Dyakonov names his favorite in Barkhatov vs. Mikhailidi, makes prediction for Andryushko vs. Bodao

Hello everyone, friends! You are watching a video discussion on the mma-tv.com portal. Hello everyone, my name is Julia Mirey, and today we are talking with our former champion, Sergey Dyakonov. As you all know, on May thirtieth, we will kick off another tournament, MMA Series ninety four. In the main event of the evening, the current champion Dmitry Andryushko will be fighting, with his opponent being the Brazilian veteran Francimar Barroso. He is a true MMA legend. And now we will talk with Sergey about his predictions and analyze both of these fighters. Sergey, let's start with Francimar. You have never fought him, but you have watched his fights. How do you rate him? A very experienced opponent.

He is widely recognized as a very good, highly skilled, and exceptionally intelligent fighter. However, it remains completely unknown what kind of physical shape he is actually in right now, so everything will likely depend on that one factor. We should judge him by looking at the specific form he showed back in twenty twenty four, which was the time when he had his last fight against Vezhenko. Yes, indeed. There are, in principle, certain significant questions regarding his physical conditioning. This is because, starting at some point around the middle of the second round, he began to back up and retreat a bit. Furthermore, it really seemed like he might have gotten a little tired as the fight went on. Two years have passed. I don't know, I don't know.

To be perfectly honest, this particular athlete really is of a significantly advanced age. He's 46 years old now. Vezhenko was a formidable and serious powerhouse, who was also steadily making his way towards the prestigious championship belt at one point in his career. And Fransimar, in principle, managed to stop him beautifully in the last seconds of the second round. And yet, you think there are still some questions, right?

Yes, because he dominated the entire first round. He was active and didn't let Vezhenko do anything. But in the second round, he seemed to slow down quite a bit and gave Vezhenko a significant opportunity to work. And Vezhenko was actually succeeding until Fransimar finally took him down. I am not entirely sure if he had planned to wrestle in the second round or not. That often happens when someone gets tired—they go for wrestling. Simultaneously, during the fight, when he begins absorbing heavy punches, he immediately moves in to clinch and wrestle. Which is basically exactly the strategy he executed.

Now it's been 2 years since he last competed with us in 2024. But I should mention that before that, he also had quite a long break. He hadn't fought since 2019. Then, 5 years later, in 2024, he knocked out Vezhenko. So such breaks may not be a problem for this fighter. Yes, his experience is vast.

That is exactly why, when you look at it from a purely mental standpoint, I truly believe he is going to be more or less fine. The only real lingering question here is his actual physical condition and how he will choose to approach this specific fight, especially when you consider the fact that it is scheduled for a full five rounds. And Andryushko has already fought five-round bouts before.

Alright, well then, why don't we move on and talk in more detail specifically about Andryushko now. He's 34 years old. And his last fight was actually against you. What can you tell us about him? In your opinion, what advantages do you think he has over Francimar? Well, to start with, it is clear that he is quite a bit younger and more energetic.

If he prepares properly for the upcoming fight, and as far as I know, he is a very responsible person, then he will have a significant advantage in terms of his overall physical stamina. So in this fight, it will all come down to which of these fighters has the bigger gas tank. I do not think either of them has a particularly strong or powerful knockout punch. So knocking each other out is unlikely. Most likely, one will get tired, and the other will win because of that.

And who do you think that will be?

That is the big question everyone is asking right now. You know, it really all depends on one thing. If Barroza decides he is not going to let Andryushko work at all... If Barroza does exactly what he did with Vezhenko back in the first round—where he just completely shut him down and didn't let him do anything at all. He kept peppering him with single shots, but didn't let him rest or get to work. Then, there is a possibility that it will be Barroza. If, again, he truly has the necessary stamina and energy for all of that. Because to be the aggressor in this fight, you really need to have a very good gas tank. A decent one. If he doesn't let him do that... Then Andryushko will do the exact same thing to him that he already did to me. He will just constantly poke him and outpoint him with those awkward, unpredictable, and uncomfortable punches of his. Even if those punches do not carry a lot of power or heavy weight, they really start to add up throughout the rounds, and the final result will be clear and obvious for everyone to see.

Well then, let's speak in percentages. So who would you bet on?

It is a fifty-fifty split. I think it's going to be a technical knockout. I think, most likely, it will happen somewhere in the third or fourth round. And you know what else I am thinking? Barroso is good at wrestling. If he forces a high-intensity wrestling game on Dmitry, then naturally, his own stamina will inevitably begin to deplete. And then, when you start thinking about having to go through five full rounds, it's a huge concern. I don't think it's worth expecting this to be a five-round fight. But again, the question is how long Fransimar can last.

Now, let's discuss the co-main event. This will also be a fascinating matchup. Two distinguished title holders, both reigning champions, will fight each other. Mikhailidi, who worked for a very long time to get his belt. Barkhatov, who fought just as incredibly aggressively to successfully secure and earn this title. What do you think, how will this play out?

I would have to give the edge to Barkhatov. In my personal opinion, well, if we look at them closely, he is definitely more versatile in his skills and physically much stronger overall. And, let's just say, he appears to be more restrained in his actions. So, I really think that while one of them is clearly more aggressive in his style, and that's Mikhailidi we are talking about, this other one, you know, is significantly more restrained, much calmer, and generally more composed in his approach. I actually think the main advantage will be on his... And besides, he is quite a big man. Barkhatov is truly massive. That is because I have met him, let us say, during his particular off-season period. What weight are they fighting at, 70 kilos, right?

Barkhatov joins Mikhailidi's weight class.

