The Fedor Emelianenko to UFC rumors just won’t go away.
Two months after talk surfaced that Emelianenko’s long-time manager Vadim Finkelstein attended UFC on FUEL TV 7 in London, Finkelstein was spotted in the crowd during the UFC on FUEL TV 9 broadcast on Saturday night in Stockholm, Sweden.
Finkelstein’s unlikely cameo came when the cameras showed heavyweight Stefan Struve sitting cageside. The Russian manager, who UFC president famously nicknamed “Vadummy,” was on camera for several seconds.
The appearance was newsworthy because of his seemingly rocky relationship with White over the years, and because White admitted in January that he was close to finally signing Emelianenko to a UFC deal last year before the heavyweight decided to retire once and for all following the death of his father.
However, despite Finkelstein’s cageside seats, which are typically reserved for VIP guests, White said at the post-fight press conference that he didn’t know Finkelstein attended the show or why he was there.
“I think he’s stalking me,” White joked. “I don’t know why he was here.
“We don’t really talk and hang out, you know what I mean?”
White unsuccessfully tried to sign Emelianenko several times in the past, however, he often blamed his management team, led by Finkelstein, for standing in the way of a deal.
Gegard Mousasi, who defeated Ilir Latifi in the main event, was once managed by Finkelstein’s M-1 Global management team, however, they have not worked together in a while and Finkelstein had not been seen at any of Mousasi’s recent fights.