Dana White: We’ll Do Brock vs. Fedor and It’ll Be a Huge Fight
“This whole Fedor thing has been going on and on and on. I keep saying this and that about him and he keeps waiting. Eventually, Fedor’s going to be here. I want Fedor. I want him to come to the UFC and everything else. [Brock Lesnar] just became the heavyweight champion. We’ll end up getting that deal done. And then we’ll do Brock vs. Fedor, and it’ll be a huge fight.”
At the post-UFC 100 press conference UFC President Dana White discussed the world’s top-ranked heavyweight Fedor Emeliannko and his hopes of bringing him to the UFC for a fight against Brock Lesnar after his August 1 affliction matchup against Josh Barnett.
For more UFC 100 coverage check out MMAFrenzy.com’s UFC 100 section.
[Pictured: Fedor Emelianenko]
Tags: Brock Lesnar, Fedor Emel, Fedor Emelianenko
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That would be a big time ticket seller for any occasion. Especially on New Year’s Eve. It’ll be a great fight, tough fight for both men, but my money would be on Fedor.
i’d love to see it too, but does Lesnar deserve it?
I’d make him fight kimbo or
butter bean, make him WORK FOR IT…
ON THE OTHER HAND, HE IS A MONSTER, I WOULDNT BE SURPRISED IF HE COULD STEAMROLL OVER FEDOR AS WELL, THE WEIGHT DIFFERENCE PEOPLE…
Seriously? He just beat the crap out of Frank Mir, and you’re still talking about Butter Bean and Kimbo?
You have no clue what your talking about
go sit in the corner…
I know that Frank Mir doesn’t get the respect he’s earned in the Octagon, but does that actually say, “Kimbo or ButterBean”??
Really?
Gents perhaps he has a bit of sarcasm in the idea of fighting Butterbean? I thought it to be rather funny guys and rather obvious..
This excites me . I want to see it happen.
wow that will be aswome i hope i does happen im not a fan at all of brock and i know fedor is the only one i can think of right now that could beat him
I think Carwin stands a decent chance, too.
The Engineer stands a great chance to mess Brocks world up. Great call per norm Justin.
yeah I agree, I think Carwin is the only HW in he UFC right now that would have a chance against Brock, my money would still be on brock tho if he continues to come out with solid game plans like he did against Mir..of course Carwin has to get past Velasquez first
ANY DECENT HEAVY WEIGHT CLOSE TO HIS WEIGHT COULD DO IT.
CARWIN? COLEMAN? IS DAN SEVERN STILL ALIVE?
HOW ABOUT GONZAGA? TIM SILVIA?
Coleman is not a heavyweight anymore, he just fought Stephan Bonnar at 205 on this card. Dan Severn is close to the same size as Mir. If Tim Silvia couldn’t handle Randy or Mir (both of whom Brock beat), and if Gonzaga couldn’t handle Randy (again, whom Brock beat) why do you think they would suddenly be able to handle a bigger man who dominated people they lost to?
First: This won’t happen this calender year, probably not next one either. Fedor’s people have not made negotiations very easy, and I’m sure Dana hasn’t either.
Should the fight happen, look for a very similar game plan from Lesnar. Control what happens on the ground, wear him down, hit him with lunchboxes.
Agreed that it will be a while if the fight happens at all. (I hope it will.
And agreed that Lesnar will have the same plan for Fedor he had for Mir.
Firstly, as long as Dana White & Co., demand fight exclusivity. This will never happen. Fedor doesn’t care about money, you’re talking about a man who lives in a tiny apartment in Stary Oskol, he gave his mother a big house. He drives a Toyota Rav-4, given to him by city officials, and hardly lives/trains, in a lap of luxury (Think Rocky in Rocky IV). What he does care about, is national pride, and representing his country, in the Russian Combat Sambo Championships, which he and his Red Devil team, usually dominate.
From everything I’ve heard/seen, signing with Dana White, is a matter of signing your soul over to him. As long as you win, you stay employed. But 1 loss, and they can cut you immediately. Couple this, with White’s constant berating, questioning, and downright insulting rhetoric to Fedor, and honestly, I don’t see Fedor ever fighting in the UFC. He has absolutely nothing to prove to UFC’s heavyweight division. Nothing. His 9 years of victories, 5 dismantlings of former UFC champions (3 in the first round), speak volumes towards his abilities.
