Fedor Says “Bigfoot” Silva’s Size Not A Factor In Loss

Russian heavyweight Fedor Emelianenko (31-3, 1NC) is currently training in the Netherlands, brushing up on his Muay Thai skills in anticipation of his next bout which is expected to take place in July.
The M-1 Global/Strikeforce fighter moved his training camp to the Netherlands following his recent February loss to Antonio “Bigfoot” Silva in their opening […]

Fedor photo shoot 1Russian heavyweight Fedor Emelianenko (31-3, 1NC) is currently training in the Netherlands, brushing up on his Muay Thai skills in anticipation of his next bout which is expected to take place in July.

The M-1 Global/Strikeforce fighter moved his training camp to the Netherlands following his recent February loss to Antonio “Bigfoot” Silva in their opening Strikeforce Grand Prix tournament bout. It was the second loss in the row for the Russian.

Many have attributed part of that loss to the size difference between the two fighters, with Fedor weighing in at 230 lbs, while his opponent, who hit the scales at 265 lbs likely weighed 280+ by the time of the fight. Fans and critics have called for their favorite fighter to make a drop in weight to fight at light heavyweight.

In an interview with MixFight.NL, courtesy of CagePotato.com, Fedor stated that “Bigfoot’s” size was not a factor in the loss and says he hasn’t been approached about dropping weight.

In February you fought Antonio “Big Foot” Silva. It seemed you had a problem with his size and weight advantage. Looking back, was this the reason you lost the fight?
No i don’t think so, it was not the size or weight advantage that caused my loss. Its just a fight and anything can happen. The gameplan did not worked out the way i wanted it. But the weight was definitely not the reason.

Do you consider dropping to light heavyweight? And possibly fight Dan Henderson for the light heavyweight title?
Yes i have talked about it with my manager Vadim Finklestein. But as far as i know, there is no offer made by Strikeforce to fight as a light heavyweight.

At the end of the fight against Antonio “Big Foot” Silva you announced that you might retire. You are now back in training and seemed motivated. How do you feel about it now?
For me it was a dissapointed moment when i lost the fight against Antonio Silva. It was not a moment of weakness but at that particular moment it was the way i felt. Back in Russia i talked about it with my management and my spiritual father and my decision now to continue fighting.