This day in MMA history - June 23rd
by Numbers on Jun 23, 2009 7:56 PM EDT
Email
Print
This date in MMA history seven years ago - 6/23/2002 - PRIDE Fighting Championships held PRIDE 21 in Saitama, Japan.
The main event would live on forever in MMA lore. It was a heavyweight tilt between Don Frye and Yoshihiro Takayama.
The staredown alone was incredible, and the fight took it from there to the next level. The beginning of the fight is commonly considered among the most exciting 30 seconds in the history of the sport, as both combatants engaged in 1000-MPH dirty boxing, clenching the opponent's neck with almost no distance between them and throwing literally dozens of right hooks to the head, face and body. That pace could not continue forever, but the remainder was still great, with Frye getting the mount and ending an exhausted Takayama with ground and pound 6:10 into the first round.
The drama and excitement of that fight was immediately evident, but the co-main event revealed itself only in retrospect to be even bigger in the course of MMA history. It was the first appearance in PRIDE of a 25-year old Russian fighter named Fedor Emelianenko.
Fedor had competed mostly in RINGS prior to his appearance in the Japanese super bowl of MMA, bringing a 10-1 record with him into his PRIDE 21 fight with 7' kickboxer Semmy Schilt. Fedor, forced to fight somewhat cautiously due to Schilt's massive frame and K-1 striking, wisely chose to engage him on the ground, taking him down and giving much of the MMA world their first look at his lethal ground and pound.
While Schilt managed to take him the distance to lose a lopsided decision, Fedor's future opponents were not so lucky. Over the course of 7 years and 20 fights since the Schilt bout, Fedor has gone 19-0 with 1 NC and finished everyone he has faced who wasn't named Nogueira or Mirko. Fedor is widely considered not only the best heavyweight in the world, but arguably the best fighter in the history of the sport, irrespective of weight class.
Fedor Emelianenko first fought for PRIDE seven years ago today.
The FanPosts are solely the subjective opinions of Bloody Elbow readers and do not necessarily reflect the views of Bloody Elbow editors or staff.
34 comments
|
4 recs |
Do you like this story?
Comments
I hold out hope that he comes to the UFC one day, but it’s fleeting.
by Derek Suboticki on Jun 23, 2009 9:54 PM EDT reply actions
There’s only one semi-intriguing fight for him in the UFC (Lesnar, though I guess I’d like to see Mir get obliterated if he gets by Lesnar again).
http://www.sackmikegoldberg.com
How many intriguing fights for him in eighteen months, when dos Santos/Carwin/Velasquez have more seasoning?
And there’s nothing semi-intriguing about Lesnar if he beats Mir – he’ll be the consensus #2 HW in the world.
by Derek Suboticki on Jun 23, 2009 10:35 PM EDT up reply actions
I disagree!
At worst, the sum total of watching him run the table and silencing everyone forever would be damn entertaining. C’mon, you can’t picture him coming in, taking out Lesnar, Mir, Couture, Carwin, and Kimbo (HA!), then retiring? It would be EPIC. Every fight would start to feel like the last couple outs of a no-hitter.
The sum may be more than the parts.
"I'm AJB and I endorse this nut-puncher."
I personally want to see him fight Machida – they both have developed auras of being untouchable, but one must fall!
Ever tried. Ever failed. No matter. Try Again. Fail again. Fail better. -Samuel Beckett
by Scott C. Broussard on Jun 24, 2009 12:46 AM EDT up reply actions
It would be Fedor for sure. Machida has had to go through a deep division while Fedor has been fighting has-beens and never-wases
Hah.
I seriously hope that you’re shitting me.
Lyoto’s a great fighter, and he could possibly equal Fedor’s legacy at some point in time, but if you’re saying that Fedor’s only wins are over cans, then you’re fucking retarded.
To put it into perspective, here are the quality wins Fedor’s hadsin his career: Arona, Babalu, Schilt, Herring, Big Nog 2x (who was the #1 HW at the time, and 2’nd best HW in their 3’rd rematch), Fujita, Coleman (2x, first fight Coleman was top 10), Randleman, Crocop (3’rd ranked HW), Lindland (10-15 lbs lighter than Fedor, who doesn’t cut weight), Sylvia (top 5 at the time, arguably the most dominant HW champ in UFC history), and Arlovski (top 3 at the time).