It’d be a decent fight, simply to watch Lesnar get his ass handed to him by someone smaller than him. But, I don’t need it, I’ve seen enough chumps fight in MMA.
Brian Murphy, I concur. I’d love to see BL (not bud light) humbled by Fedor (tha REAL champ).
I think when you look at his resume you don’t see any Randy Couture’s or Brock Lesners. In this regard Fedor does have something to prove. 5 former ufc champions notwithstanding, he still hasn’t fought Randy or the guy who put Randy down and kept him there. GSP has Hughes and Penn under his belt, Silva has Henderson and Franklin under his; in order to become truly and officially undisputed I would think Fedor would have to beat the absolute best in his weight class. Until he fights in the ufc he will no longer be fighting the best in the world proving his continued #1 ranking status. He will be fighting lower caliber fighters and getting accolades as if he’s fighting #2 ranked contenders. In fact if we consider Fedor to be ranked #1 heavyweight dating back to the beginning of ‘05, he has never beaten a #2 ranked contender. Just got done cross referencing his opponents with the UFC list of Heavyweight champions and I believe I can make a solid argument for this.
Having said that I am a huge Fedor fan and want him to enter the UFC and destroy not only Lesner but to shut up his sophomoric fan base as well. If he does come over I believe it will be for UFC hall of fame status which is about the only thing he won’t have at the end of his career. I’d personally like to see him achieve it, not for the money but for the reasons mentioned above.
I meant #1 ranked contenders up there, as Fedor has fought more than a couple number 2 ranked contenders.
I think Barnett is the last “real” test for Fedor outside the UFC, and I’m not really sure how much of a test he will be, since it took him 2.5 rounds to finish off Yvel earlier this year.
This is for all Fedor haters.
Here is some good details of his life as a fighter.
Before hate and criticize the guy just read this comments first or
do a little more research on Fedor by your self before jumping to conclusions.He is the real champion and the true representative of sport of MMA and always respectful of his opponents and he never call him self #1
Actually as far as I know Fedor does care about money but in this regard: If Dana wants fight exclusivity the Fedor and Co. want a million per fight because that is what his exclusivity is worth to them. They would take less AFAIK if exclusivity is not in the picture. So it’s easy.. pay what exclusivity is worth.. or don’t get the deal.
Fedor is a Russian hero.. fighting in Russia is worth a lot to him.
No, he doesn’t care about money, because he has enough of it available to him, should he desire to spend it/use it. He’s part owner of M-1, so he has a stake in that companies success. And to be honest, until I actually see Dana White acknowledge that Fedor is, in fact, the best Heavy weight in the world, I don’t think I’ll ever trust a word out of his slimy, mob-backed mouth.
From interviews, FROM Fedor, he specifically states the fight exclusivity is his number 1 issue, as I stated before, he takes part in the Russian Combat Sambo championships, yearly. Vladimir Putin, even goes to see him fight in them. When the former President/Current Prime Minister, of your country, takes significant enough a notice in you, to actually attend functions simply because of your presence there. Yeah, I don’t think Dana White has a chance of signing Fedor, no matter what amount of money he promises.
Fedor versus Lesnar basically leaves me no one to pull for. One has proven himself to be a douche, and the other hasn’t fought an opponent of merit in something like four years, and ducked out on an opportunuity to face Randy Couture and actually prove in the cage that he’s the best HW in the world.
IF, and thats a big if, the 2009 version of Fedor can defeat Josh Barnett, then we can start breaking down a projected Lesnar-Fedor match…
Dont know how big of an if that is there j, as a betting man my money would be on Fedor all the way. The primary reason being Barnett’s loss to Nog and not one not two but 3 losses to Cro Cop. And we all know what Fedor did to those guys. I could see if Josh Barnett had a skill set that was tailor made to beat Fedor but to my knowledge there’s no such thing.
