Oleg Taktarov
From OTMWiki
| Oleg Taktarov | |
|---|---|
| Statistics | |
| Nickname | The Russian Bear |
| Height | 6 ft 0 in (183 cm) |
| Weight | 210 lb (95 kg) |
| Born | June 25, 1968 |
| Fighting out of | |
| Town of birth | Gorky, Russia |
| Fighting style | Sambo/Judo |
| Mixed martial arts record | |
| Wins | 11 |
| By knockout | 1 |
| By submission | 9 |
| Losses | 5 |
| Draws | 2 |
| No contests | |
Oleg Taktarov (June 25, 1968) is a Russian martial artist. He is a practitioner of Sambo and Judo and has competed in mixed martial arts in the UFC and PRIDE. Taktarov last fought a professional MMA match in 1998. His MMA record from 1995 to 1998 was 11-5-2.
Taktarov is remembered for being calm during fights and for using a variety of rarely seen, acrobatic take-down moves. He usually finished bouts with a submission hold. He fared poorly against later opponents who utilized the sprawl to prevent Taktarov using his ground-fighting skills and stay toe-to-toe.
His fights with David "Tank" Abbott and Dan Severn in 1995 are well-known. Taktarov won against Abbott, but could not stand when it ended (the elevation of the contest left both fighters exhausted). He lost to Severn in one of the bloodier fights the UFC had seen — Taktarov was also famous for cutting easily when struck and bleeding profusely, although this didn't seem to bother him.
After retiring from mixed martial arts, Taktarov focussed on his acting career, and starred in the movies 15 Minutes, Bad Boys II and the 2002 version of Rollerball.
