Does Fedor Emelianenko in his prime stack up to current UFC champs?

By Jeremiah Deskins
@Jeremiahdeskins
May 2, 2014

Fedor Emelianenko is still one of the greatest in my eyes.

He was a well rounded killer with a solid chin, good stand up, knock out power, and a great ground game.

I think in his prime he would be a force to be reckoned with in the UFC.

I'm not a hater, but I was never really a fan of Fedor Emelianenko.

I always wanted him to sign with the UFC, but he and his management ducked and dodged signing with Zuffa in every way possible.

I personally struggle with the legitimacy of the Pride FC organization... in my opinion, Pride FC was only a couple of steps ahead of what the WWE is.

Especially when there have been several fighters who have publicly stated that there was some fight fixing going on there... and when Fedor finally got around to signing with what I consider a legit MMA organization in StrikeForce, he didn't shine as most MMA fans had expected.

As a Fedor fan, through and through, I would make this observation: I don't think it's a fair comparison to stack Fedor "then" up against UFC champs "now."

The reason being that MMA has continued to evolve day after day, year after year, since it started. Today's mixed martial artist is a far more evolved and well rounded fighter than they were in Fedor's heyday. Everybody these days is studying aspects of Wrestling, Muay Thai, Brazilian Jiu Jutsu, and so on and so on.

In Fedor's day, most mixed martial artists were basically from either one style, or maybe 2 like wrestling/boxing. Fedor himself was trained in Sambo, although he may have cross-trained in the later parts of his career (I'm not enough of a Fedor geek to know for sure.)

What made Fedor great was his adaptability. He could adapt his style and overcome whatever style his opponent brought. Which supports a theory of mine that there is no superior style of Martial art, it's all about the individual practitioner.

I, too, wanted to see Fedor sign with and fight in the UFC - and was disappointed when he didn't. BUT, to question his legitimacy because he never fought in the UFC is just bullshit. In most weight divisions, the PRIDE roster was stronger than what the UFC had at the time. Especially in the LHW and HW divisions.

SO - was Fedor the Greatest of All Time? The only answer I have to that is "Unquestionably and Absolutely." (Anderson Silva never came near the level and length of dominance Fedor had.) But - Would he stack up well against today's HWs? Well, honestly, probably not. But (to borrow from another sport I love dearly) If you brought a Top Fuel Dragster  from the 90's, and matched it against a Top Fueler from today - It would lose every time, because the cars have gotten faster over the years. It's not a fair comparison.

 since there's a lull in action before the next event.

Don't think Fedor could go on a run with the UFC heavyweights of today. He'd have a great record, maybe be champ for a bit, but against a Brock Lesnar, against a JDS, against a Cain....I mean who knows. I'm a Fedor fan, but the game has changed since he fought.

yea but the thing is even with Anderson having some iffy wins on his record Fedor had some real IFFY wins fucking Zulu? Hung Man Choi?  fighting Dan Henderson and getting knocked out? i mean he should have never even been in that fight him not going to the UFC was the biggest mistake of his life IMHO I lovedddd Fedor and the way he fought but i think he was a tad bit overrated in most MMA circles