Vitor Belfort Comments On Affliction ‘Trilogy’ Cancellation and Fedor Emelianenko

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Fedor Emelianenko Flew To The U.S. Without Knowing That Affliction ‘Trilogy’ Cancelled

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According to an M-1 Global report, Fedor Emelianenko did not receive word of Affliction canceling their ‘Trilogy’ event.  Fedor was supposed to be headlining the main event against former UFC heavyweight Josh Barnett, but he Barnett was forced off of the fight card due to positive steroid results.

Here’s the article from m-1global.com:

M-1 Global would like to sincerely apologize to fight fans who had made plans to either attend next Saturday’s Affliction and M-1 “Trilogy” event at the Honda Center in Anaheim, Calif. or watch the event at home on pay-per-view.

Early Friday afternoon, M-1 Global learned without warning or prior notice that Affliction had decided to cancel “Trilogy.”

As a partner of Affliction, M-1 Global was saddened to learn of these developments. The cancellation took our company completely by surprise, as Fedor Emelianenko, M-1 Challenge fighter Mikahil Zayats, and a traveling party of 35 people from Russia consisting of Fedor’s trainers, friends, family, as well as M-1 support personnel were all on a plane en route to Anaheim.

Additionally, Fedor did not learn of the cancellation until arriving at the airport and informed directly by M-1 legal counsel.

Following the California State Athletic Commission’s decision not to license Josh Barnett earlier in the week, M-1 Global was confident that a suitable replacement would be found. Fedor was ready, willing, and able to compete against whomever Affliction determined was the most qualified candidate amongst an extensive list of potential replacements.

M-1 Global understands and shares the disappointment being expressed by many fans that Fedor will not be able to compete on Aug. 1 as scheduled. However, we will work to ensure that Fedor returns to active competition as soon as possible.

With Affliction’s announcement that it will cease to promote MMA events, M-1 Global will look to help fill the void created by its departure with the launch of its new “Breakthrough” fight series. The first event is scheduled for Aug. 28 in Los Angeles and will feature “King” Mo Lawal and Don “The Predator” Frye in the main event and Karl Amoussou taking on Nick Thompson in the co-main event. It is our sincerest hope that all planning to attend “Trilogy” at the Honda Center will decide to help support M-1 Global on Aug. 28.

M-1 Global will also now focus its attention on the upcoming seventh edition of the M-1 Challenge, which is scheduled to be a “weekend offighting” from Aug. 15-16 in Hilversum, Holland and will feature a total of 30 fights over a two-day period.

M-1 Global has also been inundated with media requests to speak with Fedor and M-1 Global Owner and President Vadim Finkelchtein. We will be releasing statements from both Fedor and Vadim via www.M-1Global.com as soon as possible.

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Affliction ‘Trilogy’ Event Officially Cancelled For August 1st

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Vice President Tom Atencio and the Affliction team announced earlier today that the entire Affliction ‘Trilogy’ event has been officially canceled.  The third Affliction show was scheduled to take place at the Honda Center in Anaheim, California on August 1st. However, the California State Athletic Commission denied Josh Barnett from participating in the event earlier this week.  Apparently, Barnett tested positive for steroids which immediately forced him off of the main event fight that was supposed to be against Fedor Emelianenko.

These past few days, Affliction began to scramble in search of a replacement fighter to take on Fedor.  Their goal was to save the show by finding a marketable opponent to take on the WAMMA heavyweight champion.  Due to such a short notice, Affliction decided to cancel the event completely.

Snip from VP Tom Atencio:

“Finding an opponent for the No. 1 ranked MMA heavyweight champion in such a short period of time was a huge endeavor and I’m thrilled at the amount of fighters willing to take on this challenge. But in the end, we just didn’t have enough time to promote a new fight to our standards.”

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Affliction ‘Trilogy’ Pre-Fight Interviews With Belfort, Hieron, Horodecki and Hominick

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Tito Ortiz Would Not Be Ready For Fedor Emelianenko At Affliction ‘Trilogy’

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Jorge Santiago Continues To Train As If He Were Still Fighting Vitor Belfort

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Although there are rumors indicating that Vitor Belfort is likely to go up in weight to fight Fedor Emelianenko at the Affliction ‘Trilogy’ main event, Jorge Santiago continues to train for Belfort anyway.  Santiago’s trainer Marcus Conan from American Top Team decided to continue training Santiago since nothing was official.  Conan is confident that Santiago will be fighting Belfort, but we can only wait and see who Vice President of Affliction Tom Atencio selects.

Atencio warned media and fans that if the news didn’t come from him, then everything else you hear out there are just rumors.  He also stated that the options were being discussed with representatives of Affliction and planned on speaking to several managers.  Once the right fight deal is negotiated and the final decision is made, he promises to release the name of the opponent out to the public.

Snip from Jorge Santiago’s ATT coach Marcus Conan:

“I know exactly what you know, that Josh (Barnett) tested positive, but the situation is the same: Jorge (Santiago) will fight Vitor Belfort. He has growth a lot, he’s one of the best fighters we have at American Top Team. He’s a complete fighter and I think it describes who he is and how he is now.”