I say its a big IF only in that Fedor has essentially taken off the last several years. His competition has been shady at best. If Fedor returns to his former PRIDE-ful self, Barnett will catch an “L” for sure, and I say this as a BArnett supporter.
The kimbo effect. Big dude fights, looks impressive yet ANYONE who stands opposite of Fedor has already lost. You cant control Fedor on the ground Mr. Lesnar. You cant stand with him either. My money would be on a ranged fight with a few take downs. Fedor is a master on the ground, Lesnar will know that. His caution will get Fedor back to his feet where Fedor will turn Lesnar’s lead leg purple then out of desperation (round 3 or so) Lesnar will be submitted.
I think most people said Lesnar had no real chance against Mir on the ground as well…
Fedor does his best work on the ground when he is on top and in control. Would he be able to get that kind of control against Lesnar? If he can’t, what does he have as his backup plan? He can’t allow Lesnar to push chest to chest on the ground, it will wear him out. Lesnar’s game plan would be the exact same one against Fedor that he used against Mir… Get the takedown. If you come down in contact with him, stay there and work. If not (and you’ll notice that in the first round, Mir was on his back and Lesnar told him to get up because he didn’t come down on Mir), let him back up and take him down again and this time, get into a dominant position and go to work. It’s a very simple game plan, and not always very fun to watch, but it can be brutally effective.
Tell that to Antonio Rodrigo Nogueria, whom Fedor decimated 3 times in a row. Fedor’s ground game makes even the best BJJ specialists look like amateurs.
… As I said, when he’s on top and in control, yes, Fedor is good… Please read the entire thing that I said… Then respond. Pay attention.
Oh for Chr!st sake, Fedor isn’t beating Lesnar unless it’s in a chess match. Lesnar is too large, too strong, too skilled a wrestler, and will smother Fedor the same way he smothered Mir. Stop kidding yourselves and OD’ing on old PRIDE footage of the Russian Military Experiment.
If Fedor gets Lesnar down he won’t be able to keep him down long enough to work his unique brand of g-n-p, and if Lesnar uses his college championship level wrestling ability to reverse, which he will, Fedor will get pancaked into the mat by a much larger and stronger manimal.
On their feet Lesnar will run Fedor up into and possibly THRU the cage, as he did against Mir.
Remember, Lesnar is currently facing some of the best HWs in the world in Randy Couture and Frank Mir, not guys like Hong Man Choi and Matt Lindland. Simply put, Fedor is rusty and Lesnar is peaking.
Unfortunate but true.
And I say this as a person who has hammered Lesnar for weeks at this site, so believe me I’m no fan of the Vanilla Gorilla.
[i probably should have trademarked that, by the way, i see everyone using it now]
Lesnar learned his lesson after being kneebarred in Mir-Lesnar 1. I wish it weren’t the case, but it happened. End of story.
If Fedor ever does make his way to the UFC and fights Lesnar, I suspect a similiar ending to what we got last Saturday night. Make no mistake, Fedor is being brought in to lose, and lose big, not to win. Dana sees dollar signs with Dr Deathclutch, and he’s not going to kill the golden goose with some Russian import.
Do I like it? No.
But as I have no choice for the time being I’m learning to live with it…
i dont want this fight to happen because brock would win. he would use the same gameplan he did to randy and mir. mir is more skilled on the ground then fedor is and brock will have almost as big as a weight advantage over fedor as he did against randy. brock will completely destroy fedor. i dont want to see his big ol stupid haircut head get any bigger. brock has beaten his opponents that are more talented then he is by using his size and strength. no technique, just size. he will do the same to fedor. fedor hasnt fought a tough opponent in a long time, look at what AA did to fedor he picked fedor apart in the stand up. fedor didnt use head movement or anything he stood there. thats not smart to do against brock. fedor’s biggest test in a long time will be barnett, but i do see him getting by barnett. i believe there will be a one fight agreement reached with fedor [since 100 made 5.1 mil, use a mil and a half to sign fedor for 1 fight] and the brock fedor fight might happen by christmas, or the fight before the superbowl like the bj-gsp superfight. brock’s biggest threat is not fedor, its carwin.
