Misha Cirkunov is a scary guy

[MusclesMarinara]

Doesn't have a very scary name though, does he?

Should go with 'Cupcake'

 

[Push up Brah]

I used to take his grappling classes and he was intimidating but once you spoke with him (or trained with him), you realize he is quite the humble and respectable fellow. I had grappled with him and while he mopped the floor with me, I never felt as if he was going to hurt me.

He also stated in a interview before he perferred to finish his opponents via submission so he can avoid hurting them - I think this mentality was a smart move to intimidate other opponents but the reality is I doubt he really does want to break the jaw of his opponent if he doesn't have to.

Nice. I used to take his jui-jitsu classes about 5 years ago. He's definitely a scary guy but like you said, once you talk to him or ask him something he was always really friendly and helpful.

He's in a tough division, I hope he does well for himself.

 

[SalvadorAllende]

His striking looked rudmentary to me but his grappling is pretty good. He is like a lesser version of Ilir Latifi IMO.

Also people needs to consider he fought a sloppy 201lbs guy. Most guys would look good against Nicholson.

 

[Ballswing]

im very happy about the performance not just the submission but i was able to break his jaw.

 

[scrubadiver]

Dat voice though, caught me off guard.

 

[original doom]

There was a few times in the fight when he threw some combos. I dont think he i rudimentary but seems willing to let the fight go longer..

The Kovavlev of MMA.

Not sure about the latifi comparison but we shall see after a few more fights.

 

[ArtemV]

He looked great and I hope he can continue to evolve.

 

[The_Renaissance]

Cirkunov is a great prospect and a real killer. Nicholson didn't know what hit him, that neck crank was fucking brutal. My mate's new girlfriend watched with us, her first time, she was terrified by te ending of this fight!

 

[Feniamin]

I think he's multi-lingual in Latvian, French, and English, which is impressive.

You can find some interviews with him on Youtube in which he speaks Russian. Sound like Russian is his first language.

 

[Perspective]

Misha is my instructor. He is a beast. Judo Black Belt, BJJ Black Belt and he has cardio for days. He is from Latvia but moved to Toronto Canada when he was 13 or something like that.
To be honest though, he is a super smart and kind person. A really good man.
He hasn't even really showed you what he can do yet either.

 

[AkuraIchiban]

His ethnicity is quite a cockail: he is a Latvain-born Canadian with Russian orgin
As a Latvian myself, I consider him to be Latvian since he speaks Latvian and is quite vocal on twitter about his Latvian roots

But his name is not Raitis Smirnovas or Somethings Gonnaendins

 

[chunglii]

Dude looks like he could flip a car over if it blocked him in. A few people will turn down fights with him.

I. Like. UFC. Thank. You. For. Having. Me. I. Like. Everyone. Dana. Is. Great.

Robots aren't afraid of anything.

 

[reveler]

misha is a girls name

 

[Roljo]

Misha is my instructor. He is a beast. Judo Black Belt, BJJ Black Belt and he has cardio for days. He is from Latvia but moved to Toronto Canada when he was 13 or something like that.
To be honest though, he is a super smart and kind person. A really good man.
He hasn't even really showed you what he can do yet either.

So do you ask him about what he thinks of his ufc career ? His next move ? I though he took quite a long time after his first fight eventhough it was an easy win. He is not old but not that young either, hope he fights more often to climb in rankings. Can't wait to see his next fight

 

[Perspective]

So do you ask him about what he thinks of his ufc career ? His next move ? I though he took quite a long time after his first fight eventhough it was an easy win. He is not old but not that young either, hope he fights more often to climb in rankings. Can't wait to see his next fight

Yeah we talk all the time about it. Basically, people kept dodging him in the local circuits. They knew what he could do. Fortunately, there was a small organization in Western Canada that went out of their way to make some good fights for him. He wrecked those guys and now here we are.
The UFC will probably spend the next little while building his brand before they give him a top 15 contender. I think that a lot of the guys in the top 15 will probably dodge him if possible. He is a bad matchup for a lot of them.

 

[Uber_Noober]

Misha vs Latifi

That'll do nicely

 

[Roljo]

Yeah we talk all the time about it. Basically, people kept dodging him in the local circuits. They knew what he could do. Fortunately, there was a small organization in Western Canada that went out of their way to make some good fights for him. He wrecked those guys and now here we are.
The UFC will probably spend the next little while building his brand before they give him a top 15 contender. I think that a lot of the guys in the top 15 will probably dodge him if possible. He is a bad matchup for a lot of them.

the UFC would be right to build him up, they are lacking people to push canadian market

 

[DKallysz]

I used to take his grappling classes and he was intimidating but once you spoke with him (or trained with him), you realize he is quite the humble and respectable fellow. I had grappled with him and while he mopped the floor with me, I never felt as if he was going to hurt me.

He also stated in a interview before he perferred to finish his opponents via submission so he can avoid hurting them - I think this mentality was a smart move to intimidate other opponents but the reality is I doubt he really does want to break the jaw of his opponent if he doesn't have to.

Hey man I used to take his bjj classes at Xtreme Couture Toronto. He actually did that exact submission on me when we grappled. I tapped right away. He is scary strong. It was quite the compliment when he told me that he felt that I was stronger than he'd expected and thought I would muscle out of the submission. The guy is a great instructor and very humble and respectful/able.

 

[DeathByBeer]

Dude is fucking huge for 205, bigger than Bader, also has a smoking hot woman too.

For anyone that didnt notice, if you look long enough, you notice Cirkunov is actually in this photo to the left of the hot girl!!!

 

[Arkridge]

I originally was calling for him to fight Krylov at either the Zagreb or Rotterdam event but now that Krylov has a fight maybe Cirkunov can fight Ed Herman. Herman just KO'ed Boetsch at 205 and said he liked the weight and plans to stay at the weight class.