As a child, Vitaly Minakov tried many sports and ultimately chose sambo wrestling. Intense training and unswerving self-improvement helped the "Bryansk hero" achieve impressive success in mixed martial arts. Few of Minakov's rivals manage to maintain the rhythm of the struggle that Vitaly imposes on them.
From the biography of Vitaly Viktorovich Minakov
The future mixed martial arts fighter and sambist was born on February 6, 1985. Bryansk became his homeland. Vitaly has been fond of sports since childhood. This was also facilitated by the situation in the family: the boy's father played in the city's national volleyball team and was a champion of a healthy lifestyle. Vitaly's younger brother, who took silver at the Sambo World Cup, also chose a sports career for himself.
The decision to take care of himself seriously came to Vitaly in the third grade. He decided to find a suitable sport for himself. During his studies at school, Minakov managed to work out in most of the sports sections that existed in the city.
Vitaly was successfully engaged in freestyle wrestling, after which his father took him to the sambo section. At first, the trainer reacted with distrust to the new pet - he was too weak in appearance. Vitaly had to work hard before he was admitted to the competition. While practicing sambo, he realized that he had finally found what he was looking for. Gradually, the results came: at the age of 13, Minakov won an international tournament, where wrestlers from Russia, Ukraine and Belarus participated. And ten years later, Vitaly won the Sambo World Championship for the first time.
Sport in the life of Vitaly Minakov
Vitaly received his education at the State University of Physical Culture, Sports and Health: in 2011 he graduated from the Bryansk branch of this university. A year earlier, the athlete made his professional debut in mixed martial arts. The Bryansk athlete finished the fight in the fifth minute of the fight, defeating Ruslan Kabdullin.
Soon Minakov had nine well-deserved victories in his assets. Having signed a contract with the American organization Bellator, Vitaly won important victories three times and received the title of heavyweight champion. Then there was a break in the athlete's career.
Minakov returned to the ring in 2015 and knocked out Pole Adam Matsievsky in the very first fight. In the same year, Vitaly scored two more important victories - over Jeronimo dos Santos (Brazil) and Jorge Copeland (USA).
Foreign rivals of Minakov more than once openly admitted in interviews that they consider the “Bryansk knight” one of the strongest rivals. Often, from the first minutes of the fight, he seizes the initiative and brings meetings to a technical knockout.
It is known that the fees of a Russian athlete are quite consistent with the champion's level of skill. For one fight, Minakov receives up to 100 thousand US dollars.
Vitaly has a dream - he wants to try on an Olympic medal. At the end of 2018, sambo wrestling was temporarily recognized as an Olympic sport. When this type of wrestling is officially included in the program of the Olympic Games, Minakov may be able to fulfill his dream.
Personal life of Vitaly Minakov
Minakov met his future wife in a sports camp: Natasha came there to visit friends. After they met, the young people did not see each other for about a year. And then they met again - quite by accident. And both decided that it was fate.
Now Vitaly Minakov is a happy father. Together with his wife, he is raising three children: two sons and a daughter.
