Taneyev upset with loss to Randleman

Fighter profile of Zeake Lawson by Chris Karter

Valentin Taneyev on C172 loss to Randy Randleman: ‘I made a lot of stupid decisions’

After defending his title against "Hands of Shiva" Mantak Garuda (41-14-1) at C169, Taneyev fought Randy Randleman (32-11-0) in a super fight at C172, but came away from it disappointed in his performance. Taneyev faced SYN Light Heavyweight champion Randy Randleman in the main event of C172, losing by way of technical knockout in the 5th round. The bout was widely lauded by the MMA community for the excitement it delivered and ended up earning Fight of the Night honors, but for Taneyev, it was a tough pill to swallow because he believes he didn’t perform well. “I made bulls*** fight. I [could have] worked more,” Taneyev said this week to the Tycoon Times. “I don’t like this fight. I made a lot of stupid decisions. A lot of stupid decisions. I played his game. I go in and fight, like just want to make everything crazy.”
Taneyev continued to explain his game plan thoroughly.
“Game plan was try to use I.Q., like how he did. He did it perfect. He just played. He just tried to play and I tried to fight crazy. I knock him down, had him where I wanted ... Maybe I was excited in the moment, maybe I’m getting old and stupid.” The bout was a back-and-forth affair with Randleman taking over late in the 5th to earn the TKO win. But it was a competitive contest back and forth, with both fighters hurting each other throughout the fight.

“No. I’m a professional fighter,” Taneyev said. “I know when I win and when I’ve lost,” said. “Last round was too much. The stoppage wasn't early. Ate too [many] punches to face. But though he’s disappointed with his performance, it’s not all bad for “The Hand Grenade.” Taneyev noted that he and Randleman did still deliver the “fireworks” they had promised beforehand, and given the quality of the fight, he’s hopeful that his stock won’t take much of a hit, keeping him in the P4P rankings at the light heavyweight division. “I’m always [putting] too much pressure for myself when I lose,” Taneyev said. “If this loss doesn’t [drop me] down so much, and I’m still a few fights from the P4P spot, I’m happy for this. I’m just going to keep doing what I’m doing. I’m already back in the gym working on my next fight.” As for a return, he's booked to face off against a familiar face in future Combate Hall of Famer, Mohammed Kahn (31-9-1). Taneyev noted that he isn’t facing any serious injuries after the bout, so he’s ready to return to the cage. “I think fighting more is good,” Taneyev said. “Five, six fights is good. I still don’t when [to retire]. I don’t think about it. I just came home, this is my second day, I’m still jet-lagged. Train, train, sleep, repeat, until fight.”

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