Did UFC need Fedor or did Fedor need UFC?

Vlad_2121

Vlad_2121

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Is UFC's heavyweight class forever tarnish because they not sign Fedor?
Or is Fedor legacy tarnish because he not sign UFC?

I think the UFC heavyweight is never have the legitimacy it need cause it never had Fedor. People like Volkov and Olenik cannot replace what Fedor would achieve UFC.
 
obviously fedor conquering the ufc would have been a bigger boon for him than the ufc.......
 
I think following Fedor beating six of their ufc champions they needed him more but once he got older and started losing they no longer needed him and could switch the narrative to him just being a bum and the new mma fans swallowed their bile wholeheartedly.
 
UFC should have got him but couldn't afford his greatness. Sadly mostly American fans never got see him at his best.
 
UFC, of course, didn't need Fedor, as they didn't really need Askren or Cole Conrad.

Thinking you could build an org around one person is a huge mistake which was proved not only by futile attempts to build it around Emelianenko, but also around Kimbo Slice.

Emelianenko at the time seriously thought he was unbeatable and, therefore, bigger than any small-time American org where fighters can't just bring circus freaks instead of real contenders, have to take doping tests, etc. But it soon became clear that Emelianenko was a grossly overrated can crusher, while UFC continues to be #1 org in the world. Deep inside Emelianenko himself knew he had no legit excuse not to go UFC, that's why Sambo tournament bullshit was introduced. When White allowed him to compete in Sambo (which is ridiculous for a professional athlete, but beating up amateurs is his wheelhouse), yet another bullshit excuse immediately cropped up.

Fedor went on to fail as a politician, promoter, official and businessman. Because you gotta love what you do and do it in earnest instead of trying to pool wool over everybody's eyes and fuck people over.
 
Frankly both did well without each other, IMO it worked out the best for both parties...

Had Fedor came over and cleaned shop it would’ve only added fuel to the narrative that Pride was better.

Or the opposite, If Fedor fought in the UFC and got smashed, no doubt that the promotion would’ve paid an extremely high price tag for him likely with guaranteed money. That would’ve been a wasted resource to sign other talent.

I’m thinking that it worked out perfectly for everyone involved.
<Fedor23>
 
It's a two-way street: The UFC failed to sign the guy who used to be the best HW in MMA for a decade, and that guy failed to sign with the biggest MMA org to compete there once Pride FC went belly up.

That being said, Fedor still managed to humiliate two former UFC champs in Affliction, which kind of answered the question as to how he would have fared against these two guys who were at the top of the division in the UFC for a number of years.

Still, it was a rougher time for the UFC HW division than it was for Fedor, until he lost three in a row. At that point, Brock Lesnar had fought a couple of times and was a huge star, Cain and JDS were at their peak form, and the UFC HW division's slump finally felt like it was over.

Depends on which year you look at. But in 2007-2008, the UFC needed Fedor more than Fedor needed the UFC.
 
Depends what you mean by "need". Objectively, the UFC clearly didn't "need" Fedor. It's grown exponentially without him. Most new MMA fans have no idea who Fedor is. The organization has done extremely well without him and likely wouldn't have been materially different in the long run if they did sign him.

On the other side, Fedor obviously did fine without the UFC. He still had a phenomenal career and is considered one of the greatest ever by true MMA fans. However... his legacy, in terms of his name living on, just won't be quite the same as it would have been if he was a UFC champ. As said above, there are tons and tons of casual and new MMA fans that haven't heard of Fedor or barely know who he is. If that's something he truly cared about (and I don't think he really does), then he likely would have signed with the UFC.
 
I'll say it: Fedor was more comfortable winning fixed fights and padding his record outside of better competition. He got to beat all the UFC heavyweights when they were on the decline and were unwanted by the UFC. There's a reason most Pride superstars got their shit kicked in in the UFC... most were winning fixed fights in Japan and possibly didn't even know it.
 
The UFC obviously didnt "need" him considering their first huge boom period happened while he was going around various promotions post-Pride, and a large part of that boom involved big HW fights with Brock.
 
Neither which is why the deal never went through
 
The UFC would have pleased quite an active, but relatively small group of fans in booking him for a few fights and then he'd retire and the ball would keep rolling. UFC seems to be doing pretty well without having signed him.
 
Back in the day UFC needed him but little by little they successfully created the narrative that the best fighters are always in the UFC. If Ngannou, Jones, Usman, etc leaves the UFC they're washed up the next day. If they stay they are the best on the planet.

Casual fans think that UFC = elite and everywhere else is for lower level talent material. Only the real fans understand that it's way more nuanced than that but they are the minority.
 
"You're only as faithful as your options"
And Fedor was the Prom King.
 
Both did just fine without each other. Both are winners.
 
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