PRIDE legend Fedor Emelianenko is coming out of retirement and will be competing in Mixed Martial Arts once again.
Fedor Emelianenko seemed to have closed the book on his storied MMA career when he announced his retirement in 2012. Three years later though, and the legendary PRIDE champion has decided to write a new chapter as he will be coming back to active mixed martial arts competition.
The now 38-year-old fighter from Stary Oskol has began training again and will be returning to the sport. Bloody Elbow has confirmed the news with multiple sources close to the situation, with Russian outlet Union MMA first to report on the comeback.
"For every athlete it is very important to be able to engage in their favorite thing: give all the best in training, performing in competitions, defending the honor of the motherland," said Fedor on a statement released in his native tongue.
"During my time at the Ministry, I was able to work on the development of the sport, work closely with the presidents of sports federations, recognize the problems from within the sport, and as far as possible, try to solve them. But now I feel that it is time to return to the ring."
"I was able to recover and heal old injuries. The last three years I have maintained physical form, but this level is not enough to go into battle, therefore recently I started intensive training. We have assembled a team of versatile coaches and athletes who will help me in the training process" Emelianenko continued. "There is still work to do to prepare to leave the ring. Negotiations are underway with promotions. Once agreements are reached, there will be information on the date of the fight and rival."
Emelianenko has compiled a 34-4 record in his MMA career, with wins on his last three contests. Stay tuned as Bloody Elbow will have more updates on the return of the Last Emperor.
Anderson Silva Suspended One Year, fined $380k, chastised for 'soft testimony'
The Nevada State Athletic Commission today voted unanimously to issue a 12-month suspension to former UFC middleweight champion Anderson Silva for multiple banned substances found in his system before and after a unanimous-decision victory over Nick Diaz at UFC 183.
The commission also fined Silva (33-6 MMA, 16-2 UFC) a total of $380,000 and overturned his decision victory over Diaz (26-9 MMA, 7-6 UFC). His suspension is retroactive to the date of his Jan. 31 headliner in Las Vegas, meaning he is clear to compete Jan. 31, 2016. Per the terms of his suspension, he will need to provide a clean drug test prior to relicensing.
The fine represents the entirety of the former longtime middleweight champion’s $200,000 win bonus and 30 percent of his $600,000 fight purse for the pay-per-view bout, which he won in convincing fashion. Additionally, he is required to reimburse the NSAC for attorney and testing fees.
Silva’s attorney, Nevada-based Michael Alonso, requested lenience on the 40-year-old fighter given his age and previous absence of positive tests. The NSAC was unmoved by the request but wound up ordering a suspension on the longer end of a suggested timeframe of nine to 12 months.
“I think (Silva has) done excellent things, but this is the first time he’s really been subject to enhanced testing,” NSAC commissioner Anthony Marnell, who again emerged as a strong voice on PED usage, said. “I feel there’s some intention here to use the product to come back from a devastating injury.
“There’s definitely knowledge of what’s going on here, and we’re just playing games. And that’s my frustration at all this soft testimony.”
Silva, who long reigned as the sport’s top pound-for-pound fighter before a pair of title loss to current champ Chris Weidman, admitted to using an off-brand sexual enhancement – frequently referred to as Cialis during the hearing – produced in Thailand. He obtained the enhancement, which was contained in an unmarked blue vial, from a onetime training partner who lived in the country. Asked when he stopped using it, he changed his answer in mid-testimony from Jan. 8 to sometime the week prior to the fight.
“I’m human and I make mistakes,” Silva said via translator. “It was definitely a mistake. If I had known this supplement would have had this problem, I would have never taken it.”
Silva also admitted to using a pair of anti-anxiety meds he said were prescribed by a doctor this past November for sciatic nerve pain following a training incident. He said he wasn’t feeling well after the UFC 183 weigh-ins and took the meds to feel better, yet didn’t inform his camp or the commission of his use.
In recommending a harsher punishment, NSAC commissioner Pat Lundvall hammered Silva on his pre-fight medical questionnaire from UFC 183, calling his omission of using the enhancement “intentional falsification.”
Silva, who outpointed Diaz at UFC 183, failed a Jan. 9 out-of-competition drug test ordered by the NSAC and tested positive for drostanolone metabolites and methyl androstane, a form of endogenous testosterone. The former middleweight champion immediately denied the use of any banned substances and promised to fight the NSAC’s findings.
An amended complaint by the NSAC then revealed that Silva passed a Jan. 19 out-of-competition test, but also failed tests administered by the commission prior to and following his Jan. 31 fight with Diaz. He tested positive again for drostanolone metabolites and a pair of anti-anxiety medications, oxazepam and temazepam, which aren’t banned by the commission but allegedly weren’t disclosed by Silva on his pre-fight medical questionnaire.
In subsequent interviews, he said part of his strategy would be to test the supplements he was taking prior to the fight. As it turned out, his supplement use factored most prominently in an answer to the allegations against him.
Silva, via his attorney Michael Alonso, denied knowingly ingesting any performance-enhancers and claimed a supplement taken to enhance sexual performance contained drostanolone while another supplement contained androstane. He also admitted to using anti-anxiety meds “because he was anxious and could not sleep the night before the contest.”
The defense brief also pointed to the results of a steroid test conducted by Quest Diagnostics, which came up negative despite the drostanolone found by the WADA-accredited Sports Medicine Research and Testing Laboratory. Silva asked the NSAC take no disciplinary action against him.
I think Nick Diaz is a pos and only shows up to fights these days for a paycheck. However, this 5-year ban is nuts. It's pretty clear that he plays games with the organization that employs him, the commission, and doesn't present himself in a professional manner.
In order to fight in the UFC or Bellator, do you need to be licensed by the Nevada State Commission? Fights are being held all over the country these days and even in other countries, what grounds does a California state license hold?
I imagine that Nick has more fights on his contract from the UFC which is preventing him from fighting in other organizations overseas. If his contract is up, he should stick it to the commission and fight in some low totem pole organization based in another country that doesn't require a Nevada State license against some no name just for the face of the sport.
If you actually waste 3 hours of your time watching the hearing, it's pretty clear the commission had their mind made up going into this or at least Pat did.
The commission's ruling and the prosecutor (?) case all hinged on the B sample. It blows my mind that neither the commission or the prosecutor tested the B sample. It also is mind-blowing that Pat believes the B sample should be tested by the same lab and not an independent lab for comparison. Nick's lawyer(s) came in hard to the commission and presenting a really good case. They should of turned around the next day though and submitted something to a higher court.
Former WCW wrestler Tank Abbott stated on his podcast that he would beat Ronda Rousey in a fight because "she is a girl." He also claimed she would lose to Floyd Mayweather because she has "all this emotional stuff" due to being a woman. Abbott even said he would fight any woman on earth for free. Read more at TMZ.com
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