Great interview with a lost champion

[NHB Spice]

Did you think Oleg was a shy and humble little guy? He is confident like few. The interview is old but what the hell... you haven't read it.





Oleg has a part in the new movie co-starring De Niro and Kelsey Grammer entitled "15 Minutes."



Oleg could hurt both of them. Badly. At the same time.



Shoot Interview: Oleg Taktarov

The Russian Bear speaks out on the UFC, working with Robert De Niro, and returning to the ring!

July 22, 2000

For some fighters, it’s about the money on the table, or the glory of a worldwide television audience. For Russian Sambo expert Oleg Taktarov, it’s about testing his limits. The veteran fighter made his UFC debut in 1995, and quickly impressed fans with his grappling expertise. In the finals of UFC 6, Oleg went to war with Tank Abbott, and their 30-minute battle of skill and attrition is considered by many to be one of the greatest fights ever.
These days, Oleg intends to focus on why he originally came to the United States: to act. Early next year, he shares the screen with Robert De Niro in 15 Minutes, portraying an aspiring filmmaker who goes to extremes to achieve fame. Oleg chatted with IGN's resident Shoot-Fighting guru Jake Rossen about his new career and his plans to eventually return to the real-life drama of a fight.


IGN: How did you get involved with martial arts?

Oleg: Very typical story. I didn’t look like a tough kid on the street. I was too nice to everyone, and kids are violent by nature. I had a hard time. At a certain age I just stood up for my friends–not for myself, for my friends–and basically knocked two guys out. It was the first time I realized what I could do. My father brought me to the stadium where people were practicing Judo. He wanted me to go into boxing or ice hockey or weight lifting, anything but Judo. It was too fancy.

IGN: When did you start to compete?

Oleg: I think I was 12. I believe it was Judo. I think I got 3rd place. I was crying that I didn’t get to the finals.

IGN: And you continued to compete as a teenager?

Oleg: Yeah, I think I competed every month. I don’t think I had many 3rd places. Mostly I was 1st or 2nd.

IGN: When did the UFC enter the picture?

Oleg: I retired in Russia when I was 22. I started fighting for fun in full-contact jiu-jitsu. I became a 4-time European/Asian Champion. I finally went to fight my first no-rules competitions in Riga, Latvia. I also won over there. I didn’t pay them (UFC) too much attention. I was just laughing with my friends: the people were not skilled enough, we thought. And we were right.

When I came to the United States, I basically came to do movies. I wanted to do martial arts, too. I figured it would be harder than I expected, that I would need some big shot agent. They would laugh; “I never had a person in my office who doesn’t have a green card, but can speak English.” Normally, everybody speaks English. It was a long way to go. I looked at the things I could do here for awhile, and I found the Gracie Academy. I came there to help. They introduced me to someone in the movie business. I ended up meeting one of the promoters from UFC. So that’s how I started.

IGN: You came in at UFC 5, and lost a semi-finals match to Dan Severn.

Oleg: He didn’t beat me, but the fight was stopped.

IGN: But then you re-entered immediately in UFC 6, winning the tournament. Watching the tape, you seemed really emotional after beating Abbott.

Oleg: Just focusing... it’s a very Russian style. Less emotional than others. Even if sometimes you have emotions, you’re trying to kill it. It’s just one of those specific Russian things. People accept emotions as a weakness. In UFC 6, I was myself.

IGN: After that event, you fought for a few more years. In 1997’s Pride 1, you fought Gary Goodridge, and then nearly dropped out of sight in the three years since. What has been going on?

Oleg: I had a few fights. I had two fights in Kazakhstan. I had some small fights just to keep up. (Ed. Note: Oleg’s last fight was in May 2000 in Texas, where he beat Aaron Saldivar by armbar in 37 seconds.)

IGN: Was it then that you began to focus on acting?

Oleg: I started focusing on acting right after I finished with the UFC. With those guys, training is a primary thing, and I did acting as a primary thing. Basically, I was just using my reserve, what I had left over, from training my first year.

So far, one person understands how to become number one. It doesn’t matter where, just number one. Bas Rutten (Former UFC Champ) said once, “I can always come back, because none of those guys knows how to train.” I didn’t say anything. I was surprised. One guy knows. That’s true.

IGN: How did your role in 15 Minutes come about? Did you audition for it?

Oleg: Yeah, I auditioned, and I hadn’t gone on any auditions two years before that. I just did the theater work. I looked at the script, and I understood my character immediately, and created something in him. I went in for my first audition, and the director didn’t want to have any callbacks. He stopped casting people. He said, “That’s it, that’s him.”

IGN: So when filming began, did you find that a lot of people on the set recognized you?

Oleg: Basically everyone, including my director. Even Bob De Niro saw my tapes, before the movie and after. But he’s not violent. He doesn’t like it.

IGN: So who do you portray in the movie?

Oleg: The man with the childhood dreams. With a passion for filmmaking. He gets his first chance, and maybe his last chance, in life. He’s making his movie. How, and what situation, and what kind of movie, is a different story, but he’s making his movies.

IGN: How was it working with De Niro?

