UFC no longer interested in signing Fedor

[Rappy Veteran]

LAS VEGAS ? In case you were wondering if Fedor Emelianenko's recent loss to Fabricio Werdum might open up the possibility of the Russian making his way to the octagon, UFC president Dana White has a simple message for you: It's not happening.

Following Thursday's UFC 116 pre-event press conference, White said he has absolutely no interest in continuing his years-long pursuit of the former PRIDE champ.

"Now that he loses, now they want to say, 'OK, now we'll come over,' because he lost?" White asked. "I'm done playing the games."

Werdum shocked Emelianenko and the MMA world with a 69-second submission win over the Russian that snapped his incredible 27-fight winning streak. Other than a smiley face posted on his Twitter account, White has remained relatively quiet since the June 26 result.

While one might have expected White to gloat in the agony of the "crazy Russians," the UFC exec said he viewed the loss as inevitable and was simply glad to see a hole poked in the mystique of Emelianenko that he believes has been largely built by the media.

"Honestly, when he lost, you guys know there's been times when I have animosity with guys and you lose, and I'm like, 'Ha. Alright, there you go,'" White said. "But to be honest with you, I didn't have any of that for Fedor.

"In my opinion, the media pumped him up more than anything. When he did the fight, they were far from selling out. They did under a million-dollar gate. They had 400,000 people watch it on Showtime. It's not like anybody is really clamoring for [him to come to the UFC]."

The UFC exec said he has not any discussion with Emelianenko's reps following the loss. But White contends now, as he long has, that Emelianenko is not even a top heavyweight, much less a pound-for-pound great, and with the Russian's incredible run over, there's simply no reason to bring him to the UFC.

"To be honest with you, without joking around and no [expletive], I honestly and truly have not believed that Fedor is this great heavyweight that everybody thinks he is," White said. "Yes, back in the day in 2005 and before that, he was beating some great guys who were in their prime, and he was nasty. But to prove that you're the best in the world, you have to fight the best consistently. You have to consistently fight the best.

"It would be like calling the Lakers the world champions and they're playing some college team. It's not the same. I know that everybody can see the sense in that, but people just love to because he's not here they want to say, 'Oh, he could do this and that.' It's all mythology and [expletive]."

White said there was a time when Emelianenko coming to the UFC would have been profitable for everyone involved, but that's simply no longer the case.

"If we were to have come to a deal with Fedor, yeah, we could have put on a big promotion, and we could have found out (how goood he is)," White said. "People are going to say, 'Oh, he got caught in a triangle. Anybody can.' Yeah, anybody can, but it would have been a lot better if he came over here and lost to Shane Carwin, Brock Lesnar, Cain Velasquez, than losing to Werdum."

Of course, now that Emelianenko is tumbling down most MMA pundits' rankings list, Saturday's UFC 116 heavyweight title unification bout between UFC champ Brock Lesnar and interim title-holder Shane Carwin will likely produce the sport's undisputed heavyweight king.

White said that's just what should happen.

"Shane Carwin and Brock Lesnar, we know all their attributes," White said. "We know how good they both are. I have no idea what's going to happen on Saturday night. I have no clue. So to say that one guy could beat this guy, there's only one way to find out who can beat who, and that's fight, and [Emelianenko and his camp] aren't willing to do it.

"You don't get the honor of being called the best fighter in the world when you won't fight the best guys in the world. Now doesn't that make sense?"

So with Emelianenko's run over and the majority of the world's best fighters competing within the UFC's octagon, it's unlikely that any fighter in any weight class will be considered a world No. 1 any time in the near future. It would seem to be the end of controversy for the UFC, but White said he's not expecting a moment of peace.

"I know it's fun because I don't have [Emelianenko] and he's not in the UFC, so it's fun to say, 'Oh, what we he do?'" White said. "And I guarantee you, get ready: (Strikeforce heavyweight champion Alistair) Overeem will be the next guy now. 'Oh, Overeem would beat them all.'

