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"If he wins, I’ll admit that he’s a fighter" – interview with Przemyslaw Saleta
After a major surgery many thought he’d never be back in the ring. However, he has changed his mind. He returns for one fight to settle a personal conflict. Przemyslaw Saleta will face Marcin Najman at KSW 14.
Przemek found a little bit of his precious time to talk about his comeback and his adversary. Here’s the interview with the former kickboxing World Champion and former boxing European Champion.
So what made you to come back to the ring and challenge Marcin Najman?
- It’s not like that I challenged him for a fight. During the last KSW show, where Najman was doing a TV interview playing a wise guy, I just told among my friends that I would eagerly kick his butt in any combat sport besides boxing. It occurred that one of my friends is also befriended with Martin Lewandowski. He contacted Martin and the next day I got a call from KSW asking if I really want to do it. I said yes and now the fight is set. Najman has been playing a fighter for quite some time and finally someone has to end it. For me this bout has a symbolic meaning. It was me who helped him at the beginning of his career. I did it because I thought he’s there for the love of the sport. It later turned out that his main principal is being in the tabloids. We parted ways and we both made a lot of nasty comments about each other. I’m glad that I will be finally able to settle out disagreements in the ring. I started Najman’s career and now I will end it.
Why in MMA, not in boxing?
- I won’t do it boxing, because he’s not a boxer! In MMA our chances are theoretically even. We both aren’t MMA fighters, but we can compete under these rules. The victory won’t make me an MMA fighter, I know my limitations. I’m not a lunatic to challenge Mamed or even Pudzianowski, it’s just not my sport.
You mentioned that you’re not an MMA fighter. Marcin Najman is also a novice in this sport. So why not a kickboxing bout, Marcin had some successes in this area.
- He’s biggest success was winning a second place at Polish light-contact kickboxing junior championships. I was a World Champion and a European Champion both as an amateur and as a pro in two different weight classes so it also wouldn’t be fair to fight under these rules.
Najman entered the ring a few times, but you can’t call him a boxer. Actor Mickey Rourke had more than ten boxing bouts and didn’t lose a single one, but it doesn’t mean he’s a boxer. Recently Najman has started playing an MMA fighter, maybe he thinks he’s a some kind of street fighter, so these rules will suit him better. Personally I don’t consider him a fighter nor an athlete.
You had a complicated kidney removal surgery. When Marcin Najman heard your challenge he immediately said that he wouldn’t fight you because of your health issues. What was your reaction to that?
- If he really thinks so, it just shows that he’s a coward. Honestly since my retirement there was only short period of my life when I was in the worse shape than Najman. It was after I woke up form the coma.
How will your preparations look like for this fight?
- I don’t want to do any specific preparations for Najman. I’m always in training, being in shape is one of the habits I learnt throughout my career. I usually do ten trainings a week. I can honestly say that I will train for this fight just like I train now. I’m preparing for the September’s Warsaw’s Marathon and I watch my weight because I race on motorcycles and every kilogram is important in this sport. I have six races ahead of me, with the last on the seventeenth or eighteenth of September. I also won’t hire any coaches for this bout.
Do you plan any special sparrings?
- Yes I’ll spar with Lukasz Jurkowski three or four times, but it’ll happen not earlier than after the penultimate round Polish Motorcycle Racing Championships on August 22nd.
So no ground trainings planned?
- Only the ones with Juras, not more. I don’t plan to choke or submit Najman. I don’t know how to do it, I’m honest about it. Marcin also has no clue about the ground game so if any of us decides to go to the ground it will look like kid’s fight. The good think about MMA rules is that you can fight sanding-up for the whole fight.
Do you want to comment on critical opinions that Saleta vs Najman confrontation is not a real fight.
- To be honest, this fights is not about the sport, it’s about personal history. Marcin many times has run his mouth about fighting me, so now he’ll get what he wants. From my point of view it’s one-off job and I won’t be fighting after that. As I said before I want to settle our differences and shut him up once and for all.
Regardless of the outcome would you shake his hand after the fight?
- No! I won’t shake his hand. I don’t like him and don’t respect him as a person. Even his victory won’t change my opinion. If he beats me, at the most I may admit that he’s a fighter. That I can promise.