Lyoto, while having a fantastic career, has notable wins over: Bonnar, Franklin (top 10 at the time, I believe), BJ (who gave him a good fight, and was probably 20-30 lbs lighter than Machida; I consider it about the same quality as the Lindland win), and the recent 4 top 10 wins over Sok, Tito, T Silva, and Evans (#1 LHW at the time).
Both stellar, but you just can’t say that Fedor’s been fighting scrubs. And for the Record, Fedor would tear Machida a new asshole. Lyoto’s extremely good, but doesn’t execute, adapt, and transition like Fedor does. He’s practically on another level of awareness.
Supporting all Las Vegas MMA. Xtreme Couture FTMFW.
'09 is the year of the FW's.
by ElliotMatheny on Jun 25, 2009 1:27 AM EDT up reply actions
Fedor’s first fight in the UFC will undoubtably be against Randy Couture, I’m sure his second would be Brock Lesnar (with or without the belt), from there I’m sure they’d either give him Mir or some of the up and coming guys. Outside the UFC we have Werdum and Overeem and Jeff Monson and then it really drops off from there (Cro Cop again… Bigfoot SIlva, that guy who beat him at Sambo?). Without Affliction who else in the States could afford him? At this point there doesn’t seem to be too much left for Fedor inside or outside the UFC but inside the UFC he would get the US media push he deserves at least.
Fedor would get an immediate title shot.
Unless you don’t remember what happened with Hendo. Or what might happen with Vitor.
And I expect him to beat Lesnar, Mir, or whoever else is holding the belt if Fedor goes to the UFC.
Supporting all Las Vegas MMA. Xtreme Couture FTMFW.
'09 is the year of the FW's.
by ElliotMatheny on Jun 25, 2009 1:30 AM EDT up reply actions
I’ve got a feeling that Randy Couture would get what Randy Couture wanted in this situation being as that was part of the deal with him coming back to the UFC, if Fedor comes in he will quite possibly get Randy first (in what may be Randy’s retirement fight). It’s been so long since the Pride buy out that no one cares about that heavyweight belt before and to the UFC the WAMMA belt is a complete joke so this wouldn’t be the same as with Hendo coming in and as for Vitor the only reason he would get a immediate title shot is because the UFC is desperate to feed someone to Anderson SIlva who can make getting murdered look exciting to the fans. No I wouldn’t just assume that Fedor would jump right into a title fight because Randy just might have first dibs on him if they can get him signed, not to mention Fedor would probably want that fight too if he could get it, there is always time for the belt but Randy’s career is already in extra innings.
Screw Fedor. His 7 opponents in the last 4 years have gone 5-15 since fighting him. He is not a real top fighter, just a shadow of one. Barnett will expose him, and if he doesn’t someone else who has skills will.
Barnett is
the most over rated fighter in Affliction.
It’s a shame, because Lindland had that title for a while.
by Derek Suboticki on Jun 24, 2009 2:04 PM EDT up reply actions
"His 7 opponents in the last 4 years have gone 5-15 since fighting him."
But doesn’t that just add to the lore and greatness of Fedor? He not only beats them, but he eats a piece of their soul to absorb their strength. That’s pretty badass.
It’s the guys he fights who become the shadows.
"The path to enlightenment is through suffering"
by RearNakedChoker on Jun 24, 2009 3:40 AM EDT up reply actions
That makes no sense. Its more just that his competition either wasn’t very good (Zulu, Hunt, Choi), or was getting to the twilight of their careers (Sylvia, Coleman, Lindland, and maybe AA).
Nog was the man who was going to dominate until he retired at the time Fedor fought him
Not to mention CC was responsible for putting countless people in wheelchairs for life.
Randleman was no joke back then either, especially with all the roids,
Some of the super hulk fights are just a great way of displaying that size doesn’t matter if you are skilled enough. Quite pertinent given some of the discussion at the moment about people being ‘sized-out’ of MMA.
by Well Read Idiot on Jun 24, 2009 8:14 AM EDT up reply actions
I was obviously being a bit dramatic….
