On September 24, within the walls of the Moscow sports complex “CSKA Arena” a duel will be held according to the rules of boxing with the participation of two odious representatives of Russian martial arts. Vyacheslav Datsik will face off against Alexander Emelianenko, the fight should put an end to their protracted dispute.

Both fighters have been noted for scandalous antics both in the octagon and outside it more than once – one can list their dubious merits for a long time. Each of the rivals has been in prison, Datsik’s assets also include treatment in a psychiatric clinic and an escape from its walls. Among other things, in the biography of Red Tarzan there is a strange fight with a slender music lover, where a professional MMA fighter managed to lose by a judicial decision.

Vyacheslav did not admit defeat and threw the referee over the ropes.

“Meloman” Datsik

In November 2002, within the framework of the Fight Club project, representatives of Russian rock and Russian pop music sorted out relations in the ring. The groups “Leningrad” and “Otpetye swindlers” masterfully heated up the confrontation, using elements from thrash talk and rap battles, although both of these cultures did not really exist in the country at that time.

Sergey Shnurov / Photo: © RIA Novosti / Maxim Blinov

Each musical group exhibited three participants. “Scammers” were going to make do with the forces of vocalists, the rockers threw a drummer, bass player and saxophonist into battle. The leader of the group, Sergei Shnurov, referred to a broken arm, and therefore inspired colleagues from outside the ring. Fans could help the creative boxers in the overall standings – two fights were reserved for volunteers from the audience.

By the next battle, at which music fans were supposed to perform, Leningrad was confidently leading with a score of 3: 1. Fans of pop music could still improve the situation, especially since a very slender young man volunteered to defend the honor of the rockers. A surprisingly stately “music lover” came out against him, in which few people could then recognize the young Vyacheslav Datsik.

“I can’t beat”

Red-haired Tarzan already had several official fights in mixed martial arts, managed to knock out the future UFC star Andrei Orlovsky. But in the hall of the St. Petersburg club for most of the guests it was just a red-haired guy from the hall. A girl with a microphone approached the strong defender of pop music and asked if he was ready to “kick his ass” and “demolish the skull” of the enemy. The redhead responded with a growl and then ripped his T-shirt in the ring.

The organizers did not know that they were playing with fire, letting Datsik into the same ring with an amateur. But Vyacheslav was frankly having fun, demonstratively putting his head up and easily dodging the fussy attacks of the enemy. Something, of course, reached Vyacheslav’s body, but the blows for him were like pellets for an elephant. At the end of the round, he even knocked the opponent down, but everything went without serious consequences.

The girl with the microphone again tried to talk to the red-haired boxer, but he said that he was tired and went to sit in the corner. However, it was not easy to get rid of the journalist, she nevertheless pulled out a promise from Datsik to break the score that was unsuccessful for the “Inveterate Scammers”.

“I don’t know how to beat, I put on gloves for the first time,” the interlocutor justified himself.

The play continued in the second round. To the cries from the audience “Kill him!”, addressed to no one knows who, Datsik again avoided the battle, although once he still waved through the air. The opponent got a taste of impunity and even dropped Vyacheslav with a throw, which clearly did not fit into the rules of boxing.

Vyacheslav Datsik / Photo: © Vadim Tikhomirov / Match TV

The red-haired boxer stood up, and it might have seemed that a blow of retribution was about to follow. However, the same comedy continued – the defender of popular music fooled around and pretended to overcome the consequences of a knockdown. The referee did not understand the humor or may have received a signal from the organizers that it is time to stop the dangerous undertaking. The fight was stopped, Datsik was awarded a defeat. Red Tarzan failed to save Russian pop music.

“Things didn’t go according to plan”

The most interesting thing happened after the official end of the fight. Red-haired Tarzan approached the judge and asked about something. He probably didn’t like the answer – he immediately hit the referee, demonstrating that he hadn’t put on gloves for the first time. A recent rival of Datsik, who probably believed in his invincibility, came forward to defend the arbitrator – fortunately, the victim threw him out of harm’s way in time.

Passions did not subside on this – a crazy continuation followed from the side of the referee. Having missed the blow, he did not fall apart, but kindly registered Datsik in the face in response. Red-haired Tarzan picked up the enemy and dragged him through the entire ring to the ropes, throwing a new opponent into the auditorium.

The security service immediately appeared in the ring, the hall was also restless. All this action frankly looked like a Russified version of wrestling fashionable overseas, although the excited voices of the guards who got into the frame made it possible to some extent doubt that some kind of scenario was being played out here.

The unlucky boxer again fell into the hands of a girl with a microphone, but could not answer why he did not beat before the end of the fight. When asked why the referee hit, the tinny fighter retorted with an absurd one:

Why did he stop the fight ahead of time?

When the girl tried to reason with the interlocutor, that he was like a real fighter. should have foreseen all this, Datsik replied:

“They didn’t tell me anything about the rules.

This production was or not, probably, one could find out from a direct participant in the events years later. Datsik, indeed, in one of the interviews, recalled visiting the battle of musicians, although he could not determine the exact year. Judging by the words of the fighter, he was indifferent to music and entering the ring was only a means, not an end.

We wanted to ruin the show. There, the audience arranged fights, and then, when they saw what was happening in the hall, they began to beacon to the judge, they say, slow down, then kipish. The gang is up to something. What were we up to then? Initially, there was a project – ###### (slap) all the casinos and take out the cashier. For this, a mass kipish was needed. And it ended…###### (slapped) the director of the Leningrad group and a couple of clowns. All the casinos fled, and the situation did not go according to plan,” Datsik said in an interview with Sport24.