Nostalgia vs. Reality: Igor Vovchanchyn

[Roop Holstry]

A big part of his decline was hand injuries from bare knuckle and fighting so frequently in tournaments. His body was probably a mess from all that mileage.

True legend though. He’s a big reason why I became a fan of the sport

 

[Lee_]

He would do fine in modern MMA. Especially at HW, which sucks.

He fought a lot of tough fights and fought the best in the world in Pride. Cain was totally shot at 32, there are a lot of examples of early decline.

Fighting all of those tournaments and multiple fights in one night surely took a large toll.

 

[mkt]

Good article. When Igor was doing well in the late 90s, I really wanted to see him fight Bas Rutten, or possibly Mo Smith or Marco Ruas. Early on, Igor fought brawlers (mostly unknown), a few freak shows (Varelens and Fred Floyd) and a couple of grapplers. He didn't fight technical strikers until later, when he was wearing down physically. I'd love to see him prime vs. prime against a rangier striker with good leg kicks and overall striking skills.

 

[krelianx]

Prime Igor was one of the heaviest punchers in the history of the sport. Look at his knockout record. It's abnormal.

 

[moreorless87]

I agree that the article makes him sound like a brawler, lacking skill. The more I think about this article, the less i like it.

Pretty much all of these articles have an undercurrent of UFC brand cock sucking were older fighters are praised but then its claimed "the sport out evolved them".

In Igor's case its somewhat true I spose but still I think they have to downgrade him a bit more because its not just selling Mirko or Hoost as better, its selling modern UFC HW's.

 

[Killer Kadoogan]

eh, with all due respect, Igor was a terror, a mother fucking problem, and the bell of the village was rang when Igor went on a rampage. For whom the bell tolls? Time Marches On. Igor was a beast, a HW elite for his time. Sadly, he got Cro Cop'd amongst some other losses. I thought his MW move was genius, he looked cut, still fast, possessed speed and power and I thought he beat Nakamura. One of my greatest what if matches was him vs. Wanderlei at that time. Sadly, we never got that. The village bell still rings in this old heart.

 

[ExxA]

My signatur is relevant again.

 

[swimba]

He did ok in Cage Warriors

 

[Smegma-Head]

Igor bless

 

[WolverReem]

My first exposure to him was from The Smashing Machine, so I disliked him. The movie portrayed him as a cheating Russian and I was a big Kerr fan.

What?? You were way fuckin off.

 

[Oldman1]

Igor Vovchanchyn is not only an MMA pioneer and legend, but a true hero of the sport. If you met Vovchanchyn in his prime, you would never guess he was a fighter. A calm, polite and genial man, on top of being short and unassuming, one might take him for the restaurateur he would become after his fight career. For as long as he competed in early MMA, or no-holds-barred (NHB) as it was known for much of his era, Vovchanchyn was a man of savage fury. Standing at just 5 feet, 8 inches tall and weighing 225 pounds at his heaviest, the Ukrainian mercilessly battered much larger men, including some who were nearly a foot taller and well over 100 pounds heavier. Frequently, it was Igor standing over the giant crushing him with blow after blow, while the big man lay in the fetal position, hoping the referee would save him from the abuse.


Vovchanchyn was one of the greatest, most iconic fighters of the 1990s, and his style heavily inspired Fedor Emelianenko, MMAs greatest heavyweight and fighter of the 2000s. Frankly, I don't know how it's possible to be a MMA fan and not like and appreciate Vovchanchyn.



For a while, Vovchanchyn was virtually unbeatable. After two submission losses shortly after his debut in late 1995, one due to blatant cheating by Mikhail Ilyukhin, Vovchanchyn would not lose again that decade, winning 36 fights and drawing one, amassing an amazing 41-2-1 record before he faced Mark Coleman in the finals of the Pride Fighting Championships 2000 Grand Prix. It's also worth recalling that Vovchanchyn was very much in his prime at that time, just 26 years old. Starting from the Coleman fight, however, Vovchanchyn ended his career on a decidedly more mixed record of 14-8. His last fight occurred soon after turning 32, losing a listless decision to Kazuhiro Nakamura, a solid opponent but hardly a legend. What was the main cause of his decline?

Read Full Article Here

https://www.sherdog.com/news/articles/Nostalgia-vs-Reality-Igor-Vovchanchyn-190074

You have zero idea when his prime was

 

[BigDeadFreak]

He's one of those fighters that looks like he's made from granite.

 

[PrepareForGlory]

It's pretty amazing Igor isn't even 50.

A little bit older than Yoel Romero but it feels like he fought a lifetime ago.

 

[don't ask]

Pretty much all of these articles have an undercurrent of UFC brand cock sucking were older fighters are praised but then its claimed "the sport out evolved them".

In Igor's case its somewhat true I spose but still I think they have to downgrade him a bit more because its not just selling Mirko or Hoost as better, its selling modern UFC HW's.

This is the sad truth. These articles really are about praising the UFC. Pretending the modern UFC HW division is more evolved than at any time in the past is laughable.

 

[moreorless87]

This is the sad truth. These articles really are about praising the UFC. Pretending the modern UFC HW division is more evolved than at any time in the past is laughable.

The truth is really Sherdog and most of the MMA media are just outsourced UFC PR after the days of Gross, honestly even in the mainstream media I think the UFC exploit the general publics ignorance to allow MMA correspondents to be bullshit PR men in a way you would not get away with in any other sport.

Barely any actual MMA journalism exists.

 

[Viper2]

Absolutely love Igor.

I do agree with most of the article
Granted, I think his speed Is what really separated him from the rest of the pack.
He also had underrated cardio (as seen in the Kerr fight.

In modern times he'd probably fight at 185 or perhaps even lower (pretty sure Khamzat is bigger than Igor ever was frame wise)

WTH are you even talking about? Prime Igor would have absolutely demolished Khamzat. Prime Igor was MUCH stronger and bigger (bodyweight) than Khamzat and very fast and very skilled. Khamzat would stand zero chance against Prime Igor.

 

[Nathan LaMontagne]

WTH are you even talking about? Prime Igor would have absolutely demolished Khamzat. Prime Igor was MUCH stronger and bigger (bodyweight) than Khamzat and very fast and very skilled. Khamzat would stand zero chance against Prime Igor.

Maybe you should reread what I wrote.

When did I ever say I thought Khamzat would win? Or anything even close?

I'm comparing size

Im saying that Khamzat has a naturally bigger frame than Igor, Igor was probably 5'8

Khamzat has fought at 170... Khamzat is probably bigger than Igor.

When Igor fought at 205 he was still chubby.
If he were to diet down, Igor would be an undersized MW.

Which just means to me that his accomplishments are even more impressive.

Again, reread what I wrote.

 

[Viper2]

Maybe you should reread what I wrote.

When did I ever say I thought Khamzat would win? Or anything even close?

I'm comparing size

Im saying that Khamzat has a naturally bigger frame than Igor, Igor was probably 5'8

Khamzat has fought at 170... Khamzat is probably bigger than Igor.

When Igor fought at 205 he was still chubby.
If he were to diet down, Igor would be an undersized MW.

Which just means to me that his accomplishments are even more impressive.

Again, reread what I wrote.

There is a lot more to size than height. Igor obviously has a wider frame, thicker bones, and much more ability to put on muscle than Khamzat has. Igor is a bigger person by all objective measures. Khamzat is simply taller and lankier. Size in the animal kingdom (and humans are animals too) is determined by weight and nothing else.