M-1 exec Jerry Millen: Fedor Emelianenko will fight Brock Lesnar for free
First, it was Randy Couture. Now, it's Brock Lesnar.
Each time former PRIDE heavyweight champion Fedor Emelianenko (31-1) adds another win to his already impressive career total, fans from across the world call for the Russian to face the UFC's reigning king.
Emelianenko toppled the previously undefeated Brett Rogers at Saturday night's Strikeforce and M-1 Global co-promotion, "Fedor vs. Rogers," and those requests have already begun again. While the UFC's unwillingness to co-promote has proved an insurmountable roadblock in the past, M-1 Global USA vice president Jerry Millen has a simple solution: do it for free.
"If these guys in the UFC truly wanted to fight Fedor, they'd find a way," Millen recently told MMAjunkie.com Radio. "Come to his training camp. Come to Stary Oskol, and we'll do three, five-minute rounds in the ring or the cage. We'll do it for fun.
"If you really want to fight him for competition, and it's not about the money for the guys in the UFC, then tell Brock Lesnar to jump his ass on a plane, take a train, and come to Stary Oskol. If these guys really want to fight Fedor, then come to Stary Oskol and lets get it on there for no money."
UFC president Dana White has often been less-than-complimentary in regards to Emelianenko and Millen's partners at M-1 Global. Some critics of the Russian fighter have suggested Emelianenko's refusal to fight in the UFC was a result of his desire to keep his nearly unblemished record intact.
Millen finds the thought of Emelianenko "ducking" stiff competition laughable.
"[Emelianenko] loves fighting," Millen said. "He loves the competition of it, and he'll fight any comers. That's why when I hear these jerks say, 'He's ducking the UFC. He's afraid of Brock Lesnar' – Frank Mir's like, 'Oh, he's afraid of us' – give me a break. That's the biggest bunch of bull I've ever heard. Fedor's not afraid to fight anybody."
As he always has, Millen maintains the only thing stopping "The Last Emperor" from fighting in the octagon are the terms being offered by the UFC.
"It's got to be a good deal," Millen said. "When you sign with the UFC, most guys sign their soul away. Fedor doesn't have to sign his soul away, number one, because he's at the top of the game, and he's doing very well without signing with the UFC. So he doesn't have to sell his soul. He's the kind of guy that won't sell his soul.
"If you ever see Fedor (in the UFC), if that ever happens, it's going to be a very fair deal."
Millen said he believes the UFC has been great for the sport but that the contract terms offered by the promotion aren't always in the best interest of the organization's athletes.
"The fighters in the UFC are great, but the UFC, to me, is the WWE model," Millen said. "They want to own the guys. They have their own rankings. There's a lot of fighters out there that are undiscovered that don't get a chance to fight in the UFC, so they're not going to get ranked because they're not going to fight the guy that's ranked No. 4.
"The UFC is the Q-tip of MMA. It's great what they've done for the sport, but PRIDE was there before that. Strikeforce, King of the Cage, Cage Rage. There's a lot of promotions out there that helped the sport, and when I hear people say that the UFC has made MMA what it is, the UFC has made MMA what it is in America. Not worldwide."
As a part-owner of M-1 Global, Emelianenko may not ever make a UFC appearance. But Millen said if Lesnar, Mir or any other UFC heavyweight wants to face the current WAMMA heavyweight champion, Emelianenko waits on the other end of trip to Russia.
"I get so sick of hearing, 'Oh, he's afraid,'" Millen said. "That's the biggest bunch of crap I've ever heard. [Emelianenko] is an athlete. He's not afraid of somebody beating him up. He gets punched in the face all the time. What would he be afraid of? Losing? He's not afraid to lose. He's at peace with losing. That's all bull.
"Dana will talk his trash. Brock Lesnar, Frank Mir, they're all trying to goad him. But honestly, [Emelianenko] doesn't listen to any of it. It doesn't affect him. He just does what he does, and if you want to fight him, come on. He'll fight you. Bring it."
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