Fedor Emelianenko Released by Strikeforce, Dana White Speaks

Long live "The Last Emperor" Fedor Emelianenko's run under the Zuffa banner.

Less than a week after losing his third consecutive bout, the former Pride heavyweight champion has been released from Strikeforce, following a TKO loss to Dan Henderson.

News of the release was confirmed to MMAWeekly by UFC president Dana White.

"Yeah, he's been cut," said White. "You guys thought he was the pound-for-pound best in the world. I said he was overrated for years."

Once considered the best heavyweight in the world, Emelianenko saw his decade-long undefeated streak come to a sudden end on June 26 at the hands of Fabricio Werdum.

It was a historic moment as Werdum locked up a triangle choke and forced the seemingly invincible Russian to tap at 1:09 of the first round.

Shocked by the loss, most fans chalked Werdum's win up as merely a hiccup for Emelianenko.

Unfortunately, things didn't turn around in his return bout in February, where he was bullied into a second-round TKO stoppage by Antonio Silva in the opening round of the Strikeforce Heavyweight Grand Prix.

After the second loss, murmurings of Emelianenko's retirement began to creep up throughout the media, but the legendary heavyweight proved the rumors false and decided to trudge on in a catchweight bout against Strikeforce light heavyweight champion Dan Henderson.

After getting dropped on the feet, the 40-year-old Henderson recovered and used his wrestling to take Emelianenko's back and unload with multiple right hands, which forced referee Herb Dean to call a halt to the action at 4:12 of the first round.

In his post-fight interview, Emelianenko stated that he was uncertain what the future held for him.

Is this the end of one of the most storied careers in MMA history?

Stay tuned to Bleacher Report for more on this story as it unfolds.