Fedor Emelianenko Debacle Could Trigger UFC/Strikeforce War

Apparently speculation on Fedor's future has gotten a bit ahead of itself.

Recent news that Fedor and the UFC were close to finalizing a deal now appears to be very inaccurate, according to Fedor's most-recent press conference.

At the press conference, Fedor's manager Vadim Finkelchtein restated that Fedor would not join the UFC unless the company was willing to co-promote events with M-1 global.

The UFC simply will not do that. M-1 is a parasite promotion that has previously worked with Bodog Fight and Affliction Entertainment to bring Fedor to the U.S. public.

Bodog Fight and Affliction Entertainment did not survive.

The UFC has offered a large amount of money to sign Fedor, but if the sticking point is on co-promotion, the deal simply will not get done.

I reserve some hope that Finkelchtein is simply posturing and trying to get a better deal, but somehow I doubt it.

Yet this is not the end of news on Fedor. Strikeforce promoter Scott Coker was in the audience at Fedor's conference.

For years the Dana White has been on relatively friendly terms with Strikeforce CEO Scott Coker. Strikeforce has stayed local, and has not threatened UFC hegemony, and because of that, the UFC has not tried to hurt Strikeforce.

Yet over the past few months, some things have changed.

When Strikeforce bought out EliteXC's assets, it was a big step towards being able to compete with the UFC.

Strikeforce now has TV deals with Showtime and a possible agreement with CBS, which could give Strikeforce exposure rivaling that of the UFC.

Furthermore, Strikeforce's roster has ballooned up as well.

The EliteXC additions of  Gina Carano, Nick Diaz, Robbie Lawler, Jake Shields and others gave Strikeforce some credible star power.

Yet even at that point, I don't think the UFC considered Strikeforce a legitimate threat.

Last week, Strikeforce added a title bout between Gegard Mousasi and Renato Sobral to their August 15 card. But while Mousasi is still relatively unknown in the U.S., this signing is further indication that Strikeforce is starting to literally become a force to be reckoned with.

If Strikeforce signs Fedor Emelianenko, there is no way that Dana White and the UFC will be able to ignore Strikeforce anymore.

I can't imagine the UFC simply being okay with the massive continued growth of the San Jose-based promotion.

Scott Coker seems to be walking a fine line right now. What will happen if he crosses it?

We could start seeing a lot more UFC counter-programming against Strikeforce events.

The UFC might also pressure sponsors and news media like ESPN to stay away from Strikeforce fighters and events.

The next few days or weeks could end up meaning a lot more for MMA than the doom of Affliction ever did.

As Mike Goldberg says, maybe a little too often,

Fasten your seat-belts, we're just getting started!