Over 5 years of professional boxing, heavyweight Magomed Abdusalamov has never lost; The boxer won all his victories exclusively by knockout and mainly in the early stages of the fight. Only in November 2013 did Magomed’s luck desert him - he not only lost to his opponent (albeit on points), but also ended up in the hospital the very next day with a blood clot in the brain.
Magomed was born in Makhachkala, Dagestan; He was the eldest son in the family and was brought up in full accordance with the strict tenets of the Muslim faith. Magomed’s father understood perfectly well that in the unstable situation that existed in the country at that time, the boy had every chance of getting involved with crime; Abdusalamov Sr. decided to protect his son from wrong life choices with the help of sports. The idea turned out to be extremely successful - the young man showed extraordinary athletic abilities. Magomed showed himself to be a talented boxer even when he was an amateur - so, in 2005 and 2006, he managed to win a convincing victory at the Russian heavyweight championship.
Alas, even despite such brilliant achievements, Abdusalamov remained for some time in the shadow of the more famous and successful
another fighter, Islam Timurziev; as a result, Abdusalamov never even dreamed of reaching the international level.
In 2008, Abdusalamov took part in the Olympic qualifying competitions, but Magomed failed to qualify - Englishman David Price stood in his way, eventually taking bronze.
In 2008, Magomed retrained as a professional; He won his first eight fights by knockout in the first round. At the moment, Abdusalamov has 18 victories (all 18 by knockout) and 1 defeat. Relatively quick knockout victories are to this day a unique trademark of Magomed Abdusalamov.
At the end of 2011, Magomed defeated American boxer Rich Power; his opponent with a Magician
d knocked out already in the third round.
In February 2012, Abdusalamov defeated the American Pedro Rodriguez, who had never known defeat before. The Russian won his next victory over American Jason Pettaway; this time the opponent managed to hold out against Abdusalamov for more than three rounds - and only in the fourth he was knocked out. Magomed's next opponent, American Maurice Byarm, failed to repeat Pettaway's unique record and was knocked out in the second round.
In September 2012, Abdusalamov went to fight Jameel McCline; the fight turned out to be extremely intense, although rather short - in the first round, Magomed was sent away for the first time in his professional career.
I'm knocked down. Having come to his senses, Abdusalamov managed to turn the situation around - by the end of the first round he regained the lost initiative, and at the end of the second he knocked down his opponent. McCline managed to get up, but the referee considered it reasonable to stop the fight - with which Jamil did not argue. As it turned out later, Magomed did not enter the fight with McCline in the best shape - even before the fight he broke a rib and did not have time to completely heal the injury.
In March 2013, Puerto Rican Victor Bisbal came out against Magomed. Once again Abdusalamov had a much harder time than expected - Bisbal clearly dominated the first two rounds. Magomed spent the third and fourth rounds changing the situation; in the fifth he knocked out his opponent. The victory brought Magomed 3rd place in the WBC rankings.
In 2013, Abdusalamov lost on points to Cuban boxer Mike Perez. The mere fact that Magomed Abdusalamov managed to defeat was in itself a surprise for boxing fans - for Magomed this was the first defeat. The Cuban failed to knock out his opponent, but the victory on points was awarded to Perez. Things didn't go well for the Russian boxer from the very beginning - an unsuccessful blow to the Cuban's head cost Magomed an injury to his left hand. Later, Perez further aggravated the situation by breaking Abdusalamov's nose.
The injuries received, however, did not seem particularly serious by the standards of this sport. After the fight, Magomed underwent a routine medical examination; doctors did not find anything suspicious, and Abdusalamov himself did not complain about anything. Boxer feeling
I felt quite normal and even found the strength to talk to journalists.
As it turned out later, the defeat in itself was by no means Magomed’s main problem - the next morning the boxer began to have severe headaches. Abdusalamov was sent to the hospital, where he was found to have a blockage in one of the blood vessels in his brain. To minimize the harmful consequences of this blockage, it was decided to put Magomed into an artificial coma.