Thanks for your time.
- No problem, cheers.
Interview by Artur Przybysz
Przemek found a little bit of his precious time to talk about his comeback and his adversary. Here’s the interview with the former kickboxing World Champion and former boxing European Champion.
So what made you to come back to the ring and challenge Marcin Najman?
- It’s not like that I challenged him for a fight. During the last KSW show, where Najman was doing a TV interview playing a wise guy, I just told among my friends that I would eagerly kick his butt in any combat sport besides boxing. It occurred that one of my friends is also befriended with Martin Lewandowski. He contacted Martin and the next day I got a call from KSW asking if I really want to do it. I said yes and now the fight is set. Najman has been playing a fighter for quite some time and finally someone has to end it. For me this bout has a symbolic meaning. It was me who helped him at the beginning of his career. I did it because I thought he’s there for the love of the sport. It later turned out that his main principal is being in the tabloids. We parted ways and we both made a lot of nasty comments about each other. I’m glad that I will be finally able to settle out disagreements in the ring. I started Najman’s career and now I will end it.
Why in MMA, not in boxing?
- I won’t do it boxing, because he’s not a boxer! In MMA our chances are theoretically even. We both aren’t MMA fighters, but we can compete under these rules. The victory won’t make me an MMA fighter, I know my limitations. I’m not a lunatic to challenge Mamed or even Pudzianowski, it’s just not my sport.
You mentioned that you’re not an MMA fighter. Marcin Najman is also a novice in this sport. So why not a kickboxing bout, Marcin had some successes in this area.
- He’s biggest success was winning a second place at Polish light-contact kickboxing junior championships. I was a World Champion and a European Champion both as an amateur and as a pro in two different weight classes so it also wouldn’t be fair to fight under these rules.
Najman entered the ring a few times, but you can’t call him a boxer. Actor Mickey Rourke had more than ten boxing bouts and didn’t lose a single one, but it doesn’t mean he’s a boxer. Recently Najman has started playing an MMA fighter, maybe he thinks he’s a some kind of street fighter, so these rules will suit him better. Personally I don’t consider him a fighter nor an athlete.
You had a complicated kidney removal surgery. When Marcin Najman heard your challenge he immediately said that he wouldn’t fight you because of your health issues. What was your reaction to that?
- If he really thinks so, it just shows that he’s a coward. Honestly since my retirement there was only short period of my life when I was in the worse shape than Najman. It was after I woke up form the coma.
How will your preparations look like for this fight?
- I don’t want to do any specific preparations for Najman. I’m always in training, being in shape is one of the habits I learnt throughout my career. I usually do ten trainings a week. I can honestly say that I will train for this fight just like I train now. I’m preparing for the September’s Warsaw’s Marathon and I watch my weight because I race on motorcycles and every kilogram is important in this sport. I have six races ahead of me, with the last on the seventeenth or eighteenth of September. I also won’t hire any coaches for this bout.
Do you plan any special sparrings?
- Yes I’ll spar with Lukasz Jurkowski three or four times, but it’ll happen not earlier than after the penultimate round Polish Motorcycle Racing Championships on August 22nd.
So no ground trainings planned?
- Only the ones with Juras, not more. I don’t plan to choke or submit Najman. I don’t know how to do it, I’m honest about it. Marcin also has no clue about the ground game so if any of us decides to go to the ground it will look like kid’s fight. The good think about MMA rules is that you can fight sanding-up for the whole fight.
Do you want to comment on critical opinions that Saleta vs Najman confrontation is not a real fight.
- To be honest, this fights is not about the sport, it’s about personal history. Marcin many times has run his mouth about fighting me, so now he’ll get what he wants. From my point of view it’s one-off job and I won’t be fighting after that. As I said before I want to settle our differences and shut him up once and for all.
Regardless of the outcome would you shake his hand after the fight?
- No! I won’t shake his hand. I don’t like him and don’t respect him as a person. Even his victory won’t change my opinion. If he beats me, at the most I may admit that he’s a fighter. That I can promise.
Thanks for your time.
- No problem, cheers.
Interview by Artur Przybysz
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