Fedor Emelianenko: "God's Will" to Determine Rest of Career, Legacy

Trying to figure out the future of the legendary Fedor Emelianenko is a task better suited for a higher power.

Riding a two-fight losing streak coming into next Saturday's fight against current Strikeforce Light-Heavyweight champion Dan Henderson, speculation has arisen over whether this bout might be the last of the Russian heavyweight's illustrious career.

"I don’t know", Emelianenko told reporters during yesterday's Strikeforce media conference call, "that’s God’s will."

Rather than speculate on the future, Emelianenko is focused on the present, training hard to defeat Henderson.

"I’m not thinking about any particular opponents, any wins or losses," he said. "Right now I’m just thinking about this fight."

A win over a Henderson would be a major milestone in the 34-year-old former Pride Heavyweight champion's career and a victory he would cherish.  

"It would be a very important victory," Emelianenko said, "Henderson has been a fighter for a very long time and been a champion in many different organizations and for me it would be very important, it’d mean a lot to me."

It has been a long road leading up to this fight, serving in the Russian army from 1995 to 1997 before becoming a Sambo, and eventually MMA, champion.

Looking back on his career, "the Last Emperor" never envisioned such success in what was a little known sport when he started.

"I never really felt that I had any special talent I just tried it out, it seemed to be working, I kept winning and kept going with it," he said. "God has blessed me with the ability to be successful at what I do."

For Emelianenko, the biggest lesson he has learned from this experience is a humble and spiritual one.

"One thing I’ve learned is that I know that I can thank God for both all of my success and all of my failures, and all of my good times and all of my bad times. The one thing that I’ve learned is that I’m thankful to him for all that he’s given me," Emelianenko said.

Regardless of the outcome of next Saturday's bout, the legacy he would like to leave is that of "an orthodox, Christian fighter," Emelianenko told Bleacher Report. "That's how I'd like people to remember me."

Matt Juul is a Featured Columnist for Bleacher Report. All quotes were obtained first-hand unless otherwise noted.

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