After a week of intense negotiations and speculation, Fedor  Emelianenko has signed a historic, multi-fight agreement that will see him headline mega-events co-promoted by world championship promotions STRIKEFORCE and M-1 Global.

Fedor, will make his premium television debut this Fall when his first fight under the new agreement airs live on SHOWTIME®. Up until now, Emelianenko’s live fights have aired exclusively on pay-per-view in the United States.

“I am looking forward to going back to work and fighting at the highest level,” said the 33-year-old Emelianenko.

“From my viewpoint, the UFC does not have the proper attitude towards fighters,” said Emelianenko. “They don’t consider fighters to be normal people, human beings. What I think (is) that the UFC’s attitude towards the fighters is not the correct one and I don’t like their policy, which appears to be (a) really forced one, because the offer which we got was one kind, then on the Internet they published (an) absolutely different offer. The offer that we got from them was really miserable.”

In his last effort, the 6-foot, 235-pound Emelianenko decimated the number two ranked heavyweight at the time Andrei “The Pitbull” Arlovski with a single punch in the first round (3:14) of the main event of Affliction: “Day of Reckoning” at Anaheim, California’s Honda Center on January 24.

“STRIKEFORCE is a top fight promotion that houses some of the greatest fighters in the world,” continued Emelianenko. “I am prepared to fight any of them.”

“We are extremely excited to have the opportunity to work with M-1 Global and Fedor,” said STRIKEFORCE Founder and CEO Scott Coker, a martial arts fight promoter of over 25 years. “Fedor has been the reigning king of MMA’s heavyweight division for quite some time now so being able to work with M-1 and Fedor will substantially increase the level of competition amongst the athletes in this weight class.””

Though his official professional record is 30-1, Emelianenko is considered undefeated. The only blemish on his record is a December 22, 2000 fight that was stopped after 17 seconds and declared a TKO in favor of his opponent, Tsuyoshi Kohsaka, due to an illegal cut  Emelianenko sustained in the opening seconds of the matchup in Osaka, Japan.

Amongst those on Emelianenko’s list of impressive conquests are former PRIDE Heavyweight Champions Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira, Mark “The Hammer” Coleman, and Mirko “Cro Cop” Filipovic as well as former UFC Heavyweight Champions Kevin “The Monster” Randleman and Tim Sylvia, whom Emelianenko submitted with a rear naked choke only 36 seconds into their main event showdown at Affliction: “Banned” on July 19, 2008.

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The “Affliction: Trilogy” event, which lost its main event earlier this week when headliner Josh Barnett failed drug test, has been canceled. This is PR debacle for Affliction and this might be the end of promotion.

Kimbo / Petruzelli controversy destroyed EliteXC promotion and Barnett dopping debacle detroyed Affliction.

What about Fedor?

Fedor wants everything that Couture wanted: money and respect. And that is why Fedor is still with Affliction, but not for long.  Josh Barnett is out for his headlining fight against Fedor on August 1 in the main event  due to what California State Athletic Commission cryptically referred to as a “positive test result”.

Fedor is going back to Japan or to UFC or less likely Strikeforce.  Fedor’s first choice is Japan, because he is iconic figure for MMA fans there and he can demand hefty payouts. UFC wants him badly because of strong pressure from  US fans and media.

Lesnar is being cast as the MMA villain du jour. And since every villain needs a hero, media and fans alike seem to prefer Fedor as the man for the job. Instead of celebrating Lesnar’s victory or simply descrying his after-fight performance, many are looking for vengeance. And the one to provide his medicine is the world’s ultimate heavyweight champ—Fedor.

P.S.

Affliction problems:

- Arlovski was released from Affliction after two brutal KO’s and huge payouts

- Silvia is on the shelf  after two brutal KO’s

- Barnett used banned substances

Here is the list of the most famous MMA fighters that used dope:

Tested Positive:
Ken Shamrock (LHW) – USA – Stanozolol & Nandrolone
Kimo Leopoldo (HW) – USA – Stanozolol
Josh Barnet (HW) – USA – Boldenone
Kevin Randleman (LHW) – USA – caught w/horse piss
Antonio Silva (HW) – Brazil – Boldenone
Chris Leben (MW) – USA – Stanozolol
Stephan Bonnar (LHW) – USA – Boldenone
Pawel Nastula (HW) – Poland – Nandrolone
Vitor Belfort (LHW) – Brazil – 4-hydroxytestosterone
Phil Baroni (MW) – USA – Boldenone & Stanozolol
Sean Sherk (LW) – USA – Nandrolone
Anthony Torres (MW) – USA – Boldenone
Hermes Franca (LW) – Brasil – Drostanolone
Tim Silvia (HW) – USA – Stanozolol
Alexandre Nogueira (BW) – Brazil – Boldenone
Dennis Hallman (MW) – USA – Drostanolone & Nandrolone
Royce Gracie (WW) – Brazil – Nandrolone
Bill Mahood (MW) – Canada – Drostanolone
Kit Cope (LW) – USA – Boldenone
Sean McCully (HW) – USA – Nandrolone

