Fedor says he is more likely to fight for the UFC than M-1 Global

Bloody Elbow 2.0 | Anton Tabuena

One month removed from his anticipated return to MMA competition, Fedor is already contemplating his next contest. The ‘Last Emperor’ is scheduled to meet with Rizin officials in February to renegotiate for a second fight with the Japanese upstart promotion.

However, despite confirming that his next fight will take place under the Rizn FF banner, Fedor hinted that the UFC could still be in his future.

“I’m open to all organizations,” Emelianenko told reporters. “If you have any suggestions, we look at all of them. In this respect, we like to work with Rizin – contracts are not exclusive. Regarding M-1 Global, that is a big question. I perhaps rather appear in the UFC than in M1.”

While fans remain concerned that Fedor may not challenge himself with tough opponent while with Rizin, he added that he is open to rematches against all the fighters who beat him in Strikeforce.

“If they go into Rizin, I’m ready for a rematch with them even now,” said Emelianenko. “But it is not yet possible in the UFC.”

According to Rizin officials, Fedor will likely return in the summer.

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About the author

Karim Zidan

Karim Zidan is a investigative reporter and feature writer focusing on the intersection of sports and politics. He has written for BloodyElbow since 2014 and has served as an associate editor since 2016. He also writes for The New York Times and The Guardian. Karim has been invited to speak about his work at numerous universities, including Princeton, and was a panelist at the South by Southwest (SXSW) film festival and the Oslo Freedom Forum. He also participated in the United Nations counter-terrorism conference in 2021. His reporting on Ramzan Kadyrov’s involvement in MMA, much of which was done for Bloody Elbow, has led to numerous award nominations, and was the basis of an award-winning HBO Real Sports documentary.