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The Fedor Emelianenko draw is over.
After weeks of speculation as to who will be one of the last opponents in “The Last Emporer” career, a favorite has emerged. Bellator is finalizing a three-round main event for Emelianenko (39-6 MMA, 3-2 BMMA), which will see him take on UFC veteran Tim Johnson (15-7 MMA, 3-3 BMMA).
Bellator Moscow will take place on October 23 at the VTB Arena in Moscow. The main card airs on Showtime after preliminaries on MMA Junkie.
A person familiar with the situation informed MMA Junkie of the reservation on Thursday, but requested to remain anonymous as the promotion has yet to make an official announcement. TASS was the first to report the bout.
Emelianenko, 44, hasn’t competed since December 2019, when he beat Quinton Jackson at Bellator 237 via TKO in the first round. Despite only competing four times since 2017, Emelianenko is 3-1 on that streak. Prior to a knockout loss to Ryan Bader, “The Last Emporer” completed two rounds of the Bellator heavyweight grand prix with wins over Chael Sonnen and Frank Mir.
Since announcing his return on June 25, which was delayed due to the COVID-19 pandemic, many fighters have taken to social media and interviews to push for the game. Former opponents Fabricio Werdum and Matt Mitrione both tossed their names in the hat, while Bellator heavyweights Josh Barnett and Jake Hager have also expressed interest. In addition, promotion president Scott Coker mentioned free agents Alistair Overeem and Junior Dos Santos as possibilities.
Ultimately, the promotion focused on Johnson, who recently competed at Bellator 261 in June when he lost a close unanimous decision to Emelianenko under the command of Valentin Moldavsky in an interim heavyweight title fight. in five rounds. The loss ended a three-game winning streak for the 36-year-old American.
The October 23 fight is set to be the penultimate fight of Emelianenko’s career, as he has two fights left on his contract with Bellator. The final fight is expected to take place in the United States or Japan, although the situation is still fluid.
With this addition, the Bellator Moscow range includes:
- Fedor Emelianenko vs. Tim Johnson
- Tyrell Fortune vs. Vitaly Minakov
- Usman Nurmagomedov vs. TBA
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