Although I would watch a Brock vs Fedor fight,if the UFC signed him for one fight and he won and became the Champion,then what? If they’re having trouble signing him as a challenger,imagine trying to sign him as the Champion.Also,will there still be interest in that fight if he loses to Barnett? Does the UFC then sign Barnett to fight Brock instead? I’d watch that fight too.
I agree. lesnar is avanilla gorilla. he is just too big to handle. give him someone his own size to bully.
Fedor might win, but I dont want to see him risk his unblemished record to that big lunk.
THERE SHOULD BE A LAW ABOUT WEIGHT DIFFERENCE…
i like fedor but lesnar might be too strong.
They do have weight classes, for your “law about weight difference”.
And Fedor does not have an “unblemished record”, he is 30-1-1.
watch the replay AA dint hit fedor once exept the kick. fedor toys with his opponents. and fedor is way more skilled than frank mir on the ground. he went 5 round twice with nogerria on the ground. fedor would beat brock in the first round, and as far as a size goes he beat way bigger fighters than brock… 22 first round wins 9 former ufc champs. fedor is the best. randy coutre and frank mir are both over rated and brock has 5 fights give me a break..
I wanna see it, do it around Christmas or New Years and have a huge ppv, Lesnar vs Fedor…GSP vs. HENDO…somthin like that would be awesome I think GSP and Brock are both 2-0 on the same card together and I believe when they are on the same card the live gate and total ppv buys are up wayyy up there too
i still think brock might be too strong for fedor
Brock vs. Fedor = WOW!!!!!!!
dude, brock can go fist himself,,,i think its a disgrace that people put brock in the same category as Fedor,,,you got a ****in’ monster who only beats people because he is 3 times the size of the average human being,,,and then you got Fedor, never been LEGITTLY beaten’,,,nuff said
amen to that
He wasn’t 3 times the size of Mir, in fact it was only a 35 lbs weight difference (not too dissimilar to the weight difference between Fedor and Lindland, BTW) Also, he was legitimately beaten, under the rules of that organization, that fight was a loss, period.
Ha Ha Ha,and Lindland was winning until Fedor cheated.Sorry Justin,had to say it.
Which actually strengthens my point, Jaymz.
a couple things….35lbs the day before…i will bet anything that it was more like 50lbs during the Buffer 360.
Comparing Lesnar to Fedor is also like comparing Matt Ryan to Joe Montana. While Matt looked really good for the brief time we’ve seen him…Joe had a proven record of greatness. We still dont know if Brock is a flash-in-the-pan. Sure he has gorilla strength, and if he lands a big shot the fight is usually over…but he can still be figured out. Fedor has consistently won, over many years.
Keep in mind…Fedor has lost the same amount of fights as Brock, but has never tapped out or gotten KOd
I’d take Fedor by RNC in the 1st.
“Keep in mind…Fedor has lost the same amount of fights as Brock, but has never tapped out or gotten KOd”
-i meant losses, not fights. whoops!
By RNC? How do you choke a man with NO NECK?
fedor by ko! easily…im sorry but fedor is on a different level…also this shows danas true colors dana bad mouths fedor till he finds someone who he actually thinks can beat him…i believe if mir would have just rushed in guns a blazing and rocked lesnar he could have easily subbed lesnar……nothing from lesnar but i also believe had lesnar landed in mir’s fll guard mir would have ended up subbing him
Which is why Lesnar did not get into Mir’s guard.
yes im not taking anything from lesnar he’s talented…i dont like him never will but he’s talented…by staying in mirs half guard mir had no answer for his short punchs at all
Lsnar-Fedor wold be huge. I’m not sure how it would play out though. Fedor has been fighting in a ring for a very long time, coming to the octagon alone would be a tough transition. He is a very good and well rounded fighter as he has proved before. I always question his cardio for obvious reasons, but he has never let that get in the way sooo….I feel that Brock is very good at what he does, but Mir showed that he can be hurt if caught by solid shots.
If Fedor get passed Barnett(like i think he will), well then there is no other legit Heavyweight outside the UFC to fight, so it would only make sense for him to finaly stop making crazy demands and just come to the UFC and finishe his career there.
