In 2009 MMA fans came close to seeing Fedor Emelianenko, a legend of PRIDE FC, join the ranks of the UFC. The full story on the negotiations to sign The Last Emperor is yet to be told. Though, we know a private island is involved somehow.
Of course no deal would be made and the iconic Russian heavyweight would never sign one the dotted line for ZUFFA. So what we’re left with is one of MMA’s most agonizing ‘what ifs’ regarding how well Emlianenko, the greatest heavyweight ever to many people, would have fared against a field of UFC heavyweights that included Randy Couture, Shane Carwin and Brock Lesnar and was soon to feature Cain Velasquez and Junior dos Santos.