Fedor Emelianenko is open to sharing a cage with Jon Jones, and he wants it done outside the UFC.
When a reporter floated the idea of an exhibition between the two, the Last Emperor didn’t hedge. “No question,” he said, per Essentially Sports. “Of course we can do it.”
He also spent some time praising Jones. “I never worked with Jon Jones, so I can’t tell you if he needs coaching or not,” Emelianenko said. “But he’s certainly great, a brilliant one, very good. as a person too. I really enjoyed meeting him when he came to Moscow. We also saw each other in Abu Dhabi.”
A friendship with history
The two reportedly first met in May 2013, when Jones was the UFC light heavyweight champion and traveled to Moscow to give lectures and pick up some sambo. Emelianenko had fought in M-1 events until 2012 and then retired, a break that lasted until 2015. Eleven years after that Moscow trip, they crossed paths again at the PFL vs. Bellator Champs card in Riyadh on February 24, 2024, while Jones was heading toward his title defense against Stipe Miocic.
On exhibitions, Fedor has the experience edge. He beat lightweight Shinya Aoki by Achilles lock in a 2009 grappling exhibition at Tokyo’s Differ Ariake Arena, and he reportedly did an exhibition or sparring match with Gegard Mousasi. Jones has never done one, though he once posted on X, six years ago, that he’d love an exhibition at a 220-pound catchweight before moving to heavyweight. “Who wants to take that L?” he added.
Jones already passed once
This isn’t a fresh pitch for promoters. Last year, with reports linking Emelianenko to a BKFC event, Jones showed up in Moscow as a special guest of the IBA Bare Knuckle Boxing Organization, and a promoter reportedly offered him Fedor on a card in Red Square. Jones said no.
“I’m contractually obligated to the UFC for a very long time,” Jones said. “No one wants to see Fedor and I fight. I don’t want to fight Fedor. I absolutely love Fedor. He’s been one of my big idols for a very long time.”
That contract is still the wall. Jones has announced his retirement from MMA, but he remains bound to the UFC, and Dana White has said he’s relieved the UFC never signed Emelianenko after talks collapsed over M-1 Global’s demand to share event responsibilities and profits. White also claimed M-1 wanted an arena built in Russia, a version of events M-1 reportedly disputes.
Fedor, meanwhile, is keeping his options wide. He’s offered Khabib Nurmagomedov an exhibition sambo match, pitching it as a way to put the sport’s appeal on display, and he said he’s considering entering the Russian Combat Sambo Championship after he turns 50. “I want to fight a little bit with our sambo guys,” he said.
My take: I love that Fedor says yes to everything, because that’s how heavyweights used to be. But the guy on the other end has told us, on the record, that he doesn’t want this fight and can’t take it anyway. Until Jones gets out from under his UFC deal and changes his mind about punching his childhood idol, the realistic Fedor booking is a combat sambo tournament in Russia after his 50th birthday.
