Fedor Emelianenko showcased his old self with a quick knockout of Frank Mir in the first round of the Bellator 198 main event.
Fedor Emelianenko joins the Bellator heavyweight tournament coming off a tough loss to Matt Mitrione in his promotional debut at Bellator NYC. The legend was on the losing end of a double knockdown and did not get back to his feet in that fight. At his peak, “The Last Emperor” was the most feared fighter in the world, taking out legends like Mirko Cro Cop, Mark Coleman, Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira, among others in the Pride ring. After a three-year retirement in 2012, Fedor has returned and has gone 1-1-1 (one win was unofficially ruled a draw by the World Mixed Martial Arts Association) and looks to start a string of wins at Bellator 198.
Frank Mir is coming off a suspension that effectively ended his UFC career in 2016. Not ready to retire quite yet, the former UFC heavyweight champion has signed with Bellator and joined their heavyweight tournament. Mir’s UFC run did not end gracefully, losing six of his final eight Octagon appearances. However, the two wins were first-round knockouts back in 2015. Coming off a two-year layoff and showcasing a much more chiseled physique, Mir is ready to make noise in the eight-man bracket.
The two legends meet in the middle of the cage and Mir charges forward and knocks down Fedor immediately! Mir pins him against the cage and Fedor recovers by throwing Mir onto his back. Mir scrambles to his feet and the heavyweights start swinging.
There seemed to be no rhyme or reason to the exchange, but Mir was caught with a short left uppercut while leaning in and faceplanted. Fedor got on top and pounded away and that was that.
Fedor put an end to the submission streak and will now move on to face Chael Sonnen in the second round of the tournament. What a thrilling fight between the two legends.
Fedor Emelianenko def. Frank Mir by TKO (Uppercut) in Round 1 (0:48)