"Overeem got knocked out by Chuck Liddell at light heavyweight."

Source

[TheElite]

I don't know why they're not interested.

Fedor could still beat most of their top fighters, if not all of them.

[D. S. Veteran]

No, he could not.

Fedor blew his chance with the UFC. Now that he doesn't have the hype behind him, he is still a good fighter but isn't that much of a draw. Overeem would fare better in the UFC than Fedor.

[TheElite]

Yes, he would beat them.

[Rappy Veteran]

Yes, he would beat them.

he would beat Carwin and Lesnar?

[TheElite]

I think he would beat Lesnar. Carwin? Not sure.

Valesquez would be a bigger challenge than Lesnar as well. The former's boxing is far superior to Lesnar's.

[Lovell]

Fedor hasn't fought anyone (since pride) but ex UFC champions who are ex champions for a reason, Overeem would have been his biggest challenge yet which won't happen now that he lost to Werdum who is a decent fighter but not a champion, still not sure why the UFC got rid of him he beat Gonzaga and Vera before losing to Dos Santos whose beat everyone the UFC has gave him. :blink:

Still if M1 weren't the greediest bunch of **** we would already know the answer to how well Fedor would have done in the UFC.

[Bubbabyte]

ZAnwar you coulnd't be any more in denial...lol

Fedor was overhyped and undertested, he wouldn't stand a chance against Cain, Lesnar or Carwin. I hate lesnar as much as the next guy but if you really think Fedor could beat lesnar you're insane..lol

[TheElite]

Fedor was hyped because he was unbeaten. Now he lost to a BJJ specialist, congrats to Werdum. To say that Fedor isn't capable of being in the same league as Lesnar or Carwin is laughable. He would beat Lesnar anyday.

[Bubbabyte]

I'm not saying he's not talented, but he was only unbeaten because he hadn't faced anyone even worth mentioning in the last 10 years. I'm not saying that Fedor isn't capable of being in the same league as Lesnar and Carwin either.. Fedor has much more experience than either of them, however Fedor has been exposed by Werdum. He hasn't just lost a fight, he was exposed for exactly what people have been saying about him for ages now, in that he hasn't fought anyone worth fighting and when he does, he breaks. In all honesty, aside from Fedor's KO power, I would go as far as saying that Arlovski and Rogers were both winning the fight up until the KO. Lesnar doesn't have near the experience that Fedor has, but his freak athleticism and strength make me believe it would be a pretty easy win for him over Fedor.

But by all means continue with your Fedor is the greatest thing since sliced bread train.. soon enough it will come to and end and you'll be seeing him for what he is. A talented guy that likes to hide behind his record and not challenge himself.

[TheElite]

Actually you DID say that he wasn't in their league by saying that he wouldn't stand a chance.

Fedor has been exposed? By doing what? Giving up position to a two time world jiu-jitsu champion who took advantage of it? If anyone had to take advantage, it would be him. Fedor would kill Lesnar if the fight stayed standing. Lesnar doesn't have one punch knockout power (we haven't seen it yet), but Fedor does AND his striking accuracy is light years superior. It is due to this reason that Lesnar would take it to the ground, but Fedor is no Frank Mir either.

Even I say that Fedor doesn't challenge himself, but to discredit him like that is insulting.

[Bubbabyte]

Actually you DID say that he wasn't in their league by saying that he wouldn't stand a chance.

Fedor has been exposed? By doing what? Giving up position to a two time world jiu-jitsu champion who took advantage of it? If anyone had to take advantage, it would be him. Fedor would kill Lesnar if the fight stayed standing. Lesnar doesn't have one punch knockout power (we haven't seen it yet), but Fedor does AND his striking accuracy is light years superior. It is due to this reason that Lesnar would take it to the ground, but Fedor is no Frank Mir either.

Even I say that Fedor doesn't challenge himself, but to discredit him like that is insulting.