But don’t you also think that it’s a bit dramatic (and hater-ish) to call an undefeated fighter a “shadow of a real fighter”? I don’t understand what he’s done to you to make you feel this way.
Yes, he’s fought cans, but he’s also fought some of the best HW’s in the world and he beats them all. Shouldn’t we hold off on the hate until he actually loses?
Also, (imo) Barnett will be the one who’s exposed, and will go on the standard losing streak that everyone does after they fight Fedor.
"The path to enlightenment is through suffering"
by RearNakedChoker on Jun 24, 2009 2:34 PM EDT up reply actions
You don’t think it’s logical to believe that Fedor has some kind of voodoo curse power in his fist that destroys opponents very souls? Heck I thought that was just common knowledge, heck he’s hit some opponents so hard he’s killed the entire promotion.
Maybe he is actually
fighting cans and Dana knows his shit. I always enjoy UFC wash outs hitting the top 10 after they get flushed. I think Fedor is the #1 HW right now. I would KNOW he was if he fought in the UFC.
Cool dude.
Let’s just ignore all the things that those fighters have accomplished prior to fighting Fedor.
Cro Cop, who is still a top 15 HW, and who once was the the most feared striker at Heavyweight. Coleman, who was the UFC’s first dominant HW, and who INVENTED an entire facet of the game. Big Tim, who is arguably the most dominant HW champ in UFC history. Arlovski, who is still a top 10 HW, who has been one of the best strikers at HW for years now, and who was riding an impressive 5- fight win streak against very quality comp.
If anything, fighters have seemed to fall apart, and decline rapidly after being embarrassed by Fedor. And if you can’t at least recognize that he’s a good fighter, then i’m convinced that you’re retarded.
Supporting all Las Vegas MMA. Xtreme Couture FTMFW.
'09 is the year of the FW's.
by ElliotMatheny on Jun 25, 2009 1:37 AM EDT up reply actions
There’s two sides to this, depends on if you’re a Fedo fan or not.
CroCop could be thought of as going down hill, or exposed as a fraud.
Tim Sylvia and Arlovski was champs during an era of the UFC when it had far inferior fighters to the ones in PRIDE.
The Fedor fan believes that Fedor has magical power that destroy people’s fighting abilities. The anti-UFC fans believe that Fedor’s opponents have been terribly exposed as cans. I believe that there was a little smoke and mirrors in Japan, where good fighters are matched up with cans or fighters who are built to get crushed (ala CroCop VS striker instead of wrestlers). The truth is somewhere in between.
However, I do know this: Fedor may be a good fighter, but unlike what his fans may think, his management knows there’s a good chance he could be defeated in the UFC. Hence, they balk at the cut clause. Why would that clause matter if he’s that good? Since when has the UFC cut a fighter after one fight if they can sell more fights? Fedor will get at least three fights to prove his worth because he can sell at least three fights: Mir, Lesnar, and Couture. There’s also Gonzaga, Cain and Carwin as well for later. He’s going to get PPV percentage if he’s champ; what other org can give that to him? I haven’t seen the UFC cut any fighter who they can sell PPV’s with… unless his management doesn’t believe Fedor can sell.
His fans need to wake up to the reality. Fedor’s management can use his invincibility aura that many of his fans have bought into and make themselves (yes, the management’s making money off of his good name) good money outside of the UFC (as long as Affliction and DREAM, etc. are still around). Why destroy his luster ala CroCop by fighting fighters who can potentially beat him? It’s all good business sense. But enough with the Fedor don’t need the UFC because he’s unbeatable. That’s bullshit, and you know it.
by cyph on Jun 25, 2009 11:10 AM EDT up reply actions 4 recs
Comments For This Post Are Closed
Secondary Sidebar
User Tools
FanPosts
Community blog posts and discussion.
Recommended FanPosts
Recent FanPosts
MMA Rankings
Certain photos copyright © 2012 by Associated Press or Getty Images. Any commercial use or distribution without the express written consent of Associated Press and Getty Images is strictly prohibited.