The surgeons managed to cope with the operation - a blood clot that was potentially life-threatening to Abdusalamov was successfully removed. There is no threat to the boxer’s health at the moment; Apparently, Magomed will not even lose coordination of movements. Now his father Magomed Magomedgadzhi and brother Abdusalam are in New York with the boxer
MOSCOW, June 30. /Corr. TASS Igor Lazorin/. The Russian boxer, who suffered serious injuries and a stroke, began talking to his loved ones. The athlete’s wife Bakanai reported this to TASS.
Abdusalamov on November 2, 2013, during a fight with Cuban Mike Perez, received a severe traumatic brain injury, as well as fractures of his arm and jaw. He was taken to hospital where he suffered a stroke. The boxer was placed in an artificial coma, in which he remained until December 10 of the same year. The athlete underwent craniotomy to remove blood clots, and his broken jaw was also operated on. Abdusalamov spent a certain period of time in a rehabilitation center. In mid-September the athlete was discharged home. Now he takes food on his own, but he still cannot move without help.
“He doesn’t really speak, but I understand him,” said the boxer’s wife. “He speaks quietly, but he tries to do it, although not everything is clear. I am his translator. In general, our youngest daughter is a great medicine for him. She tries to be close to him, hug him. He smiles when he sees her."
At the moment, Abdusalamov is completely paralyzed on the right side of his body. "While our left side is working, the right is not. I am gradually starting to give him regular food, although he usually eats everything from a blender. But he looks much better and fresher, he has gained weight well. Maga is trying to draw, writes our names. In general , we are making progress,” added the TASS interlocutor.
The wife of 34-year-old Abdusalamov also noted that doctors note progress in the athlete’s condition, but do not give encouraging prognoses.
“At the beginning, the doctors told us that he wouldn’t survive, he wouldn’t think,” noted the boxer’s wife. “But I proved the opposite to them. He’s getting better. And the doctor said three months ago that he wouldn’t be able to walk. But we don’t think about it.” this, we believe in the best. His eyes are no longer as lost as before. I heard that Denis Boytsov (a Russian boxer who is recovering from serious injuries) was told that he will return to normal life and will walk. But if he can, that means. and we can do it!"
Immediately after the incident, world champions Sergei Kovalev, Ruslan Provodnikov, Sultan Ibragimov, Khabib Allahverdiev and Russian promoter Andrei Ryabinsky, who paid for part of the athlete’s treatment, expressed a desire to help Abdusalamov.
Treatment of Magomed Abdusalamov costs $20-30 thousand monthly
According to the athlete’s friend Amin Suleymanov, treatment and rehabilitation in the USA for Magomed Abdusalamov costs about $20-30 thousand a month.
“Now Maga and his family live with me,” said Suleymanov. “At first everyone helped, but now only I am left. While he was in a rehabilitation center, treatment cost $50 thousand a month. Now we take him from home, I spend my money to help Maga. In total, it costs between $20-30 thousand. There is city insurance, but it doesn’t cover everything.”
Suleymanov also said that Abdusalamov was happy when he saw the fight between Russian Alexander Povetkin and Mike Perez. Povetkin knocked out the Cuban in the first round at the end of May.
“I showed him the fight, he understands everything, recognizes people. He himself was sure that he would knock out Perez. But in the first round, Magi had a broken arm, and what could he do? Just survive... He watched Povetkin’s fight, especially there were no emotions, although he was a little happy,” the agency’s interlocutor said.
Abdusalamov had 19 fights in the professional ring, won 18 victories (all by knockout) and suffered one defeat. He received the World Boxing Council (WBC) champion medal.
We bring to your attention a translation of a short article by the famous writer Thomas Hauser, dedicated to the former heavyweight boxer Magomed Abdusalamov.
On November 2, 2013, Russian heavyweight Magomed Abdusalamov suffered serious brain damage in a fight with Mike Perez at Madison Square Garden in New York.
