Monson vs Fedor

Bleacher Report

Fedor vs. Monson on PPV: Why the Fight and Fedor Emelianenko Don't Matter
By Matt Saccaro
(Featured Columnist) on November 4, 2011

Fedor Emelianenko doesn't matter in modern MMA, nor will he matter in MMA history.
Regarding the former point, look at what Emelianenko is up to now. The "Greatest of All Time" is set to fight Jeff Monson (a fighter who hasn't beaten anyone decent since 2009) at an M-1 Global show in Moscow, Russia. Ordering the event will set fans back $29.95 and a good night's sleep, since it will air live from Russia at approximately 7:30 am EST/4:30 am PST.

Meanwhile, the UFC will be putting the two best heavyweights—UFC heavyweight champion Cain Velasquez and challenger Junior Dos Santos—against each other for free on FOX.

Now are you seeing why Fedor Emelianenko isn't exactly relevant these days and why nobody cares about what he's doing with M-1?
"So what? Everybody falls out of their prime! Fedor will still be remembered as one of the greatest of all time," the typical Emelianenko or Pride fan would say.
However, there is no guarantee that Emelianenko will ever be remembered as one of the greats. In fact, it's far more likely that he'll be forgotten. There are two words that can prove this:

Frank Shamrock.
When Frank Shamrock was UFC light heavyweight champion, he was more than just that. He was the undisputed light heavyweight champion of the world since he managed to beat the best in his weight class in the United States as well as in Japan (the only other country with a significant talent pool at the time).
He was one of the most successful fighters in the sport's and the company's history.
But is not history a set of lies agreed upon?

Shamrock's personality clashed with UFC president Dana White's. As a result, Frank Shamrock was practically erased from UFC history (and by extension, MMA history, since the majority of fans don't know anything outside of what the official UFC line is).
Shamrock is not in the UFC hall of fame; Shamrock isn't mentioned in broadcasts or in anything that the UFC does. It's almost as if he didn't even exist.
If Shamrock—a man who worked for the company and was even a champion there—was erased from existence, what will happen to Emelianenko, a man who never even fought in the UFC? He, too, will fade away.

There is no doubt that he was once the best heavyweight in the world. Back when the UFC was parading around guys like Wesley "Cabbage" Correira and Wes Sims as world-beaters, Emelianenko was actually beating the world in Pride. Despite having better fighters on the whole (at least in the light heavyweight and heavyweight divisions), Pride fell, and it seemed like we'd see Emelianenko dominate in the UFC.
This wasn't to be.

After Pride was gone, the UFC was the dominant force in mixed martial arts. By not signing with them, Emelianenko destroyed his legacy.
Instead of being remembered as a great fighter, he'll be remembered as the guy who couldn't hack it in Strikeforce and the minor leagues, and who only became famous by beating up guys who couldn't perform well in the UFC or even make it to the UFC.
As the sport progresses, the UFC's version of the sport's history will eventually become the only version of the sport's history.
The legacy of Fedor Emelianenko will live on only in Youtube highlight reels and in the mint-condition Pride DVDs of MMA historians and the world's last remaining Pride fans, who will still be insisting that the long-dead organization is better than the UFC.

Tragic?

Hardly. While some are lamenting the fall of Fedor Emelianenko and the inevitable loss of his legacy, most MMA fans will be enjoying the growth of the UFC and the creation of new stars like Jon Jones, Cain Velasquez, Junior Dos Santos and more.
So it seems that the MMA world has finally gotten over Fedor Emelianenko. Have you?

I can't believe I'm agreeing with something coming out of the Bleacher Report .... but ... damn here we are!

That's pretty harsh, and I don't even like Fedor.
But there is some truth here.

I don't think he will be forgotten or erased from the history, but I do think he fucked himself in more ways than one with his business decisions. On top of that, I am one of "those" fans who believe he was never really as good as some made him out to be. I think it has been proven that "our" stance on him is more true than the idea that he was this unbeatable god, and that more likely than not will be the biggest hit to his legacy, not the fact that Dana doesn't like him.


I also loved this part;

Quote :

The legacy of Fedor Emelianenko will live on only in Youtube highlight reels and in the mint-condition Pride DVDs of MMA historians and the world's last remaining Pride fans, who will still be insisting that the long-dead organization is better than the UFC.

That is dead on!

Oh, and I would watch it if they paid me. That would be my vote.

I put down $10. A fighter has got to eat right?

Sorry, couldn't get past the first sentence. That is one of the dumbest things ever written in the MMA world. Go cover politics if you want to build mountains of BS.

Yeah that opening statement kind of set the tone for where this was going. It makes logical debate that much more difficult when someone is that extreme on one end.

good points and a decent read for B.R.......Im also one of those fans who never thought he was as good as the hype......i do like that they give him his due and mention how weak the ufc hw div was at the time compared to the heavies he was fighting at the time. That right there is where my respect for fedor comes from, not his later years 2005ish and on.