Despite what some people may say about Fedor and Brock, whether you like them or not, they continue to win and prove themselves so i feel that credit is due even if you idslike them or not.
And for the record i’m personaly tired of all these Randy Couture fans, i’m a Randy Couture fan and have been for a long time but TRUTH BE TOLD, the guy should have hung ‘em up a while ago, talking about Fedor ducking him is a joke because Fedor would have destroyed him period. People like to talk about Brock not earning his title shot with Couture BUT HOW DOES COUTURE GETTING KNOCKED OUT !!TWICE!! BY LIDDELL GET HIM A SHOT AT THE HEAVYWEIGHT TITLE AGAINST SYLVIA????, DId he earn that shot?? I say absoloutely NO.
Now… i honestly feel the F-edor-Lesnar would be even more huge than Couture-Lesnar because Fedor is “Fedor” and has a huge following AND has problably the best chance at taking out Lesnar at this point.
Fedor vs Lesnar probably will happen. If Dana is truly determined to host this fight then chances are it will happen, after all UFC hosts the biggest MMA events. Plus, I dont think Dana needs Fedor to fight more than one fight in the UFC, and I truly dont think Fedor would want to fight more than one fight in the UFC — if he would fight Brock, win or lose it would settle the big discussion. Then after that fight, Dana could try to negotiate a multi-fight deal (if Fedor would win). I think that is the best solution since it would determine the best heavyweight and be be beneficial to both sides– UFC would host a huge event and give Lesnar a legit challenger– and Fedor would not have to fight exclusively for the UFC.
As for Carwin, once he fights Velasquez and defeats him, as i think he is going to, then he can be mentioned in Title discussions. In my opinion, I think Shane could give
Fedor or Lesnar a great fight and he will eventually get the oppurtunity (probably against Lesnar). Regardless of the Fedor situation, i think a Carwin Vs Lesnar match up-where i believe Carwin would win- is the best and most exciting match-up possible. Carwin is the only legit Heavyweight who can parallel Brocks weight, and Shane’s world class wrestling game as well as his striking would be too much for Lesnar.
Hey PC, I completely agree with a Carwin victory over Lesnar in all of the ways that you mention. Carwin to me is the more impressive fighter and one that could go unrivaled for quite a while if he were to hold the belt in his hands. Especially if you look at the HW division and think about who could take him out if he dismantles Brock.
I don’t think that there would be a better suggestion in bringing Lesnar and Fedor to blows in the octagon than what you described. Like you said, it seems to be the best call for all parties and I hope they do give something similar a shot.
There is a huge gap in experience that Brock couldn’t possibly be ready for. First, think about Lesnar at 4-1… Sure he has defeated a few grade A fighters, but 30-1-1 of Fedor is no light task. Not to mention his competition in the Judo circle and incredible record in Sambo (placing Fedor in a constant state of fight training at the highest level). Lesnar doesn’t have the age advantage he had over Randy to help with the weight difference. He doesn’t have the advantage over Fedor that he had over Mir because Fedor can best him in any aspect of the game… other than the potential brute strength. As for the Heath Herring fight, Heath has not been the same dominant character that we saw in Pride. I still see Lesnar as a big talking highly emotional goliath waiting for a violent downfall.
My call is that if Lesnar steps outside of the second or third round, you will see him fall off the charts in cardio and his advantages will not be so available to him. I still think that Mir would have turned the fight around in the third if it would have gotten there. Lesnar applies a steady pressure to help overwhelm his opponents and if you combine that with weight, you have a time limit for his skill set.
i don’t know who has a better chance in fedor vs barnett. (fedor overall but it’s rock paper scissors in mma,)
i do think barnett would easily trump lesnar’s biggest strength – ground control. barnett has a great chin and way better cardio (at least based on what we have seen so far). a tough as nails big catch wrestler.
if brock can’t finish fedor quickly he’ll lose miserably
by the way whats the 30-1-1.
the loss in that elbow cut ordeal? ok ha ha – it’s not like fedor would have needed long to finish the guy – it’s just not worth risking the flesh face scene fro silence of the lambs.
but who did he draw against. the arona fight went overtime and fedor won (wan’t full mma rules anyway which is partly why the fight went the way it did. fedor seems to be able to fight for blood or points whichever is required
It was a no contest against versus big nog for an accidental head butt and the loss he technically “won” because the cut came on an illegal elbow which is usually a DQ but it was a grand prix and someone had to advance. So it was a loss but it wasn’t by a KO, sub, or decision.