People with injuries like Magomed's are usually not in the public eye. They disappear into the shadows. We sometimes receive positive feedback about their condition such as “he is in the clinic” and “getting better”, etc. None of us are immune from this. None of us are promised a life that will be immune to terrible suffering.
Magomed fought to provide for his family. And he succeeded. Last year, the state of New York, which was responsible for staging the fights on its territory, agreed to pay Abdusalamov and his family $22 million after nearly four years of litigation over shoddy New York state medical protocols and their implementation.
Some of the $22 million went to lawyers. Magomed's wife, Bakanay, received a large one-time payment. The bulk of this money will be issued in annuities, which will constitute Magomed's income for the next thirty years. If he dies before that period ends, the $2 million will return to New York State and the remainder of the annuity will become Magomed's property. All of his medical expenses and related bills are paid from an annuity controlled by Charles Thomas, a former Queens County judge.
Magomed and Bakanay live in Greenwich with their three daughters, who are currently 11, 8 and 4 years old. Greenwich is part of Connecticut's Gold Coast, home to top fund managers and other financial elites. But the city also has several less expensive areas. The Abdusalamovs live in a modest house surrounded by asphalt and gravel on a small plot of land with no lawn or garden.
Every morning Bakanay bathes and shave Magomed and dresses him in clean clothes. Three days a week she takes him to Stamford Hospital for physical therapy. It is not aimed at improving his condition - only minor physical or cognitive improvements are expected - but mostly to prevent further atrophy of Magomed's muscles.
The right side of Magomed's body is completely paralyzed. On the right side of his head there is a scar in the shape and size of a horseshoe. He can control his left arm to a certain extent and the left side of his body. He gets tired quickly and suffers from cramps. He cannot walk or control his physical functions. He has a high risk of choking, so everything that goes into his mouth is carefully controlled.
His voice is weak. He tries to speak, sometimes in English and sometimes in Russian. Often what he says is not clear. At best, only a few words come out at a time. Sometimes they suit the situation. In other cases they are not suitable.
He can follow simple commands such as "take my hand."
Magomed knows that he is sick. The extent to which he understands his condition is uncertain. He responds to kindness. He recognizes familiar faces, his wife and children, and knows that they are the objects of his affection. His strongest connection is with Bakanai. When asked if he knows who she is, he replies: “Big love.”
His mind wanders. Almost always his gaze is empty.
He will never be able to take care of himself again.
But he's still Mago.
Not so long ago, he was considered one of the main hopes of domestic professional boxing in the most prestigious royal weight category of the heavyweight division. However, the career of this very physically gifted and promising fighter was cut short at the very peak, when he was already a couple of steps away from the fight for the world title. In November 2013, at the Madison Square Garden theater in New York, a native of the capital of Dagestan, Makhachkala, fought in the ring with the hitherto unbeaten Cuban boxer Mike Perez.
The fight took place on a collision course; the opponents often met in open combat. Based on the results of the 10 rounds allotted by the regulations, Perez was declared the winner by unanimous decision of the judges. And just a few hours later, the defeat in the ring almost turned into a tragedy. Only Magomed’s remarkable health and the qualifications of the doctors saved his life. Abdusalamov managed to escape from the clutches of death, but remained disabled, unable to move independently.
Magomed was born on March 25, 1981. His father Magomedgadzha was a very strong man by nature, who was fond of martial arts and became a master of sports of the USSR in freestyle wrestling. It was he who instilled a love for sports in his son. Influenced by Asian martial arts films that were then fashionable among teenagers, young Maga tried many types of martial arts. At the age of 12, he began training in kickboxing, Thai boxing and other oriental disciplines. He became the champion of Russia and a finalist in the World Championship. Abdusalamov switched to boxing when he was already 22 years old, because he suffered a knee injury while practicing Muay Thai. He hoped to improve his hand function while his leg remained injured, but he remained in boxing.