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Trainer Shawn Tompkins On the Possibility Of Vitor Belfort vs. Fedor Emelianenko

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Josh Barnett Resolving Positive Test Result Issues: “I Never Once Thought There Would Be A Problem”

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The former UFC heavyweight Josh “The Babyfaced Assassin” Barnett was working on his final training sessions as he he prepared to face Fedor Emelianenko at Affliction ‘Trilogy’.  However, the California State Athletic Commission announced earlier this week that Barnett would not be able to participate in the August 1st Affliction ‘Trilogy’ event after testing positive for steroids.

This wasn’t the first time Barnett had issues with positive test results.  When Barnett defeated Randy Couture for the UFC heavyweight title back in 2002, his belt was immediately stripped by the Nevada State Athletic commission after testing positive for three different anabolic agents.  It seems like deja vu because Barnett has denied any use of steroids once again, but we’ll just have to wait and see what kind of information he and his representative can find in order to defend his case.

Snip from Josh Barnett himself:

“Many of you are wondering what’s happening. What I can say is that when applying for my license, the CSAC asked for me to submit a urine sample for testing prior to granting my license as they do with everyone, I believe. It was not a random test. I had no reason to believe there would be any issues and went in to submit my sample at the earliest possible opportunity on June 25th. I never once thought there would be a problem. My representatives and I are working to gather as much info as possible and handle this situation as best as we can. I am embarrassed and want for nothing more than to resolve this issue and receive a license from the State of California as I have done many times already and for other states as well. I am very thankful for all the great family, friends and fans that still support me.”

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Jeff Monson Eager To Replace Josh Barnett: “I’m The Guy To Beat Fedor”

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Josh Barnett tested positive for steroids earlier this week, which has pretty much forced him out of the upcoming Affliction ‘Trilogy’ main event fight against Fedor Emelianenko.  Affliction Vice President Tom Atencio has already begun his search on a replacement opponent and although there are many heavyweight candidates to choose from, the spot is still open to many.

The former UFC heavyweight fighter Jeff “The Snowman” Monson has stepped up to the plate, telling Affliction that he was ready to accept a fight against the current WAMMA champ Fedor Emelianenko.  Monson believes that a bout against Fedor is a “perfect match-up” for him as he is eager to meet with the Russian Sambo expert in the ring by any means.

Snip from The Snowman himself:

“I’m the guy to beat Fedor. He’s a great fighter. It’s a perfect match-up. He’s the guy I’m destined to fight. I want to be the guy to beat him. I’d definitely love to be carried off afterward…after I submit him. My goal is to be the best in the world, even if it’s for one fight.”

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Fedor Emelianenko Disappointed With Barnett Situation; Open To Fight Anyone, Even Belfort or Rogers

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Fedor “The Last Emperor” Emelianenko continues to train hard for his upcoming Affliction ‘Trilogy’ main event fight even though he already heard that Josh Barnett was forced off of the card.   He is disappointed with the Barnett’s positive test results, but he is ready and willing to take on any opponent that Affliction puts in front of him.

Fedor and M-1 Global manager Vadim Finkelchtein attended a press conference in Russia to answer media questions related to the August 1st event.  The presser was made to talk about the Barnett situation and to see if Fedor and his team were still willing to take a fight with an unknown opponent with such short notice.  The California State Athletic Commission made it clear to the public that Barnett would not be able to participate in the Affliction ‘Trilogy’ event due to positive steroid test results that were found in his urine.  It was very unfortunate to find such bad news with less than 10 days remaining before this huge event, but Fedor is confident that the event will still be exciting for all MMA fans.

Here’s what Fedor Emelianenko had to say:

“I feel disappointed about this situation…But I will fight anyone who Affliction puts in front of me. I know a lot of fans waited for this fight to happen and I am sorry for them. I can’t do much about it now but I am in good shape, my training has been good and continues to go well…the main routine is over now…From now on it all about accuracy, precision and execution. There was no specific manner to prepare for the planned bout with Josh Barnett. It’s all the same: standup and ground game… Undoubtedly, it’s better to know the name of your opponent long before the fight though.”

M-1 Global President and Owner Vadim Finkelchtein also spoke about the Barnett:

“By the end of the evening we expect to officially announce who’ll be the replacement for Barnett…Vitor Belfort agreed to come in principle…We personally entertained the idea of having Brett Rogers step in since he knocked Andrei Arlovski out…But if there is any problem with Rogers, then it’s pretty safe to say it’s going to be Belfort. However, we are well aware of the fact that fans don’t consider Vitor Belfort to be a suitable replacement, according to a recent Sherdog poll…Everyone in the world now wants to see the fight of Fedor, not Barnett…People want to see Fedor fight. Belfort can make heavyweight but the fans don’t want this fight. Fedor isn’t seeking an easy fight. If logistics weren’t an issue, we’d like to see Fedor fight against Brett Rogers. Fans want it (and) so do we.”

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