Admitted Users:
Mark Kerr (HW) – USA
Jeff Monson (HW) – USA

Strong Suspects:
Mark Coleman – USA
Bob Sapp –USA
Don Frye – USA

Main Bouts:

Paul Buentello vs. Gilvert Yvel
Jay Hieron vs. Paul Daley
Renato “Babalu” Sobral vs. Gegard Mousassi
Vitor Belfort (???) vs. Fedor Emelianenko
(Televised on HDNet)

Deividas Taurosevicius vs. Mark Hominick
Din Thomas vs. Akbarh Arreola
Ben Rothwell vs. Chase Gormley
Chris Horodecki vs. Dan Lauzon

Preliminary Bouts:

(Non-televised)

Jessie Gibbs vs. Rob Broughton
Lucio Linhares vs. Givanildo Santana

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Date: Jul 11, 2009

Location: Las Vegas, Nev.
Venue: Mandalay Bay Events Center
Broadcast: Pay per view

MAIN CARD

• Champ Brock Lesnar vs. interim champ Frank Mir (heavyweight title unification)
• Champ Georges St. Pierre vs. Thiago Alves (for welterweight title)
• Jon Fitch vs. Paulo Thiago
• Michael Bisping vs. Dan Henderson
• Yoshihiro Akiyama vs. Alan Belcher

PRELIMINARY CARD

• Stephan Bonnar vs. Mark Coleman
• Mac Danzig vs. Jim Miller
• Jon Jones vs. Jake O’Brien
• C.B. Dollaway vs. Tom Lawlor
• Matt Grice vs. Shannon Gugerty
• T.J. Grant vs. Dong Hyun Kim

RESULTS:

Main card

Middleweight bout: Yoshihiro Akiyama vs. Alan Belcher: Akiyama defeated Belcher via split decision (30-27, 28-29, 29-28).
Middleweight bout: Dan Henderson vs. Michael Bisping: Henderson defeated Bisping via KO (punch) at 3:20 of round 2.
Welterweight Championship bout: Georges St-Pierre vs.Thiago Alves: St-Pierre defeated Alves via unanimous decision (50-45, 50-44, 50-45) to retain the UFC Welterweight championship.
Heavyweight Championship unification bout: Brock Lesnar vs. Frank Mir: Lesnar defeated Mir via KO (punches) at 1:48 of round 2 to become the undisputed UFC Heavyweight champion.
Welterweight bout: Jon Fitch vs. Paulo Thiago : Fitch defeated Thiago via unanimous decision

Preliminary card

Lightweight bout: Matt Grice vs. Shannon Gugerty: Gugerty defeated Grice via submission (guillotine choke) at 2:36 of round 1.
Middleweight bout: C.B. Dollaway vs. Tom Lawlor: Lawlor defeated Dollaway via submission (guillotine choke) at 0:55 of round 1.
Welterweight bout: Dong Hyun Kim vs. TJ Grant: Kim defeated Grant via unanimous decision (30-26, 30-26, 30-26).
Light Heavyweight bout: Jon Jones vs. Jake O’Brien: Jones defeated O’Brien via submission (guillotine choke) at 2:43 of round 2.
Lightweight bout: Mac Danzig vs. Jim Miller: Miller defeated Danzig via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27).
Light Heavyweight bout: Mark Coleman vs. Stephan Bonnar: Coleman defeated Bonnar via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28).

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TUF 9 FINALE  RESULTS:

Diego Sanchez defeats Clay Guida via Split Decision
James Wilks defeats Demarcus Johnson via Submission (Rear Naked Choke) Round 1
Ross Pearson defeats Andre Winner via Unanimous Decision
Chris Lytle defeats Kevin Burns via Unanimous Decision
Joe Stevenson defeats Nate Diaz via Unanimous Decision
Melvin Guillard defeats Gleison Tibau via Split Decision
Brad Blackburn defeats Edgar Garcia via Split Decision
Tomasz Drwal defeats Mike Ciesnolevicz via TKO (Strikes) Round 1
Nick Osipczak defeats Frank Lester via Submission (Rear Naked Choke) Round 1
Jason Dent defeats Cameron Dollar via Submission (Anaconda Choke) Round 1

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Cro-Cop scandal:

UFC 99 will be remembered for unusual business relationship between Dana White and Mirko “Cro-Cop” Filipovic. In short Cro-Cop reneging on a verbal agreement to sign a multi-fight deal with the UFC , after the organization had given him a previously unheard of single-fight deal. Instead Croatian star signed a three-fight deal with Dream. Filipovic has agreed to face off with heavy handed K-1 knockout artist Siala “Mighty Mo” Siliga at Dream 10.