Magomed’s first coach was Gadzhimurad Gaziev, with whom Abdusalamov became so close that he called his mentor his elder brother. Later, his Muay Thai coach was Zainalbek Zainalbekov. Magomed’s first mentor in pure boxing was Evgeniy Kotov. Abdusalamov failed to fully prove himself in amateur boxing. His trump cards were power, physical strength and a knockout blow. However, Magomed lacked technical, especially defensive skills precisely because he came to boxing late. Nevertheless, he managed to win the Russian championship among adults in the heavyweight division twice (in 2005 and 2006).
Abdusalamov had a chance to compete at the 2008 Olympic Games, but, representing Belarus, he lost to the British David Price in the qualifying tournament. In total, Magomed has about 50 official fights in the amateur ring. Moreover, as Abdusalamov himself said, at least 95% of his amateur victories were won ahead of schedule. In September 2008, his professional boxing career began. At first it was led by the famous Russian promoter Yuri Fedorov. Then the American Leon Margules and his “stable” Seminole Warriors Boxing became co-promoter of Magomed. Later, sponsors from Azerbaijan provided financial support to Abdusalamov.
Magomed boxed in Russia and in the USA. Over time, he moved his family - his wife and daughters - to Florida. Abdusalamov finished his first eight pro fights with early victories in the first round. The following opponents held their own against the Dagestani left-hander, who did not stand out for his elegant and refined technique, but was distinguished by his enormous power and lethal striking power, for not much longer. However, in many fights it was noticeable that Abdusalamov often neglected defense, acted too openly, and sometimes even recklessly. Magomed himself then said that in this way he was trying to lure his rivals into a trap. They say that in order to lure them out of their tight defense, you sometimes need to open up yourself, inviting your opponents to attack. But such tactics were fraught with danger.
And so on November 2, 2011, two hitherto unbeaten heavyweight prospects met in the ring - 32-year-old and 28-year-old Cuban Mike Perez. Bookmakers, which is quite rare, considered the chances of both opponents to win to be almost equal. The fight began without any buildup; from the first round, the boxers rushed into a frisky exchange of blows, in which, thanks to better technique and coordination, the Cuban was more successful. But not only did Magomed fail to immediately suppress his opponent’s initiative in his characteristic style, but in this opening three-minute period one of Perez’s blows also broke his left cheekbone (the facial bone under the eye), which immediately began to swell.
However, in the second round, due to greater activity, Abdusalamov looked better than his opponent. And in the next few three-minute periods, the initiative passed from one to another. But after the equator of the fight, Abdusalamov’s face began to swell more and more, a cut formed above the same left eye, but most importantly, he began to get tired and slow down considerably. Perez turned out to be a strong guy and even the frankly missed series of blows did not bother him. The Cuban continued to rush forward, although he was good at working from long range. In the ninth round, the referee deducted one point from Perez for a low blow. However, this did not prevent the Cuban from bringing the fight to victory on points by unanimous decision of the judges - 95-94, 97-92, 97-92.
A few hours after the end of the battle, the situation began to develop dramatically. Seriously injured, Abdusalamov began to complain of a severe headache and was hospitalized with a diagnosis of cerebral hemorrhage at Roosevelt Medical Center in New York. Doctors urgently performed a craniotomy on Magomed and put him into an artificial coma in order to avoid possible brain damage from the formation of a blood clot. However, four days later Abdusalamov suffered a stroke. Doctors were forced to perform surgery to remove a blood clot from the brain, and also removed part of the skull to reduce the swelling.
A little later it became known that Magomed’s family did not have the money to cover the huge bills for his treatment and hospital stay. And here patrons from the boxing world came to the rescue, including some current and former boxers. 20 days after the ill-fated battle, Abdusalamov was briefly brought out of an induced coma. But only on December 6, that is, more than a month later, Magomed finally emerged from his comatose state and began to breathe on his own. And four days later he was transferred from intensive care to a regular ward.
