Russian stand-up comedian Viktor Kopanitsa, who now lives and works in Kazakhstan, recently shared a story about an almost-fight with UFC welterweight contender Shavkat Rakhmonov.
A favor for a friend
Speaking on a recent episode of the Setaptar YouTube show, Kopanitsa recounted that the incident occurred after his friend Vyacheslav invited him to film his gym training session.
While at the gym, Kopanitsa said a tall man approached him and casually asked where he was from. When Kopanitsa replied that he was Russian, the man followed up with an unexpected question: «You wanna fight?»
A joke he didn’t catch
Kopanitsa said he stared, baffled, pointing out he’d never set foot in a ring, let alone followed fighters. Meanwhile, Vyacheslav looked on from afar, doing his best not to burst out laughing — clearly entertained that his friend was, unknowingly, in the hot seat with a UFC contender.
Only after the conversation did Kopanitsa realize the significance of the interaction. Moments later, he said he heard whispers around the gym: «It’s Shavkat Rakhmonov.»
The alpha male decides
The comedian quipped that, from the crowd’s reaction, it was obvious: if Rakhmonov wanted a fight, Kopanitsa wasn’t exactly in a position to say no. «It wasn’t up to me,» he cracked, dubbing Rakhmonov the «alpha male» in the room.
Kopanitsa shot back, deadpan: «But you’ll kill me.» Rakhmonov, keeping up the charade, replied, «OK, you won’t fight me — try my little brother, then.» He even teased that Kopanitsa would win a car if he somehow survived the matchup.
All in good fun
Vyacheslav later explained that Rakhmonov, who trains at the same gym, recognized the newcomer and decided to have some fun. The exchange, while intimidating at first, ended without incident — and left the comedian with a memorable story.