I’m curious about something.
How many of you out there really think that after almost 4 years, give or take, that Fedor is going to return to action PRIDE-fully?
Even if he beats Josh Barnett, and comes to the UFC, do you think we’re going to get the circa 2005 Fedor?
And there is the distinct possibility that Josh Barnett isn’t Josh Barnett anymore. His committment to MMA has always been inconsistent, to put it mildly. His strength is underwhelming, and he also has spent the last few years fighting substandard HW talent like Pedro Rizzo and Jeff Monson, both UFC castoffs, or taking all of 2007 off. There was a flash of brilliance against Gilbert Yvel, but I’m not sold on Barnett’s bad-@ssery just yet. This all adds up to the fact that Barnett’s heart might not really be into fighting MMA anymore.
I say this as a Josh Barnett supporter, and someone who has been waiting for years for Barnett to get up off of his @ss and live up to his potential.
By the time Fedor gets to the UFC, if ever, it’ll be 2010. Thats half a decade removed from his fighting peak. Other than Barnett on August 1, the last real competative HW bout he’s had was against Mirko CroCop, back in August of 2005. And that bout went to a decision.
I’ll say that again. Fedor DECISIONED Mirko CroCop, the same guy that got KTFOed by Gabriel Gonzaga and lost a decision to Chieck Kongo after taking a shellacking in the cage. Fedor couldn’t even manage to KO or submit Mirko.
Since then, Fedor has fought a wannabe Brazillian sumo, a kickboxer with a sub .500 record, MW Matt Lindland, a 7 foot mutant named Fin Fang Foom or something, and UFC castoffs Tim Sylvia and Andrei Arlovski.
He’s also kept busy being the planet’s best 220 pounder in Sambo, which is admirable but not particularly comforting in terms of assuring me that he’s ready to make a serious return to MMA, let alone the UFC, and in his old form as the “Last Emperor”.
Not to mention facing top shelf competition. Remember, this is the guy who duck-walked away from an opportunity to face Randy Couture when the Natural called him out, albeit respectfully.
IF Fedor beats Barnett, IF Fedor comes to the UFC, IF Fedor gets fast-tracked into a title match with Brock Lesnar, IF he’s still champion after a projected bout with Shane Carwin, that is IF Carwin beats Cain Velsaquez, and on and on it goes.
A lot of “ifs” there, and a lot of noise for a legendery Sambo fighter that hasn’t taken MMA seriously since 2005.
The problem with expecting Fedor to step into the Octagon and banish Boogeyman Brock is one that requires a monumental suspension of disbelief. A lot of stars have to align in order for this to happen, and Dana White will soon realize again, just like he did the last time he negotiated with Fedor’s mouthpieces, that the UFC will be just fine without a man who every day becomes more and more of an MMA “urban legend”, and less and less an active MMA competitor.
I’m not sure what makes Dana White [and the majority of MMA fans] think that if Fedor was unwilling to come to the UFC back in 2007/8 to face Randy Couture, a man a dozen years his senior and a general consensus underdog in a projected bout, why would Fedor be willing to come to the UFC NOW to face a Neanderthalic opponent who seeming lives to savagely beat opponents he disrespects, chief amongst those opponents Couture and Frank Mir?
Not to sound condescending, but those UFC fans that think Fedor Claus is coming to town need to stop drinking that Red Devil Kool Aid and see things as they actually are.
