Filed under: StrikeforceSAN JOSE – While most of the other fighters in attendance at Thursday afternoon’s Strikeforce “Fedor vs. Werdum” press conference at the HP Pavillion entered wearing garish MMA-themed t-shirts and menacing stares, Fedor Emeliane…
SAN JOSE – While most of the other fighters in attendance at Thursday afternoon’s Strikeforce “Fedor vs. Werdum” press conference at the HP Pavillion entered wearing garish MMA-themed t-shirts and menacing stares, Fedor Emelianenko strolled in wearing a faded t-shirt, a beat-up pair of cargo shorts, and a shy smile as he was greeted with a hug from opponent Fabricio Werdum.
Flanked by executives from M-1 Global and backed by his trusty translator, Emelianenko slumped in his chair and offered the occasional reluctant grin when questioned about his status as one of the most dangerous heavyweights in the sport.
Filed under: Strikeforce, M-1 GlobalI don’t think Fabricio Werdum is going to beat Fedor Emelianenko on Saturday, and neither do you, and neither does anyone we know. But it is possible that Werdum could beat Fedor, and although it would be a huge upse…
I don’t think Fabricio Werdum is going to beat Fedor Emelianenko on Saturday, and neither do you, and neither does anyone we know. But it is possible that Werdum could beat Fedor, and although it would be a huge upset, it wouldn’t be as big an upset as Sokoudjou beating Antonio Rogerio Nogueira or Matt Serra beating Georges St. Pierre.
So if that huge upset happens, what happens next for Werdum, for Fedor, for Strikeforce, for M-1 Global and for all of MMA? A few scenarios are below.
Filed under: UFC, StrikeforceConducting a phone interview with Fedor Emelianenko on fight week is a little bit like trying to communicate with the Oracle at Delphi via a can and a string: you only get a few questions, filtered through a couple differen…
Conducting a phone interview with Fedor Emelianenko on fight week is a little bit like trying to communicate with the Oracle at Delphi via a can and a string: you only get a few questions, filtered through a couple different channels, and the answers all seem like riddles unto themselves.
To be fair, it could just be this particular fight week (or even this particular interviewer), but the world’s top heavyweight wasn’t exactly in the most loquacious of moods after he finished up his open workout in San Jose on Wednesday afternoon.
Nonetheless, MMA Fighting finally got some time with “The Last Emperor” to talk about his upcoming Strikeforce bout and the future of his fighting career in general, and he was as efficient with his words as always. Check out the full interview below.
(Jan’s hair was done by her mortician. He figured, "hey, why not get a head-start." / Props: Esther Lin for Strikeforce) Journeywoman Jan "Cuddles" Finney (8-7) throws the dice on a real long-shot this Saturday as she steps up to…
(Jan’s hair was done by her mortician. He figured, "hey, why not get a head-start." / Props: Esther Lin for Strikeforce)
Journeywoman Jan "Cuddles" Finney (8-7) throws the dice on a real long-shot this Saturday as she steps up to take on 145-pound queen Cristiane "Cris Cyborg" Santos (9-1) at Strikeforce: Fedor vs. Werdum. Finney describes MMA as a "hobby" that compliments her day-job as a personal trainer, but warns fans not to sleep on her: "I’m going to come right back at her. I’m not going to cower away. I’m probably going to be one of the strongest opponents she’s faced. I’m not saying I’m as strong as her, but you never know — I might be…I have a few tricks up my sleeve. I would also say I’ve got a pretty nice right hand."
(Video courtesy YouTube/TheShoot)
The majority of MMA fans and media feel that Fabricio Werdum will likely lose his fight against Fedor Emelianenko on Saturday night. Apparently nobody gave Werdum the memo.
"I know it’s going to be hard but …
(Video courtesy YouTube/TheShoot)
The majority of MMA fans and media feel that Fabricio Werdum will likely lose his fight against Fedor Emelianenko on Saturday night. Apparently nobody gave Werdum the memo.
"I know it’s going to be hard but I know that I can [beat Fedor]," he explains.
Although he is confident about his chances this weekend, Werdum has no illusions of grandeur.
"If I beat Fedor on that night, I’m better than him that night. I don’t consider myself better than anybody else," he says. "I just know that I have a place on the top. I think to beat Fedor is like having 10 belts in the house."
Filed under: Fighting, Strikeforce, NewsWhen Cris “Cyborg” Santos walks into the cage to defend her middleweight title belt against Jan Finney during Saturday’s Strikeforce/M-1: Fedor vs. Werdum event, she will do so as one of the biggest favorites in …
When Cris “Cyborg” Santos walks into the cage to defend her middleweight title belt against Jan Finney during Saturday’s Strikeforce/M-1: Fedor vs. Werdum event, she will do so as one of the biggest favorites in recent MMA history.
According to one online betting site, Cyborg was as much as a -2500 favorite, which means you’d have to lay down a whopping $2500 for the chance to win just $100. To put that into perspective, even the almighty Fedor Emelianenko is only a -600 favorite over Fabricio Werdum, a big number, but nowhere close to Cyborg’s.
The fact that a title match has such long odds is a rarity in MMA. What’s the reason behind the numbers? Three main things. First, the 9-1 Cyborg has built up a reputation as a wrecking machine, with TKO stoppages in seven of her last eight matches. Second, Finney has a fairly pedestrian 8-7 record, a mark you rarely see in a bout with gold on the line. Third, Finney’s strength is striking, yet most everyone believes Cyborg is the better and more powerful striker of the two. All of that means this is a money line for the history books.
SAN JOSE – While most of the other fighters in attendance at Thursday afternoon’s Strikeforce “Fedor vs. Werdum” press conference at the HP Pavillion entered wearing garish MMA-themed t-shirts and menacing stares, Fedor Emelianenko strolled in wearing a faded t-shirt, a beat-up pair of cargo shorts, and a shy smile as he was greeted with a hug from opponent Fabricio Werdum.
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