Fedor Emelianenko Mulling MMA Retirement: ‘Injuries Have Accumulated’
Heavyweight legend Fedor Emelianenko knows he can’t fight forever.
The 42-year-old MMA great has proven he can still hang at the top. He recently finished Chael Sonnen and Frank Mir via TKO to reach the finals of the Bellator World Heavyweight Grand Prix.
But he’s also lost two of his past four bouts by knockout to Ryan Bader and Matt Mitrione. Those fights lasted a combined one minute and 49 seconds. “The Last Emperor” has the wear and tear of 45 professional MMA bouts on his back, and that will take its toll on anyone. Fedor could understandably be close to retirement, although it’s not certain. He recently told Russian site VMMA.RU (via Bloody Elbow) that a decision will be made soon on his future:
“My career – we will wait, we will see, you will soon find out everything, age will make itself felt. Injuries have accumulated over the years of the career.”
If Fedor were to retire, no one could blame him. His time as Pride champion and 10-year run of dominance were two of MMA’s great eras. Perhaps many new fans of the sport don’t remember those days. If not, do yourselves a favor and go look up his classic wins over Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira, Mirko Cro Cop, and many others.
He’s been fighting professionally for almost 19 years, with his first bout coming in May 2000. Fedor did retire for nearly three years after his 2012 win over Pedro Rizzo. There’s no denying that he’s one of the greatest heavyweights in MMA history, and you can still make the case for him being the greatest.
If his illustrious career is indeed over, we wish ‘The Last Emperor’ all the best in retirement. Something tells me he may not be done yet, however.