Apologies if thats harsh but I try to keep things grounded here in reality and facts, and not rely on stuff like, “yeah! Fedor’s the real champ!”…
Ok well there is alot to chew on (as usual)
but I will leave the majority of the agreement to DbiZ for the reply…
The problem with Fedor is his handlers and their retarded demands, Tom Atencio is trying to have Fedor signed through 2012 and well Fedor costs A LOT of money.. He makes 300,000 per fight but what he makes under the table is simply a retarded amount of money + you have the payoff of M~1 global (Affliciton’s “partner”) see the hell of the thing is that M~1 is Fedor’s handler’s hence more money and they want as much as possible, albeit I will state they might be a bit greedy… Could you imagine if on an event it was {UFC and M~1 Global present Lesnar v Fedor “The war of Kings”} or someshiiit like that, hey that won’t happen ever, there in lies the problem, and I side with the UFC on this one… I couldn’t imagine my competitor coming into my office telling me this is the way it is, especially seeing how I’m the big money (the most established guy) on the block, I would respond with a violent facepalm a kick in the asss and a strong PR campaign to allow all clients to understand what this guy just tried to do to me and my company… but that is another story..
Barnett v Fedor finally hey man I can’t wait, if Fedor would come to the UFC after this bout to face off against Lesnar that would simply be F~ING epic and I couldn’t imagine the hype that would be behind that bout, honestly tho I really doubt it will happen
oops…I think I remember dbiz asking me to leave off of the Diaz-bashing AND the calling out of Fedor.
He’s going to be pi$$ed when he reads this because he’ll think I’m infringing on his mmafrenzy gimmick again.
Sorry dbiz, but when they start on that “Fedor’s da man” dog$hit again I can’t help myself…
The last few months I’ve been pinning my hopes on 2 of my favorite HW fighters, Frank Mir and Josh Barnett, to get rid of 2 guys I thought were overrated and/or overhyped, namely Lesnar and Fedor.
Well you all saw how things went last Saturday night, so I’m hoping to go at least 1 and 1 in my personal fantasy quest to rid MMA of fighters I’m tired of hearing about and seeing fans make fools of themselves over…
Well given that DBiz is currently away on vacation, I’ll do my best to channel his spirit…
I would also and another thing to the list of what ifs: The health of his hands. How often over the last few years have we heard about a Fedor fight getting pushed back a few months because of a hand injury? Once a bone is broken, there is an increased risk of re-breaking it, even though technically the bone “re-grows” stronger than originally. I will admit to being completely ignorant of sambo rules, but MMA seems to have taken a physical toll on Fedor’s hands. I don’t know if it affects Fedor in sambo or if the contact in sambo hinders the healing process.
Chom: “He [Lesnar]doesn’t have the advantage over Fedor that he had over Mir because Fedor can best him in any aspect of the game… other than the potential brute strength.” Seriously did you say that? Mir didn’t hold an advantage over Lesnar? Everyone on this site (myself included) felt that if it turned into a technical match between Mir and Lesnar, Mir would win handily. It seems to me that Fedor would present a similar problem as Mir did. And don’t underestimate what kind of advantage forty pounds and quite a bit of extra brute strength is. The brute strength and size can help make up the gap in technical submission ability.
As far as the judo/sambo experience vs. the wrestling of Lesnar, that’s where the fight will be won/lost. End of story. I don’t believe that either one of them is exactly a striking genius, but both can land a punch that will permit them to begin their systematic ground destruction of their opponent. The fighter who lands on top will more than likely win.
Not that it really matters a whole lot. It’s kind of like arguing whether the 1975 Reds were better than the 1927 Yankkes. Or whether the 1985 Bears defense was bettter than the 200 Ravens defense. You’re comparing across generations of sport. You’re comparing entities that will not ever directly compete against each other. Fedor’s people (M1, WAMMA, other business interests) will continue to make outrageous demands and Dana White/UFC will not budge on them. As I said somewhere else, the earliest this fight would take place is 2011. Affliction does not have the depth at heavyweight to keep Fedor in MMA shape (he can only fight Arlovski and Barnett so many times…). It’s one of those nice thought experiments to go through, but ultimately just as fruitless as hoping to not have to go through the ****ing about fighter salaries after each event.
I would just like to point out that Fedor has been slumming his fights since the last Nogueira fight.
I’m sure that beating Zuluzinho and HMC will prepare him for Lesnar. After all, getting a kickboxer on the ground will SURELY be great experience and a solid game plan against a world-class wrestler.
