Getty Brock Lesnar & Dana White
The one fight UFC president Dana White “couldn’t pull off” was a blockbuster heavyweight clash between Brock Lesnar and Fedor Emelianenko.
That’s what White revealed during a recent fan Q&A hosted by Laura Sanko ahead of UFC 275.
“I’ve made every fight that was ever possible to make in MMA including Mayweather and McGregor,” White said via Sportskeeda.com. “The only fight that I ever failed to make was Fedor vs. Brock. Every other fight that we ever thought about or fans wanted to see or whatever it was, I made. That’s probably the one I couldn’t pull off.”
Lesnar, the former UFC heavyweight champion, versus Emelianenko, a mixed martial arts superstar who has competed in several promotions besides the UFC, was a fight fan’s dream around a decade ago.
And even so, they both remain some of the biggest names in the sport. However, Lesnar hasn’t competed since 2016 and “The Last Emperor” is nearing retirement.
Lesnar boasts a professional MMA record of 5-3, with one no contest. He earned the UFC’s heavyweight strap when he finished then-champion Randy Couture via second-round TKO at UFC 91 in 2008. Lesnar is also a WWE superstar and it’s unclear if Lesnar will ever fight again.
Emelianenko (40-6, 1 NC) has never graced the Octagon. He’s currently signed to Bellator and the Russian is coming off a first-round KO over Timothy Johnson in October.
Emelianenko Recently Slammed White, Said There’s ‘Nothing Humane About Him’
Ahead of his fight with Johnson, The Last Emperor spoke with TASS about the UFC president. In short, Emelianenko sees White as a pure-blooded capitalist who has no “respect” for people.
“A very unfavorable impression,” The Last Emperor said via the outlet. “Money means everything to him, he has no respect towards fighters, no respect for any human being. Only money and that’s all.”
“There is nothing humane about him and I found that quite revolting,” Emelianenko continued. “Money, of course, is important for living and for the family. But trading human relations for money is unacceptable.”
Khabib Nurmagomedov Wants to Pursue a Fight With Emelianenko & Junior dos Santos
Former UFC lightweight king Khabib Nurmagomedov is a promoter for the Eagle Fighting Championship. And he wants to work with Bellator president Scott Coker to put on a fight with Emelianenko and ex-UFC heavyweight champion Junior dos Santos.
Dos Santos competed at Eagle FC 47 in May and although he put on a solid performance against Yogan De Castro, he dislocated his shoulder in the third round. The fight was called off by the referee and “Cigano” officially lost his fifth fight in a row.
However, Nurmagomedov still wants to pursue dos Santos versus The Last Emperor.
“I think it’s still viable,” Nurmagomedov said to MMA Underground via MMA Fighting, “because even if he lost, Junior looked amazing. Everybody see tonight, he’s improved a lot and he was looking amazing. And I think it’s still interesting. I think for his shoulder, [as an] athlete — because I know when you have an injury, what you need, how many months you need to recover, everything — I think if he makes this next week, surgery, I think definitely he needs surgery.
“I’m not a doctor, but I see a lot of injuries inside the gym like this with shoulders, with knees. I think after three or four months, he can come back to sparring, and at the end of the year we can make this fight. Next week I’m going to sit with Scott Coker and we’re going to discuss about this fight.”