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.”