Yes, even though Barkhatov is moving up in weight class, he is an exceptionally large athlete. He's big even for seventy kilos. And I think that, after all, Barkhatov's position was much more precarious and challenging than Mikhaillidi's. Especially that fight he won against... Israel, Israel, I think, right? Yes, I'm pretty sure that's the one.

Fig?

Yes. Israel is a very good fighter. And his wrestling is at a remarkably high level. And his jiu-jitsu is quite impressive too, because I’ve personally grappled with him myself, so I know exactly what I’m talking about. But Barkhatov just steamrolled him. He toughed it out and then finished him off with some powerful elbows.

The fight was actually quite bloody and brutal. Probably one of the most brutal in recent times. But it's worth noting that Barkhatov also hadn't stepped into the octagon for a year. It’s fascinating to see the way that break affected him mentally and physically. Because Mikhalidi, after all, only recently, it seems, won his belt. It’s only been six months. A little less, actually.

A year is definitely a long layoff. Especially since he wasn’t simply lounging around his house all this time, indulging in sweet pastries and sipping hot tea. He was also training, working out. He took the guys to competitions. So he was always involved in the scene. He was always in the process.

Mikhalidi, he’s also a very serious wrestler. And, actually, most of his victories have come exactly that way. What do you think—he’s always imposing his grinding wrestling style, pinning his opponents down, and so on. What do you think, will Barkhatov be able to stand up to it?

Well, judging by his most recent fight, the one Mikhalidi had with Vasilenko, the wrestling didn’t really decide much in that matchup. If Vasilenko were actually a striker, well, the outcome might have been different— he would have put up a better fight. Barkhatov’s high-level wrestling is on a completely different level from his peers. And I truly believe it will be very hard for Mikhalidi to effectively use his own wrestling skills against him in this matchup. Because before this, the people he wrestled didn’t have the kind of wrestling that Barkhatov has. And Barkhatov has shown everyone that he really does have it. And usually, you know how it goes in these situations—when two wrestlers face off, most often they end up fighting it out on their feet. So, we’ll see. I really think it’ll be interesting no matter what. Even if one of these competitors manages to take the other down to the wrestling mat, they won’t be able to effectively hold each other down for any significant length of time. They won’t be able to blanket each other. One athlete will get up very quickly. Above all else, it will likely depend on who scores more successful takedowns. Merab Dvalishvili previously fought Nurmagomedov in the UFC. It was the same with them—they took each other down, but neither could keep the other down. They’d successfully execute a takedown, but the person would manage to scramble right back up. That’s exactly why they ended up engaging in a stand-up battle. It’s one thing to take someone down, but it’s a completely different challenge to actually keep them pinned there.

Yeah, it immediately brings to mind Chimaev’s last fight with Strickland, when everyone was amazed that Strickland kept getting back up, and Khamzat just couldn’t hold him down on the ground.

That’s why he couldn’t do any real damage to him on the ground. If he had landed strikes on him on the ground, it would have been even easier for Strickland to get up. Because with your hands, it’s clear—no one is holding you, they’re just hitting you. And it’s precisely under strikes that you need to get up. The wrestling match simply didn’t work out—one guy stands up, while the other guy just doesn’t seem to know what to do next.

So, what would be your prediction here in terms of the percentages, which round it ends in, and by what method will it be?

In my professional opinion as an observer, I think it is most likely that this match will go the full distance to a judges’ decision. And when the final scorecards are read, I believe Nikita Barkhatov will be the one to walk away with the win.

Listen, let’s talk a little more about you. How are you feeling overall? Are you feeling fully recovered now?

Yes, I feel good, yes, I’ve recovered now, everything is perfectly fine.

We are still expecting to see you back inside the octagon. So, what are your thoughts about all of that?

I am not really sure. We’ll see. I suppose that I just eventually stopped enjoying it. Well, you probably know that feeling quite well yourself; when you truly stop enjoying what you used to love deep down, then maybe it is just not really your favorite thing to do anymore as the years go by, at the end of the day.

Do you regret taking that last fight instead of staying a champion at your peak?

No, I don’t regret it. In fact, it’s quite the opposite. I think it’s good that it turned out this way. Why? Well, you still want to test your own personal limits somehow. You want to see exactly how you’ll act in that specific kind of difficult situation, and how you will eventually find a way to get yourself out of it—and I’m doing fine. Mentally, emotionally, and in every other possible way. And my health is perfectly fine now too. The only thing is, actually, my pupil is still a bit dilated.

Is this an injury from your last fight, and now it’s for life?

Yes, one pupil is perfectly normal, but the other one is quite a bit larger. As the doctor explained to me in detail, when I first got hit, the pupil dilated and simply stayed that way. And it doesn’t ever go back to normal. So it doesn’t react to light at all, but the eye still sees perfectly fine—both up close and at a distance. And there are absolutely no medical problems with it at all. It’s completely and perfectly fine, it’s just that if you personally don’t like the way it looks aesthetically, then you would actually need surgery to fix it. But if you get hit in the head once or twice, most likely it will just end up looking exactly the same way again. I will... For me, it doesn’t really cause any problems, and most likely, it’ll just stay this way.

Thank you for talking with me today. I see that, among other changes, your beard has grown even more.

Although many people often warn me that in the summer it will be unbearably and excessively hot for that, but for some strange reason, I still find myself wanting to make it even bigger.

Well, alright then. I guess we’ll see each other very, very soon, in just two weeks. We’ll measure your beard.

What will you use to measure it?

With what? With a beard-measurer.

Alright.

All right then, I will see you at the tournament. Goodbye.

See you. Bye.