What I meant by the league comment is simple, it's almost the same for Couture imo, couture and Fedor are in the same league (technically speaking) because of their talent, record, experience etc... however neither of them are a match for someone of Lesnar's size and strength, they just can't cut it.

Yes, Fedor has been exposed, he gave up a position, which many think he could have gotten out of in the first 20 seconds or so but he failed to do so. He lost to a 2 time world jiujitsu guy, who you failed to mention couldn't cut it in the ufc and got cut for losing. Yes he's great at juijitsu, but if he's as talented as you make him out to be, why coulndn't he beat Dos Santos, a relatively new guy to the sport?

Lesnar does lack stand up skills, so by you saying that fedor would beat him standing up is a no brainer, of course he would. But lesnar would never allow it, he would charge fedor and get him down and beat him senseless and there is nothing fedor could do to stop it. We all understand that Fedor is superior at striking, it's no shock dude but he can't MAKE lesnar stand, the way that lesnar can MAKE him go to the ground.

I'm not sure what you meant by saying Fedor is no Mir... Mir is a much more talented jiujitsu guy than Fedor is.

[TheElite]

Comparing Couture's record to Fedor's? Come on. Randy has lost half the amount of fights he has won.

Werdum lost two of the four fights he's had in the UFC and he got cut. Pretty stupid if I may say so on Dana White's part. He beat the likes of Gonzaga and Vera and only lost to Arlovski (via decision) before that. Santos has got a record which not many people have in the UFC. As I said before, Werdum is a force to be reckoned with in the UFC also. He would kill the likes of Randy Couture. Carwin or Valesquez? No.

Fedor is a MUCH stronger guy than Mir, that's what I was talking about. He's not going to get manhandled like Mir did.

[Yorak]

Fedor is a bitch and would get owned in UFC.

Good decision.

[Bubbabyte]

Comparing Couture's record to Fedor's? Come on. Randy has lost half the amount of fights he has won.

Werdum lost two of the four fights he's had in the UFC and he got cut. Pretty stupid if I may say so on Dana White's part. He beat the likes of Gonzaga and Vera and only lost to Arlovski (via decision) before that. Santos has got a record which not many people have in the UFC. As I said before, Werdum is a force to be reckoned with in the UFC also. He would kill the likes of Randy Couture. Carwin or Valesquez? No.

Fedor is a MUCH stronger guy than Mir, that's what I was talking about. He's not going to get manhandled like Mir did.

Since when did i say we were comparing fight stats.. fedor is like 31-2 or something, of course nobody can compare to that, then again nobody has gone as long as him fighting nobodies. Aside from there actual wins/losses, they are very comparable. This is why so many people wanted to see that matchup. But if you wanna go by fight stats go for it.. i could just as easily say that Couture has held a HW belt and a LHW belt, something fedor could never do, so that must make couture better, right?

If you watched his fights you'd understand why he got cut, the Vera fight was a horrible fight and he only won due to a horrible ref stoppage, watch it for yourself. He was in the same boat as thallas Leites was.. great BJJ guys, but they didn't want to fight, just wanted to lay on their back and hope for the best. Leites got cut right after a title fight, so it has nothing to do with fight stats, it has to do with horrible fighters. Werdum couldn't do **** in the UFC, he couldn't before, what makes you think he can now? I honestly think Couture would beat Werdum.

[TheElite]

Since when did i say we were comparing fight stats.. fedor is like 31-2 or something, of course nobody can compare to that, then again nobody has gone as long as him fighting nobodies. Aside from there actual wins/losses, they are very comparable. This is why so many people wanted to see that matchup. But if you wanna go by fight stats go for it.. i could just as easily say that Couture has held a HW belt and a LHW belt, something fedor could never do, so that must make couture better, right?

