Igor Vovchanchyn
Sambo is a Russian martial art, combat sport and self-defense system. It is a mixture of judo and freestyle wrestling using a keikogi known as kurtka. Sambo focuses on throwing, takedowns, grappling, and includes submissions from Judo and catch wrestling. Sambo also has a modality known as "combat sambo", which adds punches, kicks, elbows and knees, making it a proto-MMA hybrid fighting style. Sambo is popular in Russia and eastern Europe, where it is taught as a complement to Judo and Wrestling training, Sambo also provides a good base for MMA with all-around skills for combining grappling and striking. Some notable Sambo fighters that transitioned into MMA include: Fedor Emelianenko, Igor Vovchanchyn, Oleg Taktarov and Khabib Nurmagomedov.