After going 1-2 with the promotion in 2007, Cro Cop returned Saturday at UFC 99, where he needed only one round to defeat an overmatched Mustapha Al-Turk. The bout’s ending was indecisive, brought to an abrupt halt by an inadvertent eye poke missed by referee Dan Mirgliotta. Al-Turk turned his back on the fight and was finished by a series of punches while protecting his face.

WHY HE DID IT?

Because:

- He is 34 years old and he has had three operation in last two years, an elbow, nose and more recently knee. Cro-Cop knows that he is nearing the end of career and he wants money

- He used UFC  to signed financially more rewarding deal with DREAM

- He never liked  forced transition from PRIDE to UFC, same as Fedor

- He is treated as a “hero”, as a “somebody” in Japanese organization - DREAM and he has a huge fan base in Japan

- He think of himself very highly, he think he is as great as Fedor

- He does not like Dana White and his way of handling the business, same as many other great fighters (Fedor, Randy, Frank Shamrock etc.)

From business prospective this was great move and many MMA fighters are happy to finally see someone that [….]-up Dana White, for the change:

“Isn’t that a dirty [expletive] thing to do?” White asked rhetorically after being queried about Filipovic’s deal with DREAM. “He [expletived] me. The first time in the history of the company I do one over the phone. He promised me a three-fight deal and he [expletived] me.”

Latest from Cro-Cop:

Q: Can you comment on signing for DREAM?
“No comment, that is my private business relations.”

Q: How was the knee?
“Good. Good. He was going for that leg. Kicked me few times in operated knee. It’s not very sport like…”

===========================

Main Card

* Rich Franklin def. Wanderlei Silva via unanimous decision.

Good fight, but poor performance by Silva, obviously he is having problem with cutting weight.

* Cain Velasquez def. Cheick Kongo via unanimous decision.

If you do not like Kongo this is fight for you. He was beaten-up by Velasques in all three rounds, despite the fact that Kongo almost knocked out Velasques in two occasions.

* Mirko “Cro Cop” Filipovic def. Mustapha al Turk via TKO (punches) – Round 1.

Mirko was dominant from the middle of the first round and then there was unfortunate poke to the eye of Al-Turk which referee did not see …

* Mike Swick def. Ben Saunders via TKO (strikes) – Round 2.

Mike Swift was too skinny and he does not have a speed and power that he had when he was in middleweight division.

* Spencer Fisher def. Caol Uno via unanimous decision.

* Dan Hardy def. Marcus Davis via split decision (29-28, 28-29, 29-28).

Preliminary Card (un-televised)

* Terry Etim def. Justin Buchholz via submission (D’arce) – Round 2.

* Denis Siver def. Dale Hartt via submission (rear-naked choke) – Round 1.

* Paul Taylor def. Peter Sobotta via unanimous decision.

* Paul Kelly def. Roli Delgado via unanimous decision.

* Stefan Struve def. Denis Stojnic via submission (rear-naked choke) – Round 2.

* John Hathaway def. Rick Story via unanimous decision.

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Jake Shields vs. Robbie Lawler –> Jake Shields wins by submission (guillotine choke), round 1

Brett “The Grim” Rogers defeats Andrei “The Pitbull” Arlovski via KO 0:22 R1
Nick Diaz defeats Scott “Hands of Steel” via submission (Brabo choke) 1:41 R3
Joe “Diesel” Riggs defeats Phil “New York Bad Ass” Baroni via unanimous decision (30-27)
Mike Whitehead defeats Kevin “The Monster” Randleman via unanimous decision (29-28)
Jesse Finney defeated Josh Baumgartner via submission (kimura) 1:55 R1
Mike Kyle defeated Rafael “Feijao” Cavalcante via KO 4:05 R2
Booker DeRousse defeats James Wade via TKO (strikes) 4:06 R1
Tyron “Tabasco” Woodley defeated Sal Woods via submission (north-south choke) 4:20 R1
Lucas Lopes defeats Scott Ventimiglia via disqualification (knee to a downed opponent) 3:26 R1
Pat Benson defeated Dave Cochran via submission (armbar) 2:18 R1

