On Wednesday, the UTMA combat sports organization officially signed contracts with three fighters from “Sparta Gym” – Edvinas Šalkovskij, Henrikas Vikšraitis, and Raimondas Avlasevičius – while reaching a verbal agreement with Sergejus Maslobojevas.

At a special press conference held at the “Žalgirio” arena, “Sparta Gym” coach Andrius Šipaila discussed the main motivations behind moving from the “King of Kings” (KOK) organization to UTMA. He also talked about how UTMA’s pound-for-pound leader Dominykas Dirkstys will now have the opportunity to fight S. Maslobojevas and E. Šalkovskij.

“The negotiation and discussion process wasn’t long. UTMA is a new and growing organization, especially with fighters who previously fought in KOK and, upon moving to UTMA, started claiming to be the best and strongest, saying that others are avoiding fights with them. We are all here – healthy – and will be waiting in the ring. We hope that Dominykas (Dirksčius, – ed.) who wants to fight at least two of us, will not face any health issues, weight problems, or other obstacles, such as weight limit conditions of 75 kg or 80 kg. I hope these fights will happen soon.

We have nothing against KOK; everything was fine there. We just received the best conditions for today, and we have challenges here,” said Šipaila.

– What are your fighters’ advantages over those who talk?

– We always see them and expect victories. We never come to lose; we didn’t come just to perform. Most fight enthusiasts already know our fighters, so we are here to fight. Those who follow fights know that we did not choose opponents in the previous organization; we fought strong fighters. One of the last fights was Henrikas Vikšraitis’ title bout against Chico Kwasi (in November 2021 at KOK 96, – ed.), who is now a “Glory” champion. Raimondas Avlasevičius’ opponent Manuelis Rifa had previously defeated Henrikas Vikšraitis. And Sergejus Maslobojevas’ opponents were from the “Glory” organization. We accept all challenges and will do our best. Our club doesn’t like to speak ill of others; we respect everyone, and we’ll see in the ring. We love our homeland not by words but by actions.

– What conditions satisfied you the most in UTMA?

– Nowadays, financial conditions determine a lot. For today, it was the best financial offer, so here we are.

– With “Sparta Gym” joining UTMA, there is full-fledged competition between Lithuanian sports clubs. How ambitious are you as a coach to test your strength against other clubs and at least unofficially compete to determine which club is the best in Lithuania?

– There is no competition here. Our club has fought against all those clubs before. We have met at various tournaments, in K-1 WAKO organization tournaments. We have consistently been first in team rankings in both Baltic and Lithuanian tournaments for several years. We don’t need to prove that we are the best club or anything like that. Everyone thinks their own club is the best, and that’s unchangeable. There’s no single opinion on who is the best or worst. One season you prove yourself, and the next, everything starts anew. It’s not about ticking a box to claim we are number one. Everyone has their favorite trainer, city, club. As many people as there are, there are opinions. Thankfully, we live in a free democratic state and can choose what we like.

– Looking at potential opponents, can you say which of your fighters would be the most interesting to meet?

– There are many interesting fights. Henrikas’ fight has already been announced against Matas Stebuliauskas; Raimondas Avlasevičius’ opponent will be announced soon. Of course, Dominykas is waiting for two 90 kg fighters. In our four-fight contract, we hope these fights will happen and not just remain talk. Dominykas is already getting older, Sergejus will be 38 next year, a mature man who has the chance to prove his words. We also hope that Edvinas fights soon.

Furthermore, Henrikas Vikšraitis and Raimondas Avlasevičius have moved to the 77 kg weight category. We have discussed potential opponents there – Mindaugas Narauskas, Dovydas Rimkus, Matas Pultaražinskas, Martynas Jasiūnas. In any case, everyone will meet everyone. We know Sergejus and Edvinas’ weight categories; currently, there is only Dominykas at this weight in Lithuania. Perhaps more will emerge. I’m not inclined to talk about Edvinas fighting “Rimkenzo” at 75 kg or a newcomer at 70 kg, then moving up to 90 kg. We don’t want any absurd fights.

– What’s the situation with the “Glory” organization?

– About “Glory” and contracts, nothing is confirmed yet because our contract with “Glory” is still valid. We would like fewer questions about that since not everything is clear yet. Everything will be clear soon, but for now, we are satisfied with the conditions. However, this is a verbal agreement rather than specific actions. We will wait until our contract with “Glory” ends, which will happen soon, and then we can talk about formality and dates.

– What can S. Maslobojevas gain from the upcoming UTMA stage?

– The first thing is to quiet the talk. Then, there’s the financial aspect. I believe Sergejus has already proven himself globally. I respect all Lithuanian fighters, but currently, those who are active and fighting, I don’t know any who have not lost a fight in ONE FC or have become WAKO world champions twice. He is the only one in Lithuanian history to win the WAKO world championship title since 1991. He is also a “Glory” belt holder, and so on. What more can he achieve? I don’t know. Maybe UTMA will organize some intergalactic fights. It is a really good financial offer, and it’s about those who talk loudly, here we are. Perhaps we just want to dot the i’s. We understand that a career isn’t endless. We would like Sergejus to fight even at 45 years old, and some from UTMA want to meet him when he’s 52, but the main goal is this.

– Directly or indirectly, you mention D. Dirksčius, who has thrown challenges to S. Maslobojevas and E. Šalkovskij. Do you have the ambition to clarify these relationships?

– Whether to clarify or not… The person talks, throws challenges, says he would beat us up in the ring, and so on. The person should answer for his words; it’s very simple.

– You’re coming to UTMA with four fighters. Can you mention any young names who are promising in your club?

– Right now, we are talking about four fighters who will have a long-term contract – four fights. But we are also negotiating one-time appearances with fighters who have fought in other organizations but need to prove themselves. Our club also has a Ukrainian female fighter, WAKO world champion Alina Martyniuk, for whom we are trying to arrange a fight on September 28. We have Rytis Lekys, Deividas Michnevičius, who has defeated Arnas Naujokas in the 70 kg weight category, and other fighters. Just hold the tournaments, and we will find fighters.

– Does “Sparta Gym” lack talent?

– For now, it’s enough, and we’ll see later. The next UTMA tournament will be held at the “Žalgirio” arena in Kaunas on September 28, and the tenth UTMA tournament is scheduled for November 8, which will take place at the Kaunas Sports Hall.