Oleg: Much easier to work with than Lorenzo Lamas, Don Wilson, any of those B-movie stars. Much, much easier. Everything is much easier. People understand you.

IGN: And what movie are you doing next?

Oleg: It’s a remake of Rollerball, with Jean Reno, LL Cool J and Chris Klein. I’m a good guy. I’m the 4th or 5th character. The new script has nothing to do with the old movie except the game. I’m actually a member of the team. It’s not the American team this time; it’s the foreign team. Everything happens in a foreign country.

IGN: So playing a good guy must be a change?

Oleg: No, I play a good guy in 15 Minutes. It’s supposed to be a villain, but when you see the movie, only stupid people are gonna say, “This guy’s a villain.”

IGN: Do you have plans to fight again?

Oleg: I was going to do a 3-fight deal in Pride. I was going to do it this fall, but I got this part, and it’s been delayed. I want to fight a warm-up with some Japanese guy. I want to see the most violent one. If I’m gonna fight, I gotta have feelings for it. It’s just for myself. I wanna watch tapes and find the most violent guy. Second, if I have two months to prepare...I will probably just destroy Goodridge. He is at a lower level. I had a horrible manager before, and I had two fights, which I lost. Both of them were ten days after my previous fight. All of them were on the other side of the planet. It was a mistake, and I don’t know why I agreed at the time. Same thing with Renzo Gracie. Here’s a guy that would be hard to beat on the ground, since that’s what he’s done all his life. But if you’ve already been destroyed by sickness, being tired, getting no rest, one fight after the other...you’ve gotta have a hunger for fighting.

IGN: Can these fights happen after the movie shoot?

Oleg: Maybe. I will see how schedule will go. It doesn’t normally happen that you get the part you would like. I don’t think anything will happen until 15 Minutes comes out.

Foreign guys are mostly villains. For every 100 chances you get, one chance is good. Normally, it’s just something idiotic. That’s why I wasn’t working for six months before.

IGN: Would you consider returning to the UFC if they could match Pride’s offer?

Oleg: Between worldwide viewers and Blockbuster, they make enough money to keep themselves afloat: They’ve been making a profit from video. It’s a nice, solid profit. They’ll lose money at every single show, for production. But then you sell it to Blockbuster, and you get your money. He’s doing okay with this. He’s searching for new opportunities. Like everybody else, he wants to try things.


IGN: Do you keep up with the shootfighting events?

Oleg: Yeah, I watched highlights of the last Pride. I think it’s one of the best events. There’s a drama in it. Logic, too. It’s probably the most logical, most predictable and fair tournament I have ever seen.

Mark Kerr, for example. He’s a strong guy, but all he talks about is his nutrition stuff. Sugar’s low, blood pressure’s low. Igor Vovchanchin never heard things like this in Russia. When we train, there’s only one thing: willpower. You have it or you don’t. It’s all about your willpower.

Sakuraba (Pride star) doesn’t take steroids. But he has a lot of guts. So we’ve got the results: He’s the number one Middleweight fighter in the world. Plus, he’s very exciting. He has a chance to fool around because he’s just in great shape.

IGN: Who else do you think is a great fighter? Do you like Frank Shamrock?

Oleg: Frank is a very technical guy. He’s a friend of mine, and he’s one of the best right now.

IGN: Who do you think would win in a fight, Frank or Sakuraba?

Oleg: This fight will never happen. I know Frank too well.

I’m a professional at this. There is nothing surprising for me. No exception since I started fighting. Every single fight was predictable. Every single fighter’s history: predictable.

I have a piece of paper – actually, I think my friend Andreh has it. Three or four years ago I wrote down, “Okay, Vitor Belfort. He will win two fights. He will hardly win one more. He will lose his fourth fight badly.” I also wrote that he doesn’t have guts, he doesn’t have the willpower because he’s a young guy. He’s never been in trouble. He didn’t grow as a man back in Brazil. He’ll be afraid to fight anybody good. He will talk sh*t, he will use his Hollywood way to try and get publicity for himself.

So then everyone was like, “Oleg, are you some kind of magician or something?” I said about Mark Coleman (Pride Champ), “Coleman will lose a few fights because of his knee problem. When he gets fresh after awhile, okay. He knows how to train. He’s been in a champ in wrestling, there’s no difference there than in any sport. He’ll become a champion in something really, really big, especially if he gets a chance to fight in a tournament, which is different than a single fight.” Not a lot of people can fight in a tournament. So he became a champion.

And Royce Gracie, who I admire so much...I will do my best to keep his name from the dirt talkers. I said, “He’s not hungry. He’s got to be hungry.” Right now for example, he will just think about the loss. He’ll be hungry for success, he’ll be hungrier for something he had, and he’ll get a couple good fights in the future. He’s a family guy. He likes kids, he likes to teach kids. He’s different. He got into this game because of his brother. Normally, he would not be there. He’s not that kind of person.

He will win a few fights in the future. He’s getting a little more hungry now. That’s a good thing for a fighter.

IGN: What do you think about Ken Shamrock competing again?