Look, Fedor is….stale. And that’s why Affliction works for him. They have no legitimate HW threats. No one who hasn’t been run out of the UFC in some fashion (and don’t start on Arlovski, his serious MMA career is over after the Rogers debacle). Maybe Affliction can save the golden goose by bulking Buentello up for a title fight or by importing a 500 lb sumo for an MMA fight, but the serious contenders are done.
As has been mentioned elsewhere, Barnett has been demolished over half a dozen times by former Fedor opponents. He’s not the #2 HW in the world, just in Affliction. But I’ll be pulling for him just so the Russian Pube Bungee Jumpers (nuthuggers, if you didn’t make the connection) can sit back and realize that Fedor should have hung it up and gone to sambo full time when he was on top.
-dbiz
PS, Mir doing something Fedor couldn’t in the Nogueira (stoppage by KO) fight really takes a little shine off that victory doesn’t it? Or will the excuse be made that Nog isn’t’ the same fighter he was 4 or 5 years ago?
Man you cannot seriously call arlovski a UFC castoff, He himself chose to leave the UFC, he had one his recent bouts even beating Fabricio. He then preceded to crush solid fighters in nelson and rothwell before getting smashed by fedor, then sadly nelson. I am simply saying you are ignorant and clearly biased jcohl and act like your fans of everything to make it seem as if not. Fedor beat Sylvia and Arlovski both when they were in the top ten. Arlosvki was 2 or 3 at least i know. I cannot believe you would say something as ignorant as Fedor ducking randy. Why would he duck a man he could destroy, all of your angles are intended to skew the power in UFCs favor and I dont buy it. He beat Cro Cop when he was a monster, and saying such and such got kod by Gonzaga makes no difference. Fedor has won every fight he has had in the last couple of years, high level or not, brutally quick and effectively and consitently demonstrates why he is the best in the sport. Everyone from Bas, to Shogun, to St. Pierre all say that for a reason.
And he would make Brock look childish…
andrew, I’ll assume that you’re an OK guy with posters of Fedor and trading cards of Andrei Arlovski in your dorm room and just leave it at that, ok?
Um….AA got KOed by Brett Rogers in something like 30 seconds. Your posting privileges are hereby revoked.
it’s interesting,
to compare brock with gracie/ early ufc days.
sounds crazy but,
in this era,
brock brings something that trumps anyone so far in his,
ahem..
distinguished career,
where he has conquered 3 different, count ‘em three opponents in the UFC HW div.
if i was fighting someone like him i’d look at the very big ground control issue.
his ground game might not be diverse but it is very effective.
fedor always seems to know what to do. hunt has an iron chin and is not a grappler so he was happy to stay out out of range of hunts hand which standing are way scarier than brock’s (even with the reach brock has). the armbar attempts looked juvenile, but fedor seemed to be stuck under hunt. i think if he could have gotten top position with out effore he’d have done it but didn’t want to waste the effort with a 50 lb weight difference getting out from nder brock seems pretty hard… but since couture managed it even at his weight and age ! rebuttals: that is mir’s weakest area _WHY? because he has become great at subbing from his back and may have focussed on that in brock2 trainning. cain would not likely have ogt stuck in brock’s armpit like a little brother, nor carwin , nor smaller, but sneakier fedorfedor.
You’re the biggest nuthugger on this site and have been for years.
Did you get the “I heart Fedor” tattoo yet?
Careful, dbiz.
actually i jut try to look at it by the way fighters match up.
not record by record or whether they beat someone who beat their upcoming opponent. besides sometimes it’s just not your nite.
i’ve said for years that barnett would be a very tough match for fedor. who do i want to win – dunno – who ever puts up the best fight i guess. even when a fighter acts disrespectful i still, respect their ability to win, by saying that i think fedor would not get stuck under brock like mir did i’m nut hugging.
ok, have the last word big guy…….
Brock is too emotional. Fedor has a lot more power than you could expect from his frame. If Fedor doesn’t knock Brock out,he will find a way to submit him. It would be the greatest fight in MMA.