In 2014, Abdusalamov, who had lost a lot of weight, was moved to a rehabilitation center, where a long period of recovery began. We must pay tribute to Magomed’s wife, Bakanai Abdusalamova, who all this time has been faithfully caring for her husband, who has lost the ability to move independently, and is making titanic efforts for his successful rehabilitation. However, the brain damage turned out to be so serious that the boxer’s recovery process could take many years. Last summer, Magomed began talking quietly with his family. Unfortunately, doctors say the right side of his body will remain paralyzed forever. However, Bakanay believes that one day her husband will get back on his feet, walk independently and lead a more or less full life.
The editors of “Championship” congratulate Magomed on his birthday and wish him a speedy recovery!
“Money won’t bring back my old husband.” The Abdusalamov family received $22 million in compensation in a US court
The family of Russian boxer Magomed Abdusalamov won a lawsuit in the United States and will receive a very large monetary compensation. Match TV correspondent Vadim Tikhomirov spoke with Bakanai Abdusalamova to find out what three years of struggle for justice and the health of her husband were like for her.
On November 2, 2013, in New York, Russian Magomed Abdusalamov lost a boxing match for the first time in his career: he lost to Cuban Mike Perez by unanimous decision. After the fight, Abdusalamov felt unwell, began to lose consciousness and was taken to the hospital by taxi. Doctors determined a cerebral hemorrhage and put the boxer into an induced coma. In December, Abdusalamov was brought out of a coma - and two exhausting processes began for his family. The first is rehabilitation, due to the fact that after a coma the boxer could not move or talk. The second is a judicial one, since, according to Magomed’s relatives, he did not receive timely medical care.
On the night of September 9, 2017, ESPN wrote that the court ordered the state of New York to pay the boxer's family $22 million as compensation for the injuries received by Magomed Abdusalamov. Among other things, it was stated that this was the largest compensation in US history for personal injuries.
“All this is really true, but the trial is not over yet, we are continuing the case, there will be more proceedings,” said Bakanai Abdusalamova, Magomed’s wife, in an interview with Match TV a few hours after the news appeared.
“But the state of New York must pay your family $22 million, and that’s for sure?”
– For you, was money a matter of principle, a desire to prove that someone is guilty of what happened to your husband?
– It’s hard for me to say now. You see, when the trial began, I thought that by the last court hearings Mago would come to his senses. I thought his condition was for six months, maybe a year. But now, when you understand that Mago has not yet recovered and this requires a lot of money, and you see that you are alone, and all the essentials for your family need to be paid for somehow, you understand that you need money too.
https://www.instagram.com/p/BUSlv8Zl5FH/– I understand perfectly well that you did not win this money in the lottery, but still this is a huge fortune that suddenly became yours - how will you use it?
– We have to pay for the work of lawyers, we have debts - about two million dollars. Plus, of the amount that will be paid to us, ten million will look like an investment that will provide us with a monthly income, which should be enough to support the family and rehabilitate Magomed. I hope that this money will help create better conditions for recovery, we will be able to see where and what kind of rehabilitation centers there are, and it will be easier for us to move around.
As I said, we received the money, but whatever it was, I can’t just take it and return the Mago who was before.
– What is a two million dollar debt?
– These are the expenses that we incurred during the rehabilitation process. All procedures here are very expensive. Just to give you an example, a 15-minute acupuncture session costs $150. Several such sessions are needed per week, and we have been doing them for three years. A special bed for people who cannot move independently costs about eight thousand dollars. We need to pay so we can go and train.
- Train?
– That’s what I call physiotherapy, I’m already used to this word when I talk about Magomed. Usually we have hour-long training sessions and in addition to them we either work out in the pool, or people come to us and do acupuncture. There is a special room at home where we can go for procedures.
https://www.instagram.com/p/BOs-OJFDmet/– All boxers have insurance before the fight.
– Yes, insurance coverage is ten thousand dollars... This is enough for a few minutes of intensive care in a clinic in the USA. Magomed spent two months in a coma. I'm exaggerating, of course, but when a person receives such damage, insurance does not cover even a small part. For example, Andrei Ryabinsky (Russian businessman, head of the World of Boxing company - Match TV) helped us pay for treatment at a rehabilitation center. Treatment there costs several tens of thousands of dollars a month. But we had many procedures later, in fact, it was treatment on debt - the hospital agreed, although I understood that it would be difficult for me to repay this debt. I have nothing.