I think its important to note what he was saying about Frank Shamrock. The guy was an unbeatable monster. He would beat guys so soundly he was on the road for greatness. But as egos go ... he thought he was the last emperor... thought he was MMA .... and fought the powers that be.

Once a man of greatness on the UFC stage Frank soon passed out of peoples memories and is quickly fading into distant memory...

Monson vs the Paper Emperor will do nothing for his legacy... win or lose.

Getting the living christ beat out of him by Cung Le and Nick Diaz probably didn't help hi legacy, either. Much like Fedor losing to everybody lately.
It's a combination of a few different things that damage their reputations.

For Frank I really do believe it was ego. Pancrase king from the early 90s he really did think he was the UFC after 5 ufc fights. People loved the guy but then as egos take you in this game he killed his own legacy.

Losses to Diaz and Cung Le ... two ego fights two ego losses. Sigh

We all have heros in this game we lament their fall but fall they do. Its sad to hear people say "Frank who".

Frank who... you mean Ken Shamrock, from WWF right....

Oh yeah I put $10. But not at 4:30AM... you should pay me to get up that early.

Chrom wrote:

Frank who... you mean Ken Shamrock, from WWF right....

and that is the reply of death right there. I still hear people refer to Brock as the former WWE champion right? The guy who beat Kurt Angle?

I am going to stay on Chroms line, I ain't getting up at 4am for shit; especially the dinner plate special of a fight. I'd pay $10 for the same reason as Gecko, Monson's gotta eat right>?

I wouldn't pay a thing. Fedor's last few fights have been against better guys than Monson and those were free...how are you gonna charge to see him fight a light heavyweight that no one cares about??

butterknifeninja wrote:

I wouldn't pay a thing. Fedor's last few fights have been against better guys than Monson and those were free...how are you gonna charge to see him fight a light heavyweight that no one cares about??

no love for the snowman eh?

I'm usually still up at 4:30, not getting up at 4:30. So who knows, if I'm drunk enough at that point I might pay the $$$.... and then proceed to kill myself the next day when I realize what I have done.

Actually, I'm in New York, so it'll be 7:30 for me, right? Yeah, there's no way I'm staying up that late/getting up that early.

Gecko wrote:

butterknifeninja wrote:

I wouldn't pay a thing. Fedor's last few fights have been against better guys than Monson and those were free...how are you gonna charge to see him fight a light heavyweight that no one cares about??

no love for the snowman eh?

Meh. He's a great grappler but doesn't seem to have transitioned well to MMA. Plus he isn't all that exciting to watch.

butterknifeninja wrote:

Gecko wrote:

butterknifeninja wrote:

I wouldn't pay a thing. Fedor's last few fights have been against better guys than Monson and those were free...how are you gonna charge to see him fight a light heavyweight that no one cares about??

no love for the snowman eh?

Meh. He's a great grappler but doesn't seem to have transitioned well to MMA. Plus he isn't all that exciting to watch.

Tell that to these folks:

This article is shit

Fedor may be irrelevant right now, but saying in MMA history is complete bullshit

Chrom wrote:

butterknifeninja wrote:

Gecko wrote:

butterknifeninja wrote:

I wouldn't pay a thing. Fedor's last few fights have been against better guys than Monson and those were free...how are you gonna charge to see him fight a light heavyweight that no one cares about??

no love for the snowman eh?

Meh. He's a great grappler but doesn't seem to have transitioned well to MMA. Plus he isn't all that exciting to watch.

Tell that to these folks:

Chrom did you photoshop that or is it legit,
its a deadly photoshop job if thats the case;
and if not still a cool pic.

butterknifeninja wrote:

Gecko wrote:

butterknifeninja wrote:

I wouldn't pay a thing. Fedor's last few fights have been against better guys than Monson and those were free...how are you gonna charge to see him fight a light heavyweight that no one cares about??

no love for the snowman eh?

Meh. He's a great grappler but doesn't seem to have transitioned well to MMA. Plus he isn't all that exciting to watch.

And he's a commie piece of shit, don't forget that.

No offense to "the commie".

Oh no, that picture is a totally legit. My cousin actually took that picture too... too bad he had no clue who Monson was. It was during some riot shit that happened in Minneapolis when the Republicans where doing some convention. A handfull of the photos they showed in the news for that riot were taken by my little cousin, that crazy fucker.

ok, obviously my name is a joke. its because im russian. but! dont knock on communism, understand it first. there is pluses and minuses in both systems. what happened in the soviet union was not communism!! in an idealistic society communism should work and would be perfect.
we are not ideal and thats why it doesnt work. calling somebody a "commie piece of shit" sounds too much like the cold era fanatism. im sure people that call them self communist dont wish the same that happened in our countries.
also, Monson is not a commie, he is an anarchist.