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01/10/2009 Archived Entry: "M-1 Challenge Finals Sunday: Plus Four MMA fights on Sherdog.com"
M-1 Challenge Finals Sunday: Plus Four MMA fights on Sherdog.com
By Jack R. Dunn
The M-1 Challenge presents European MMA in a curious team vs. team format that has little in common with American promoters. The core essentials of the sport remain the same, however, and with four free fights being broadcast on sherdog.com, American fans will have a great chance to get a taste of European MMA.
The four free bouts will include Radimir Gabdullin (Russia) vs. Kim Hoon (South Korea), Toni Valtonen (Finland) vs. Lee Chang Seob (South Korea), Inoc Solves (Spain) vs. Whi Sung Bae (South Korea), and Ricardo Wondel (Holland) vs. Lee Sang Boo (South Korea). The free bouts are scheduled to commence at Sunday (January 11) 1 p.m. ET/10 a.m. PT. streaming live on Sherdog.com.
U.S. viewers will have to wait till an unspecified future date to watch the best of five M-1 2008 championship finals on HDnet. With the 2008 regular season of the M-1 Challenge at an end, Team Russian Red Devil and Team Holland will compete in the finals this coming Sunday (January 11). A team only needs three wins out of five to clinch the title. The finals, which had originally been scheduled for Dec. 26 in Seattle, Washington but were postponed due to inclement weather, will take place in Hilversum, Holland and feature a best-of-five format that will determine the M-1 Challenge championship team.
The best of five finals will include: at lightweight, Team Holland's Bogdan Christea vs. Mikhail Malutin of Team Russian Red Devil. Christea is coming back after recovering from near fatal injuries sustained in an auto accident. Despite receiving a prognosis from doctors that he'd never fight again, Christea went 2-1 during M-1 Challenge regular season fights.
"It is gonna be a challenge for me, but I like challenges," said Christea. "I respect (Malutin) very much, he has a lot of experience and a good training camp with Fedor and the others. I will do my best and hope I can make a good show of it. We are both pool winners, so may the best win."
At welterweight, Red Devil's Erik Oganov will fight Romano de los Reyes of Team Holland. Oganov, one of Red Devil's most active competitors might be best known to U.S. fans after going 2-0 for the BodogFIGHT promotion with wins over Derrick Noble and former UFC veteran Keith Wisniewski.
Despite finishing with a record below .500 during M-1 Challenge regular season fights, middleweight Jason Jones will represent Team Holland in the M-1 Challenge finals as its he takes on Red Devil's Dimitri Samoilov.
"Samoilov is a good fighter," Jones said, "but he stands in my way to the top and after my recent loss I have to settle the score. No need to say more."
At light heavyweight, World Sambo Champion Michael Zayats of Team Red Devil will take on Team Holland's Kamil Ogun.
"I saw the fights of Michael Zayats and he is a good fighter, because you're just a fighter if you become the World Champion in Sambo," said Ogun. "But if we enter the ring I don't think about that. I'm really ready for him and on the day itself we will see what happens. I never enter the ring with the feeling that I'm going to lose."
At heavyweight, Team Holland's Jessy Gibbs will clash with Alexey Oleinik of Red Devil. Oleinik will be replacing up and coming heavyweight prospect Kirill Sidelnikov, who has been tapped to fight Paul Buentello during Affliction and M-1's "Day of Reckoning" event on Jan. 24.
"I was supposed to fight Kirill Sidelnikov but now I have a new unknown opponent," said Gibbs. "Whoever it is, it won't be a problem but I'd loved to fight Kirill because he is becoming a big name in the MMA circuit and I'm sure that I'm better."
Oleinik fought in the U.S. earlier this year during YAMMA's heavyweight tournament in Atlantic City. facing UFC veteran Sherman Pendergarst during the tournament's first round, Oleinik submitted the Miletich Fighting Systems veteran with an Ezekiel choke.
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