Why "Fedor's Collapse" Was Simply a Fluke

Fedor “The Last Emperor” Emelianenko suffered a spate of ignominious defeats in his has last trio of fights for Strikeforce, the San Jose-based promotion.

Following those losses, questions were asked as to the legitimacy of his credentials to being one of the best heavyweight mixed martial artists of his generation.

There was speculation that the evolution of the sport had passed him by—he was a relic of the once-lauded PRIDE organization—his past competition were low- to mid-tier fighters.

Concisely put, the accolades bestowed upon him were unwarranted—he was really never that good.

And so on and so forth.

Truth be told, the once indomitable aura of The Emperor has evaporated into thin air, never again to resurface in a ring or a steel cage.

To suggest, however, that his three-fight loss streak was tantamount to his inability to compete with the upper-echelon heavyweights is unjustified to say the least.

Fedor ruled the heavyweight realm of MMA for nigh on 10 years, and regardless of the label ‘cans’ associated with his wins, he did just that: win.

Prior to his loss to Fabricio Werdum, Fedor was riding a 27-fight win streak (the NC against Antonio “Big Nog” Rodrigo Nogueira not inclusive).

What should also be taken into account is that he was 31-1-1NC preceding that loss as well.

I’ll make the case that his three losses from 2010 to 2011 were as a result of complacency, which I’d like to refer to as flukes and nothing else.

Let's take a look.

Fedor Emelianenko vs. Fabricio Werdum

From the outset, and for as long as the fight lasted, Fedor had the upper hand—dropping “Vai Cavalo” with a combination of punches.

That’s when complacency set in, he rushed into Werdum’s guard to finish him off and the rest is 69 seconds of history, courtesy of a triangle armbar submission.

It was a big mistake, a huge mistake and he paid for it dearly—registering his first loss in almost 10 years.

His skill set was not to blame for that loss, a rush of blood to his head was.

Fedor Emelianenko vs. Antonio Silva

Following his first-round loss to Fabricio Werdum, Fedor took on the gigantic Antonio “Big Foot” Silva at Strikeforce: Fedor vs. Silva.

In the opening round, both men exchanged punches, with the smaller Fedor just about edging it.

In the second, however, the bigger Silva took Fedor to the mat, unleashing some serious ground and pound which continued for the entirety of the round.

Though, the bout was brought to a halt before the start of the third, due to Fedor’s damaged eye sustained in Silva’s onslaught.

Yes he received a beatdown for the ages, call it a clinic if you may, but with Silva securing full mount for the duration of the second and his inability to end proceedings from such a dominant position, doesn’t suggests Fedor’s lack of skill set.

Fedor wanted redemption on fight night, and against his better judgment went all gung-ho to record a victory.

Nevertheless, the history books will tell us that it backfired—TKO loss in Round 2.

Fedor Emelianenko vs. Dan Henderson

After less than stellar performances against Fabricio Werdum and Antonio Silva, Fedor was under immense pressure, personal I might add, to come up with the goods.

Though Henderson was the much smaller (he had moved up from light heavyweight to heavyweight specifically for this matchup) man at 207 pounds, he packed a punch like a mule, his favored right hand, the “H-Bomb” could send to sleep any fighter regardless of weight.

As with his encounter with Fabricio Werdum, Fedor allowed complacency to get the better of him.

In the first and only round of the bout, he knocked Henderson to the mat and en route to what seemed at the time a certain victory, uncharacteristically gave up his back, from whence Hendo unleashed a short, sharp H-Bomb to end the night via knockout.

That loss, as with his other defeats, had nothing to with his assumed fading star, but more to do with his complacent attitude and eagerness to win.

As I stated in the introduction, I’d like to call them flukes, because that’s just what they were.

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