When Fedor Emelianenko walks the walk for the last time, it will close out one of the most remarkable chapters in mixed martial arts history.
Emelianenko plans to retire after he challenges Ryan Bader for the Bellator MMA heavyweight championship in the Bellator 290 headliner on Saturday at The Forum in Inglewood, California. Bader needed just 35 seconds to take out “The Last Emperor” with punches in their first encounter at Bellator 214 four-plus years ago. Emelianenko enters the rematch on the strength of back-to-back victories. He last appeared at Bellator 269, where he cut down Timothy Johnson with punches in the first round of their pairing on Oct.