The M1 Global phenomena is massively popular worldwide, and especially so in Russia and the CIS states, and this event was staged in the Olimpiyskiy indoor sports arena in Moscow in front of an audience of 15,000 and also broadcast live on Channel Russia 2 TV.

Lighting was designed by Andrey Fisbein and Nicolay Dmirtiev of TOK, a leading rental company from St Petersburg, who supplied full technical production for the event. They have a vast stock of Robe fixtures – chosen for the diverse range and the reliability – a ‘must’ for any busy rental company.

A total of 76 Robe fixtures were utilised – 35 ColorSpot 2500E ATs and 16 ColorWash 2500E ATs, along with 24 ROBIN 600 LEDWash.

They were positioned on a series of trusses in the roof that criss-crossed the arena creating both over stage / ring and audience lighting positions.

ColorWash and Spot 2500s were rigged above the stage and these fanned out to highlight the audience seating and also to light the rig itself. Some of these were used for downlight during the fighter entrance / exits.

Some of the ColorWash 2500s were used to illuminate the ring and concentrate on lighting the fight action in white,  while others introduced drama and effects like colour changing and strobing during the fighters’ entrances . The LEDWash 600s lit up the stage and the walkway between the stage and the ring for the entrances / exits.

The LEDWash 600s were specifically picked to colour and emphasise the fighters as they emerged from the stage and walked along the ramp to the ring – always a moment of big drama and anticipation for the fans!

The lighting designers comment that the fixtures all worked well and ensured that they could get excellent coverage for both the telecast and the live audience.

TOK are Robe’s major rental partner in north-west Russia and have updated their stock this year with a large investment in 2500 series ColorSpot and Washes and also the LEDWash 600, all supplied by Translight, Robe’s distributor in St Petersburg. The deal was co-ordinated by Boris Krylov, Robe’s Regional Sales Manager for Russia and the CIS states.