Alexander Yakovlev: “Now, with the UFC contract in my hands, I know – dreams do come true”.

One of the best Russian martial artists, Alexander Yakovlev, who has taken part in a number of M-1 Challenges and is a contender to the title in welterweight, in his exclusive interview with mixfight.ru talked about his UFC contract and the long way that has taken him to this outcome.

"I have signed a contract with UFC and that's something I have to thank my managers Murat Keshtov and Doug Wilson for! I signed the contract on Jan.6 this new year of 2014".

"I'll train at K-Dojo which is the gym of my manager and coach all in one, Murat Keshtov. On top of that, I think we'll be going to other gyms for sparring".

"I regularly study and refine myself, forging ahead, and I believe that the US will give me new knowledge which will help to shape up my training process".

"I have dreamed of my transfer to UFC. I came to know MMA and the first UFC championships way back in 1997/98, and that's when I began to entertain the idea of going out to their octagon.
When my manager called me to say that we got the contract, I was too thrilled for words. At that moment I remembered how I, at 13 or 14, watched UFC on first video cassettes and followed the fights, and imagined myself in the octagon. But everybody around me harped on the same string: a simple provincial guy would never make it there.
And now, with the UFC contract in my hands, I know: dreams do come true".

"All that journey – the 10 years of fanatic practices in wrestling, then 10 years of daily all-out MMA training, altogether 20 years of my life with blood, sweat and pain were not for nothing!"

"I am grateful to Vadim Finkelstein and Ruslan Suleymanov for the experience I gained at M-1 Challenge and the LEGEND; they have contributed a lot to my evolution as a fighter and to getting this contract".

"It is popularly believed that money and fame motivate people. This belief is wrong, I'm sure. A man will never succeed or progress in whatever he is doing if his motivation is greed. A recipe for success is first and foremost being keen on what you are doing! Loving what I am doing, my family, my country – this is my motivation".

"I think that this sport resembles reality most closely. MMA has no tolerance for blunders or weaknesses. That's the MMA advantage: no fakes there. If you are physically or morally weak, there's no way you can hide it...
Train your body and mind! Self-improvement is a task for each day!"