If you watched his fights you'd understand why he got cut, the Vera fight was a horrible fight and he only won due to a horrible ref stoppage, watch it for yourself. He was in the same boat as thallas Leites was.. great BJJ guys, but they didn't want to fight, just wanted to lay on their back and hope for the best. Leites got cut right after a title fight, so it has nothing to do with fight stats, it has to do with horrible fighters. Werdum couldn't do **** in the UFC, he couldn't before, what makes you think he can now? I honestly think Couture would beat Werdum.

You talked about 'record'? What other meaning does that have?

Let's just hope that the Fedor v Overeem fight happens now. That'll put to rest much of the criticism surrounding Fedor.

We all know that the beast that was unleashed on Rogers this past month would wreak havoc in UFC. I could see Overeem beating Lesnar. Whether it'd be easy or not, that's another story. For some reason you people overrate fighters in the UFC so much. Just because they're in the UFC doesn't mean that other fighters from other organisations can't beat them.

Let's wait for Carwin and Lesnar's fight tonight. We'll see how Brock likes fighting a person who may have the same raw power as him.

[D. S. Veteran]

Yes, like Fedor would get a title shot after losing. Oh wait, this is Bizarro Land MMA aka Strikeforce where a loss is the only way to secure your spot as a n? 1 contender. :rolleyes:

Fedor will probably rematch Werdum for the last fight of his contract and then try and jump ship to the UFC, costing Dana White a fraction of what he would have had to pay for him had he jumped ship while technically undefeated.

[SiCKX]

Valesquez would be a bigger challenge than Lesnar as well. The former's boxing is far superior to Lesnar's.

Velasquez's has pillow punches, you lost your mind. A lucky punch on Nog won't make him good, remember Ben Rothwell and Kongo. He could punch forever, noone cares.

Fedor is a MUCH stronger guy than Mir, that's what I was talking about. He's not going to get manhandled like Mir did.

Mir weighed in at 265 and couldn't stop Carwin, Fedor is small, this time size really matters. The way he presented himself against Rogers and Werdum, Mir could beat him with a hand tied behind his back.

[TheElite]

Fedor will probably rematch Werdum for the last fight of his contract and then try and jump ship to the UFC, costing Dana White a fraction of what he would have had to pay for him had he jumped ship while technically undefeated.

Fedor's not going to UFC.

Velasquez's has pillow punches, you lost your mind. A lucky punch on Nog won't make him good, remember Ben Rothwell and Kongo. He could punch forever, noone cares.

You on crack? Pillow punches? :rofl:

Mir weighed in at 265 and couldn't stop Carwin, Fedor is small, this time size really matters. The way he presented himself against Rogers and Werdum, Mir could beat him with a hand tied behind his back.

Size isn't everything. Technique plays a big part, and Fedor has bucket loads of it.

[revvo]

No, he could not.

Fedor blew his chance with the UFC. Now that he doesn't have the hype behind him, he is still a good fighter but isn't that much of a draw. Overeem would fare better in the UFC than Fedor.

Yeah he could. Fedor made a simple mistake of just rushing in against Werdum, possibly the best Heavyweight BJJ fighter out there. He had Werdum down, but he should have seen it, but he didn't. With other fighters in the past, he was very careful in his strikes when the fighter was on the ground waiting to trap Fedor.

After seeing that performance by Lesnar yesterday, I'm convinced that he's one of the best HW fighters out there, but his stand-up was weak. Fedor could easily knock Lesnar out standing up. On the ground, I'm not too sure how his Sambo would fare with Lesnar's wrestling..

Dana White is stupid though, because anyone can tell you that Fedor vs any other heavyweight in the UFC will still sell PPVs like crazy. Big deal, he has 1 loss. Any great fighter out there has had losses. Does Carwin suck after that 1 loss? Hell no. Nogueira has a few losses, and what about GSP? The loss isn't the issue, it's how they rebound from the loss, if you come back stronger.

[TheElite]

Precisely. I don't think that Fedor will retire just yet (hopefully).