Oleg: He tried pro wrestling. It’s different. You gotta be an actor. Like on a stage, not in a movie, which is different. It’s overacting compared to movies, but it’s like theater. You gotta give a good performance. No promotion can help you. You gotta be exciting. Mankind is a great guy. He’s got this personality. He’s been working in this business for a long time. He knows which way to go. People follow him. The Rock has been in that business since he was born, basically. He knows it inside and out.

For Ken, it was surprising. It’s not just about having muscles or an angry face. You gotta make people trust you. He wants success. He wants to show everybody that he’s Ken Shamrock. I’m sure every day people will stop him on the street and say, “Hey, Ken, I love you as a fighter. Why do you do this bullshit?” He’s tired of this, of course. So he went to Pride. It’s a lot of money, too.

IGN: Did you ever think about getting into wrestling?

IGN: No. I got an offer where I could probably make about 2 million dollars a year. I turned it down. I respect them. You gotta have a lot of talent, a lot of charisma. I watch it on TV. I was making a fortune compared to any fighter right now when I was Russia, but I left Russia. It wasn’t for lack of money. I know I’m not going to be happy with money. It’s not my goal.

I once had this offer on my table where I could get X amount of money no matter what I do, even if I’m sick. It was window to make about 2 million dollars from other things. How should you feel about this when you’re starving? But I turned it down. I never had any doubt. Even if it was 10 billion dollars. Who cares?

Oleg’s amazing performance at UFC 6 can be found at local video stores everywhere. 15 Minutes is scheduled for release on February 2, 2001.

[Joe Manco]

This is a great interview. I can see why Andreh has so much respect for Oleg - he's a very grounded guy.

I especially liked the following quotes:

He said,
"Mark Kerr, for example. He’s a strong guy, but all he talks about is his nutrition stuff. Sugar’s low, blood pressure’s low. Igor Vovchanchin never heard things like this in Russia. When we train, there’s only one thing: willpower. You have it or you don’t. It’s all about your willpower."

Man, I recall some guy here on the forum posting about this as the #1 trait a fighter needs

I like how he went on to say,
"Sakuraba (Pride star) doesn’t take steroids. But he has a lot of guts. So we’ve got the results: He’s the number one Middleweight fighter in the world. Plus, he’s very exciting. He has a chance to fool around because he’s just in great shape."

What I also find interesting, as an adendum to this is when he said,
"Every single fighter’s history: predictable.

I have a piece of paper – actually, I think my friend Andreh has it. Three or four years ago I wrote down, “Okay, Vitor Belfort. He will win two fights. He will hardly win one more. He will lose his fourth fight badly.” I also wrote that he doesn’t have guts, he doesn’t have the willpower because he’s a young guy. He’s never been in trouble. He didn’t grow as a man back in Brazil. He’ll be afraid to fight anybody good. He will talk sh*t, he will use his Hollywood way to try and get publicity for himself."

Very, very interesting. Hey Andreh (if you're reading this) did he really write that at one point? Because, Oleg is exactly right. It is WILLPOWER (gameness) that is #1 to success. You gotta have very, very serious *want-to* (and in the trenches, not just upon quiet meditation) before you will become a true champion.

Thanks for posting this.

Yours truly,

Joe

[Ronin]

I noticed it, and E-mailed Oleg about it. He was very gracious to respond. He said that he is talking with Pride about a 3-fight deal: tune-up, Big Daddy, Renzo. He would like to even the score with those two guys, particularly Goodridge who he feels he could have beaten if he had had more rest prior to the fight. It didn't sound like an excuse when he said it - he said that he had just flown in from fighting in Brazil and didn't know which end was up. Bad judgment.

This was a few months ago, so I don't know what's going on with him now.

[Ronin]

Sorry, I didn't mean to repeat stuff from the interview.

My point was: Oleg is very cool and up-front with his fans, like me.

[keithws]

the guy was the worst UFC champion. His fighting style bordered on letting people beat the sh*t out of him until they fatiqued then using technique.

As his NHB career progressed, his credibility as a world class fighter decreased. I thought Oleg actually had a chance of becoming punchy if he continued fighting.

What's so funny about the interview, is Oleg actually thinks he could come back and become a top notch fighter. This coming from who was completely battered by Goodridge, Severn I, and Renzo. Talking about denial! "Severn didn't beat me". They should have let the fight continue until his eye fell out from all those knees lol.

And pit, I agree that "heart" is extremely important, but other attributes such as skill and talent are just as important. Hell, Oleg had tremendous heart but got his ass kicked on a consistent basis.

later dudes.....

[EJ]

Oleg is a badass.... besides that Shamrock fight he is great to watch.

I guess I will have to check out 15 MINUTES when it comes out.

[NHB Spice]

Thanks Joe. I too am very impressed with Oleg's personality and confidence. And what he says about willpower makes me think about something Royce said once. "A fight isn't won in the ring, but at the training facility. The fight is just a formality to recieve the prize". Sloppy translation, but you get the idea. You need more heart to train every day than fight once a year. Tank Abbot would agree, I guess...

[NHB Spice]

Ronin, what's Oleg's e-mail?