Fedor Emelianenko waves to the crowd following a fight in 2018.
Fedor Emelianenko releases statement after loss to Ryan Bader
Fedor Emelianenko had the chance to become Bellator’s heavyweight champion and cement his legacy even more. Unfortunately, after beating Frank Mir and Chael Sonnen in the first round, he was set to face Ryan Bader.
Many expected Bader to use his wrestling and fight Emelianenko rather similar to how he fought Matt Mitrione. However, that was not the case. Bader threw a left overhand that connected and dropped ‘The Last Emperor.’ Then, Bader punched on Fedor and threw a few more punches before the ref jumped in to stop the fight. It lasted just 35 seconds and Bader was the new heavyweight champion while Fedor was left wondering what happened.
Following the fight, Emelianenko posted on Instagram a message about the fight.
https://www.instagram.com/p/BtJYPZkB91s/?utm_source=ig_embed
“After the fight, I feel good, the dissection over the eye is not deep, yesterday I had several stitches,” Emelianenko wrote on Instagram. “I think it will heal in a couple of weeks. I want to say thanks to everyone who helped me get ready, who came to the fight, and who got up early to watch the match. Thank you all for your support and your prayers. All the will of God.”
Ultimately, many believe that was Fedor’s last fight ever. It was the final fight of his Bellator contract and at 42-years-old he has already retired once. If that turns out to be the case, Emelianenko will go down as arguably the greatest heavyweight of all-time. As well as a legend of the sport.
He is currently 38-6. He has notable wins over the likes of Frank Mir, Andrei Arlovski, Tim Sylvia, Mark Hunt, Mark Coleman, and Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira among others. Emelianenko has been a true legend of the sport. Frankly, many didn’t think he would even make it to the finals. In the end, the fight didn’t go his way, and the question remains of what is next for ‘The Last Emperor.’