During rehabilitation, Magomed was hospitalized several times. One time everything was very serious, he developed a severe infection, we just didn’t advertise it. We developed osteomyelitis (a purulent-necrotic process in the bone - Match TV), sepsis, and Magomed’s condition was very serious. At some point it seemed to me that the doctors basically decided that he couldn’t cope and thought that this was how it should be. I started screaming for them to do something. Magomed spent several weeks in the hospital. Now we live further, and I won’t say everything here is luxurious, but normal.
– Where do you live?
– In Greenwich in New York, in a house that was provided to us by a family friend, Aminulla Suleymanov, he, together with Andrei Ryabinsky, helped us the most, and I am very grateful to them for this, because it was the help without which everything would have happened now differently. But obviously, we can’t live our whole lives in someone else’s house, we would like to buy our own.
https://www.instagram.com/p/BPEqeKUj67k/– Have you ever met Mike Perez (Magomed Abdusalamov’s rival)?
- No. For what?
– Would it be important for you for him to personally apologize to you?
“He boxed in the ring just like my husband. Before this, Magomed’s victories were all knockouts, that is, he also beat people hard. What happened to him is not his opponent's fault.
-Who do you blame?
– I can’t give assessments. We believe that Magomed did not receive timely medical care - that’s all I can say.
– Does Magomed understand that you won the trial?
– It’s difficult for me to answer you. I tell him this, of course, but I don’t think he fully understands. He is a different person now, he cannot sit and discuss what we will do now that we have won the trial. I can. I think about what conditions this will create for him so that he can live and train, what conditions I can create for the lives of Magomed and my children.
I would like to equip a training room at home, buy all the necessary rehabilitation equipment there, so that we can undergo procedures outside the rehabilitation center, so that we can exercise before going to bed. I would like to buy him a special bed, I have my eye on a few more things for him and hopefully it will work out now.
– Unfortunately, there are stories when a person and doctors reach the maximum in their rehabilitation capabilities, and after that it is difficult to improve anything.
“In general, the doctors first told us that he would not survive, then that he would not be able to think, then that he would not be able to speak. Now they are saying that they are seeing a miracle, because initially they looked at the pictures of his brain and said the word “plant”, and now they look and say “fantastic”.
The left side of his body works, he opens his eyes, he tries to speak. While the doctors are not promising anything, we just hope that there will be some more results.
https://www.instagram.com/p/BW686_xlcbV/– Have you thought about trying treatment somewhere not in the USA: in Israel, Switzerland, Germany?
– It’s good where we are not. Of course, they say that there are other good clinics, but America has very good medicine. Perhaps in another country he would not have survived with such injuries. But I’m not ready to move with the children and Magomed to another place, especially when I don’t know how he will survive the flight.
– Do they give you a lot of advice on how to treat yourself?
– On Instagram they constantly write: “Try this... do this... these medicines help.” I’m not trying any of this, because I can’t give anything without the doctor’s permission, and now he has a lot of drugs that he needs to know how to combine with each other, and some new drugs may simply turn out to be incompatible. Someone says that we need to use the traditional Islamic method - Hijama (treatment by bloodletting - Match TV), I respect traditions, but can you imagine if doctors in the USA see that I myself do some things on my husband’s body? then cuts. I think I might be sent to court then.
– If you happen to see a boxing match today, how do you react?
“I can’t sit down and turn on boxing on purpose, but if I see it somewhere, I won’t turn away, I understand that my husband lived this, and you could get injured in ordinary life. Now, when you wrote to me on WhatsApp, you thought that this was not my number, because in my profile photo there is an adult man.
- Yes, and very serious.
– This is just a photograph of my brother, he died in a car accident two years ago. This is a huge grief, but this does not mean that we should now not drive. It's the same with boxing.
