Does Fedor Emelianenko need to finish his career in the UFC?

[DMan37]

No...Wins over Big Nog, Mirko, Arlovksi, Hunt, Sylvia, Coleman, Randleman etc put him well ahead of anyone's resume. Its not just the wins but the manner with which he did them that make him great. With a win over Barnett the guy has beaten just about every meaningful HW of the last several years. If Velasquez/DeSantos/Carwin end up dominating the UFC HW picture then I could see it being a question that hangs over his legacy but right now a fight with Couture means nothing, Lesnar is still just a freak show and I'm pretty sure he'd crush Mir.

I agree with you in terms of talent. He is "hands down" the best out there right now. But in terms of actually conquering the UFC in reality? I think it must be done to cement his legacy and take away the naysayers that will say he never did it in the cages of the UFC. The UFC is the big dance of MMA.

[VictorCharlie]

As far as HWs go Pride had a lot more esteem. He owned it. To the casual fan who sees MMA as UFC your sentiment may be true but to people that have been following for years conquering the UFC would be another feather in an already heavy cap. Honestly with wins over Sylvia/Arlovski/Big Nog he has wins over 3 of the last 4 UFC HW champs

[DMan37]

For all realistic purposes though Arlovski and Sylvia's best days were behind them by the time they met Fedor. And Big Nog took him to the brink all 3 times they went. No dominating wins there for Fedor over Big Nog.

I'm certainly not taking anything away from the guy. I just think he will need to make the move to gain the notoriety needed to be considered the best ever. I am too a long time MMA fan. I think he needs the UFC. I think he is Top 5 all time without them and could be best ever with them.

[VictorCharlie]

I disagree about Sylvia and Arlovski being past it. Sylvia had recently been beating the crap out of Big Nog before he got subbed and Arlovski had impressively KOd both Rothwell and Nelson and was looking good before he got iced. I'd love to see Fedor in the UFC but the guy could quit right now and be the best HW and maybe mixed martial artist ever. I think even if Affliction doesn't go under they are going to have a hard time finding opponents. They need him on almost every card against meaningful opponents to stay viable. They could bring in Khartinov for a good HW fight and maybe Couture after his contract is up but they are quickly running out of good matchups. I think eventually he makes the move on his own. He recently lost in the Sambo championship for the first time in years so maybe his interest in it is waining and he wouldn't have a problem signing an exclusive contract. All that being said the UFC needs Fedor to legitamize their HW div more than he needs their org to legitamize his claim to being the best HW and possibly P4P.

[DMan37]

Clearly we disagree. I agree that the UFC needs Fedor. But I believe Fedor needs the UFC also for his legacy.

To make a football analogy: A CFL great cannot go down in the NFL HOF without ever playing a down in the league. UFC is the premiere MMA dance. He needs to dominate there before he retires.

If he doesn't, sure their will be those that still rank him #1. But the doubts will linger....

[VictorCharlie]

Ok lets just that tomorrow Fedor was in the UFC. You've got the Couture fight which isn't that meaningful after Lesnar destroyed him. 2-3 years ago this is a huge fight. You 've got Lesanar which to me is a joke. The guy has what 4 fights and he is going to go against the most dominant HW ever? Fedor fighting Mir to me just isn't that exciting. You've got Carwin/Cain/DeSantos and maybe Gonzaga. If one of these guys were to emerge as the top then you have a legit title fight. Honestly the best fights out there for Fedor in the UFC would be some dream fights with top LHWs or Anderson Silva.

[DMan37]

Rarely do "on paper" predictions jive with "reality" outcomes of matches in both boxing and MMA.

Fedor most likely would just walk through the UFC competition. But we won't know unless he actually steps in a UFC cage.