Fedor Emelianenko‘s management may want to see him and former UFC champion Cain Velasquez go at it in Moscow, but there’s no reason for Dana White to make it happen.
M-1, the group representing Emelianenko (and it’s worth noting that Fedor is also part owner), feels that the time is right for the UFC and M-1 to hold a show in Moscow, headlined by Emelianenko and Velasquez.
With Emelianenko returning to the winning column and the UFC seeking to expand overseas, it’s a match made in heaven, right?
Wrong.
In reality, Dana White shouldn’t get anywhere near this deal.
First, neither UFC nor Velasquez have anything to gain from the fight.
The UFC doesn’t need to get involved with the morally questionable hornet’s nest that is M-1. So in that aspect, the fight doesn’t make sense. Why co-promote with such a sordid group?
Concerning the expansion to Russia: While the fight with Velasquez and Emelianenko would help the UFC’s popularity, they already have a deal with FOX, so overseas expansion will come in time.
Also, Fedor’s aura (which was once his main selling point) has been stripped from him. He’s 1-3 in his last four fights and is no longer seen as the unstoppable killing machine that he once was.
If Velasquez beats Fedor, so what? He beat a guy who was over the hill.
But if he loses? Then it invalidates the UFC’s whole heavyweight division and the notion that all UFC heavyweights are better. Dana White’s Twitter would be receiving hate for centuries (well maybe not that long, but you get the idea).
The UFC will be risking a lot to gain nothing. The last thing they need is to make that fight happen. It’s likely just M-1’s last attempt at giving Fedor Emelianenko some relevance in a changing MMA landscape.
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