Date: Jun 06, 2009
Location: St. Louis
Venue: Scottrade Center
Broadcast: Showtime

MAIN CARD

• Robbie Lawler vs. Jake Shields
• Nick Diaz vs. Scott Smith
• Kevin Randleman vs. Mike Whitehead
• Phil Baroni vs. Joe Riggs
• Brett Rogers vs Andrei Arlovski

PRELIMINARY CARD

• Rafael “Feijao” Cavalcante vs. Jared Hamman
• Josh Bumgarner vs. Jesse Finney
• Tyron Woodley vs. Sal Woods
• Lucas Lopes vs. Scott Ventimiglia
• Pat Benson vs. Dave Cochran
• Booker DeRousse vs. James Wade

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• Rashad Evans vs Lyoto Machida

-> “Karate’s back,” shouted Machida  after destroying Evans in second round of the fight, with barrages of punches that made Evans unconceous.

• Matt Hughes vs Matt Serra

-> Hughes edges Serra in unanimous decision in the co-main event.

• Drew McFedries Vs. Xavier Foupa-Pokam

-> McFedries tears through Foupa-Pokam in 37 seconds with brutal KO.

• Dan Miller Vs. Chael Sonnen

-> Sonnen pounded on former IFL champion Dan Miller for three rounds en route to a unanimous decision victory.

• Sean Sherk Vs. Frank Edgar                                                                                        -> Frankie Edgare defeated former lightweight champion Sean Sherk by unanimous decision. All three judges scored it 30-27
• Brock Larson Vs. Chris Wilson

-> Larson wins with the best submission of the night.    

• Pat Barry Vs. Tim Hague

->  Hague wins ith a guillotine choke at 1:42 into the first round.

• Phillipe Nover Vs. Kyle Bradley

-> Kyle Bradley wins in first-round with TKO.

• Krzysztof Soszynski Vs. Andre Gusmao

-> Krzysztof Soszynski blasted Andre Gusmao with a blistering right to crumble the Brazilian on the fence for a technical knockout in the first round

• Yoshiyuki Yoshida Vs. Brandon Wolff

-> Yoshiyuki Yoshida submitted Brandon Wolff with what began as a standing guillotine choke in the first round

• Dave Kaplan Vs. George Roop

-> George Roop won a spilt decision against former TUF 8 housemate David Kaplan

UFC 98 Payouts

Lyoto Machida — $200,000 (including $70,000 win bonus, $60,000 knockout bonus) def. Rashad Evans — $200,000

Matt Hughes — $260,000 (including $100,000 win bonus) def. Matt Serra — $135,000 (including $60,000 fight of night bonus)

Drew McFedries — $34,000 (including $17,000 win bonus) def. Xavier Foupa-Pokam — $6,000

Chael Sonnen — $50,000 (including $25,000 win bonus) def. Dan Miller — $15,000

Frankie Edgar — $40,000 (including $20,000 win bonus) def. Sean Sherk — $40,000

Brock Larson — $102,000 (including $21,000 win bonus, $60,000 submission bonus) def. Mike Pyle — $15,000

Tim Hague — $10,000 (including $5,000 win bonus) def. Patrick Barry — $7,000

Kyle Bradley — $8,000 (including $5,000 win bonus) def. Phillipe Nover — $10,000

Krzysztof Soszynski — $16,000 (including $8,000 win bonus) def. Andre Gusmao — $5,000

Yoshiyuki Yoshida — $16,000 (including $8,000 win bonus) def. Brandon Wolff — $3,000

George Roop — $16,000 (including $8,000 win bonus) def. David Kaplan — $8,000

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Dana White and  John Hackleman genuinely hate each other but they have same feeling for Chuck, they want him the best. Obviously they have difference of opinions regarding Chuck’s future:

On Thursday at the MGM Grand, following the prefight news conference for UFC 98, White wouldn’t entirely rule out the possibility of Liddell fighting again.

He said “there are no rumblings” that Liddell may fight once more and placed the blame for the speculation on Hackleman. But when prodded with the fact that Liddell himself said he’s still mulling his future, White backed off slightly.

“Trust me when I tell you, he’s ready to retire,” White said. “He’s ready to retire. It’s the reason we love Chuck Liddell. He has nothing left to prove. He’s got a [expletive] load of money. He’s been a world champion. He’s beaten a who’s who of mixed martial arts fighters. He’s the most famous guy in the sport. There’s no reason to fight. He’s 40 years old, man. He and I had an agreement. We had a deal.

