Was Fedor always "not that good" or did he run out of gas?

[PrettyCool]

Looking at Fedor's fight against the monstrous Henderson, we all saw that, the once accepted, greatest fighter in the world, was easily defeated, not by a young upstart, but by an even older fighter.

Fedor is one guy that seem to always have people on two sides of the fence. One said "Hes the greatest fighter EVER" and the other always said "He hasnt been good in years he only fights bad fighters."

I am not an MMA expert. But I have watched Fedor fights against Cropco and he was really good then, but then against he still wasnt fighting the UFC guys.

What do u guys think?

Do u think Fedor avoided Overeem? I think so...

[CSL]

since I got into MMA, I've always thought he was overrated, didn't really beat anybody of worth from like 2005 onwards yet so many people were still all "greatest fighter ever!!". That said, I think the whole "Fedor exposed!" stuff that a lot of people crow about after his losses is pretty bullshit. 33-4 is still a beast of a record, I only think he lost to Werdum because of over-confidence/a false sense of invincibility/a lack of respect for Werdum and I'd say he was borderline unlucky in the Bigfoot fight because he'd have had a third round if his eye hadn't swollen up like a baboon's arse. The only "decisive" loss was Hendo and even then he got KO'd with a shot nobody ever saw coming that Hendo probably couldn't that perfectly in 99 more attempts. Basically, I still think he could do a job for Dana and that people would pay to see it, would still love to see him in the UFC.

[PrettyCool]

since I got into MMA, I've always thought he was overrated, didn't really beat anybody of worth from like 2005 onwards yet so many people were still all "greatest fighter ever!!". That said, I think the whole "Fedor exposed!" stuff that a lot of people crow about after his losses is pretty bullshit. 33-4 is still a beast of a record, I only think he lost to Werdum because of over-confidence/a false sense of invincibility/a lack of respect for Werdum and I'd say he was borderline unlucky in the Bigfoot fight because he'd have had a third round if his eye hadn't swollen up like a baboon's arse. The only "decisive" loss was Hendo and even then he got KO'd with a shot nobody ever saw coming that Hendo probably couldn't that perfectly in 99 more attempts. Basically, I still think he could do a job for Dana and that people would pay to see it, would still love to see him in the UFC.

Do u think Fedor can "hang" with dudes like Overeem, Dos Santos and Velasquez?
I dunno, after the Hendo fight, I think those guys would be on a totally different level for him. I think hes just too old now.

[CSL]

I have no idea whatsoever, I'd guess probably not but I'd like to see him try. Stick him in with a Ben Rothwell or somebody first and let him go from there

[PrettyCool]

I have no idea whatsoever, I'd guess probably not but I'd like to see him try. Stick him in with a Ben Rothwell or somebody first and let him go from there

Ur prolly right but I read that Fedor is controlled by Russian criminals who make good money off him and dont want to share him with UFC unless they get a lot of money out of it and UFC is controlled by italian criminals so thats why Fedor never fought in UFC.

It sounds like a plot for a movie, so its prolly stuff ppl make up but u never know

[MoFo]

Seems like his 'supporters' always defend him with statements like "well Arlovski was ranked #2 when he fought him". Yeah, but Arlovski ranked #2 was frauduelent as fuck. He'd already lost to Tim fucking Sylvia and been KO'd like 4/5 times before that fight.

He's got a pretty empty record as you'd expect, fighting outside UFC. Not that I think he's "scared to fight anyone", because he most certainly isnt. But would loved to have seen what would of happened if he'd been matched with a top HW in his prime. Shame the Barnett fight didnt happen at Affliction, and the Overeem fight in the GP.

To use a wrestling comparison, its kinda like Sting not going to WWE, how can you be 'the best' if you never fought 'the best'.

[Mercury Bullet]

I think he was a great heavyweight. Never top P4P though as some claim. He got old, his skills have eroded, and his lack of a quality training camp and sparring partners have started to catch up with him.

[Jura]

I believe he can knock anyone out. He's tough as hell and always faced who they put (or let) in front of him. I think if he faced more skilled opponents he would be much better, like someone on here said, iron sharpens iron.

[Nark Order]

I kind of like to "write him off" sometimes just because it gets Sherdoggers so incredibly angry.

[Next Big Thing]

The fact that you post on Sherdog makes me want to hurt you. I tried that site for a day and got ran the fuck out of the forum. I like their pre-fight analysis though.

[The Mask]

He was ace back in the day, but that day was also when chuck and Tito were good. Really fucked up not going to the Ufc and now nobody cares about him.

[SuperSlim]

Well his next fight is scheduled to be against Pedro Rizzo... so we'll see what he has left.

Fedor Emelianenko (33-4) has his next opponent.

The longtime PRIDE champion will meet former UFC heavyweight-title challenger Pedro Rizzo (19-9) on June 21, M-1 official Evgeni Kogan today announced via Twitter.


Fighters such as Bobby Lashley and Rolles Gracie previously were rumored for the slot, but it'll instead go to 37-year-old Rizzo.


The June 21 event, which is expected to be an M-1 show, takes place at the Ice Palace in St. Petersburg, Russia. It'll likely air on pay-per-view.

[Pintint]

I'm not an MMA expert, but from my VERY LIMITED observations, I think that yes, Fedor at one point was best in the world. However, he let the success get to his head, got out of shape, stopped trying as hard and with age catching up to him, lost his edge.