? “I’m probably going for Arman, but I don’t really know.” Still, Islam is the more likely favorite, but I might even back Arman.
— You once said about the Khabib-Conor fight that you weren’t expecting anything as much as this fight. Are there any fighters you’re following so closely right now or fights that you’re excited about? – There is no such thing now. Once upon a time there were some fights, but now there are none. Maybe they will be announced, but now I am more eager to fight, I am not thinking about anything too much.
— How do you react to the news about Khabib and taxes? Now all the news about Khabib is related to this. – Well, how to react. Anything can happen, it will be solved. Now is the time when everything is quite serious and you have to be careful.
— There were a lot of critical statements surrounding the fight between Volkov and Pavlovich. Did you react normally to the fact that they were brought together? – Of course, that’s fine. There’s nothing wrong with that. They were already fighting harder on the way to the title. I think Volkov got into Pavlovich’s head normally and beat him competently. Alexander turned off his knockout power.
— Should Pavlovich apologize to Volkov for what happened after the fight? – No, why should you apologize? No girls. This is manly, he fought here, pushed there, there’s nothing wrong with that. Even if he hit me, it wouldn’t be a big deal. As they say, men can handle it.
What Pavlovich and Volkov did not share:
Complaints of children against adults. Did Volkov mentally break Pavlovich?
— You mentioned betting. Can you say which fighter gave you the biggest win? – No, I never bet that much. I don’t win anything big. I bet 100, 200, 300 rubles on express bets. I can collect 2-3 thousand.
– If I bet on your fight with Cruz, what bet should I make? – You can choose to have the fight last no more than two rounds.
— Will there be a call-up for anyone after the fight with Cruz? “The main thing is to win and then you’ll find out everything. I want to come back and I’ll talk after the fight.”