“Am I his father? Can I tell him not to fight? Absolutely not. If he still wants to fight, he can fight. I’m not saying, ‘It will never happen. It will never happen.’ But he made a deal with me. He’s never not listened to me. We’ll see what happens.”

“I don’t know, man,” he said, grimacing. “I’m honestly telling you guys I can not see him coming back to me and saying, ‘I want to fight one more.’ We already did that. I can’t see it happening. I think there are a lot of people around him who need his money putting pressure on him. That’s what I think.

– Dana White

“[Liddell is] turning 40, but he’s a strong 40. I’ll be with him whatever he decides to do. If I felt there was even a chance of disability or a brain injury, I wouldn’t want him to fight.”
–John Hackleman

Latest info that we have is that Chuck would like to continue fighting, but there is too much in stake with regards to his relation with Dana White. This decision will be influenced by terms of contracts between UFC and Chuck Lidell, since Chuck has one more fight in the contract.

Once contract expired Chuck will be “free” agent and then he can decide what he wants to do.

What about rematch Tito vs Chuck or Babalu vs Chuck etc.

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Japanese-based organization has finalized the lineup for the May 26 event.

The show, which takes place at the Yokohama Arena in Kanagawa, Japan, airs live in North America on HDNet.

• Ronaldo “Jacare” Souza vs. Jason “Mayhem” Miller (for vacant middleweight title)
• Norifumi “Kid” Yamamoto vs. Joe Warren*
• Bibiano Fernandes vs. Masakazu Imanari*
• Yoshiro Maeda vs. Hiroyuki Takaya*
• Abel Cullum vs. Hideo Tokoro*
• Gesias “JZ” Cavalvante vs. Tatsuya Kawajiri
• Mark Hunt vs. Gegard Mousasi+
• Jan Nortje vs. Rameau Thierry Sokoudjou+
• Jose Canseco vs. Hong Man Choi+
• Ikuhisa “Minowaman” Minowa vs. Bob Sapp+

* - Featherweight grand prix second round
+ - Open-weight tournament first round

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The following is from Tito’s official Blog:

Wednesday, October 08, 2008

Back Surgery

This was the biggest decision of my career.

Since the Randy Couture fight I have had a lower back problems. Each fight it got worse. I have made it though the last 8 fights by physical therapy, methylprednisolone pills, and spinal injections for last 3 fights. I fought injured time and time again for the fans. After the Rashad fight I told the fight doctor I was having excruciating back pain. It was so bad that my security had to carry me from the octagon to my dressing room to the press conference and back. This continued for the next 4 months. If anyone has had back pain you know the pain I deal with, it got to be so bad that I was barely able to get up off the couch or drive for longer than 20 minutes. Now try to imagine training for 8 hours a day and having to fight formidable opponents like Rashad, and Machida. From November of 07 to May of 08 I did 2 separate injections and worked my ass off in physical therapy so I was able to fight Machida. During the second round of the fight I felt the same pain as I did in the Rashad fight. After the fight, I told the fight doctor I was having back pain. It never got better. I didn’t want to fall into the terrible life of having to take painkillers in order to be capable of making it through training. I simply refuse to fall into that trap. I started to look into other ways to help my back pain. I have done everything from rehab to injections to make it better and nothing has succeeded.

I was made aware that Nate Quarry had the same problem as me and got surgery. He fought 9 months after surgery and did it with power and quickness. I started to look for doctors to see how they could help me. I researched 4 different back doctors and all of their techniques seemed brutal and risky. I saw that Nate was operated on by NuVasive out of San Diego. I spent a day at the office going over all the positives and negatives. All the positives out weighed the negatives. The doctor that I went with was Dr. William Smith.

…

On October 6th 2008 my extensive back surgery was performed in Las Vegas by Dr. Smith. It lasted 3 hours, due to the doctors careful hand and my densely muscled core that had to be separated in order to get to my spine. My doctor was impressed with my quick recovery, and an hour after surgery I was on my feet and walking to the car.

This is now the beginning of a new era. There will never be a question again about where my heart lies… and that is with my fans. I am focused on a quick recovery, and I will be back in the cage with a renewed outlook on fighting. I am a new Tito Ortiz… one with a bright fight future… one ready to power through the light heavyweight class and get the belt around my waist again. Mark my words… the best is yet to come.

…

Tito is looking for new contract either with Afliction or Strikeforce.

Our guess is that he will sign with Strikeforce and his next fight will be in August 2009!

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