Take a look back at the epic trilogy fight between Fedor Emelianenko and Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira from 2004. Emelianenko defeated Nogueira in March 2003 to capture the Pride FC heavyweight title. The two fighting legends faced each other again at Pride FC: Final Conflict 2004 in August of the same year. The bout ended in a No Contest due to an accidental cut.
The two were pitted against each other again at Pride FC: Shockwave 2004. On New Year’s Eve, in front of 48,398 fans inside of Saitama Super Arena in Saitama, Japan, Emelianenko emerged victorious once again.
Watch the epic third Pride FC battle between legends Fedor Emelianenko and Minotauro Nogueira.
Where is Fedor now?
Now 43 years of age, Fedor Emelianenko is still an active fighter. Though often rumored to be making the move to the UFC, that never happened for Fedor, whose team was never able to come to an adequate agreement with UFC officials.
Having lorded over the Pride FC heavyweight division during the early 2000s, Fedor went on to fight for Strikeforce, which the UFC later purchased and folded the roster into its own.
Nearly unbeatable prior to his Strikeforce stint, Fedor went on to lose three consecutive bouts under that promotion’s banner, dropping fights to Fabricio Werdum, Antonio “Bigfoot” Silva, and Dan Henderson.
Following his run in Strikeforce, which ended in July of 2011, Fedor has gone on to eight of his last 10 bouts. He is currently a fighter on the Bellator MMA roster, where he expects to finish out his career.
Fedor most recently fought at Bellator 237, where he defeated Quinton “Rampage” Jackson via a first-round knockout. The bout was a return to Fedor’s roots in Saitama, Japan, as the event was co-promoted with Japanese fight promotion Rizin.
As he rides out his “retirement tour,” it is highly likely that Bellator President Scott Coker will do his best to have Fedor finish out his career on his home turf in Russia.
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(Courtesy of UFC)
