This story begins with two fighters.  The first starts outside of Montreal, Quebec, Canada.  The fighters name: Georges St. Pierre.  The second starts inside Russia.  The fighters name: Fedor Emelianenko.  Through their fight careers they both have something in common.  And yet, their storied fight careers could not be more different.

GSP & Fedor are both at the top of their respective weight divisions.  Fedor Emelianenko is the #1 Heavyweight in the world.  Georges St. Pierre is the #1 Welterweight in the world.  Both are Top 5 Pound For Pound Fighters.  Their competition has been left is awe of their greatness.  However, the similarities end there.

GSP has done everything possible to remove any doubt that he is the greatest Welterweight alive today.  He has defeated an unbelievable level of talent that includes: Matt Hughes, BJ Penn, Frank Trigg, Josh Koscheck, Jon Fitch, Thiago Alves, Karo Parisyan, Matt Serra, Jason Miller, Jay Hierson, & Sean Sherk.  However, this is just a list of fighters names.  What is more important is when he competed against them.

Take Carlos Newton for example.  Does a win over him mean anything today?  Not really.  However, beating him in 2001 was a big deal.  It is the timing in which you fight your competition that is the true measure of how great a fighter is.

GSP has passed that test.  He beat Matt Hughes while Hughes was in his prime.  Beat BJ Penn while he was the #1 Lightweight in the world.  Best Alves & Fitch within a year of each other when each were more then the proven #1 contenders for his title.  To put in simply, GSP has not only beaten top guys, HE HAS DONE SO WHEN THEY WERE AT THE GREATEST THREAT OF BEATING HIM.

And that is where the story of GSP ends and the one of Fedor Emelianenko begins.  Fedor is the #1 Heavyweight in the world.  However, over the last 4 years, he has stayed as such with skill, carefull management, and a deception on what it means to be fighting "top guys".  The "Fedor Era" ended on August 28, 2005.  On this day, Fedor Emelianenko defeated a true top challenger in Mirko Filipovic.  Since that time, his fight record has not been the equivalent of GSP's.

• After defeating Mirko Filipovic, he did not fight another Top 10 Heavyweight for almost 3 years (Sylvia).  During this time he fought: Zulu, Mark Coleman, Mark Hunt, Matt Lindland, & Hong Man Choi.
• During that same time period, Tim Sylvia was the reigning UFC Heavyweight Champion (2006).  Fedor Emelianenko did not fight him.
• During that same period, Mirko Filipovic won the Pride Open-Weight Grand Prix.  Fedor Emelianenko did not fight him.
• During that same period, Randy Couture was the UFC Heavyweight Champion (2007).  Fedor Emelianenko did not fight him.
• During that same period of time, Josh Barnett was a Top 5 contender.  Fedor Emelianenko did not fight him.

Here is a 3 year period in which 4 potential Top Level Heavyweights were out there, and Fedor Emelianenko did not fight them.  Some for promotional reasons, but the ability was there for others.  Then, in July 2008, he finally starts to fight better talent again.  He fights Tim Sylvia and Andrei Arlovski in back-to-back fights.

Much is made about Fedor Emelianenko beating "Former UFC Heavyweight Champions".  However, that isn't telling the whole story.  Tim Sylvia was 1-2 in his last 3 fights, with his only win over a natural Light Heavyweight (Vera).  This was no longer the Tim Sylvia of 2006.  Fedor fought him on the way down.  A win against Sylvia in 2008 is not the same as win over him in 2006.  Andrei Arlovski is another interesting example.  Despite being ranked as high as #2 in the world, he really never had earned that ranking.  His biggest win was against Fabricio Werdum, which in no way should have had him ranked even in the Top 5.  Yes, Arlovski was a former UFC Champion, but look at who he had beaten as champion.... Sylvia (who he later lost to twice), Buentello, & Eilers.  Hardly championship caliber stuff.

And then there is the question as to why Fedor never fought Barnett in Pride.  Or why he never gave Mirko Filipovic a rematch after he had won the Grand Prix.  It would have been like Matt Hughes not fighting GSP after he had defeated Jason Miller, Frank Trigg, Sean Sherk, & BJ Penn in order to get a title shot.  There would still be doubt today if GSP never had to fight Hughes after that hot streak.

And this is where the story ends.  GSP, a champion who has defeated his toughest opponents when they were on top of their game.  A fighter who will likely go down as one of the best ever.  And then there is Fedor.  A guy who since 2005 really hasn't beaten the guys on top, not in the Top 5 anyways.

So why is this so important?  The UFC will REQUIRE Fedor Emelianenko to have a top level fight in each of his 6 contracted UFC fights.  Guys who are not only tough match-ups for him, but guys who are mentally and physically at the top of their game, not fighters like Sylvia who were 1-2 before fighting Fedor.

Fedor management knows this.  They also know that with the UFC's slew of talent, nobody can stay undefeated forever.  Whether it be Brock Lesnar, Randy Couture, Lyoto Machida, or even Anderson Silva..... One of those fighters will figure Fedor out.  And once that happens, M-1 is worthless.  This is also why "Co-Promotion" is such a big deal to Vadim.  This is something the UFC will never budge on.  And it it why it is a "requirement".  Fedor's entire aura is built on being undefeated.  If he loses inside the octagon, that aura has been smashed to pieces....