FEDOR EMELIANENKO VS TIM SYLVIA...

[Michael Scofield]

Top ranked heavyweight Fedor Emelianenko (Pictures) will fight Tim Sylvia (Pictures) on July 19. The Russian mixed martial arts champion confirmed the bout to Sherdog.com on Tuesday. "[sylvia] is a good fighter, a strong fighter, the former UFC heavyweight champion, which is important," Emelianenko said via the telephone from Stary Oskol, Russia. "I am looking forward to fighting him and training hard for this fight." While Emelianenko was short on details, Sherdog.com has learned through sources close to the negotiations that Fedor-Sylvia would headline a card tentatively scheduled for the American Airlines Arena in Dallas, the home base of HDNet Fights. Attempts to confirm the fight with HDNet went unreturned, however sources indicate the bout will air on the Mark Cuban-owned network and is rumored to be promoted by Affliction, a clothing brand closely tied to MMA. Affliction had been connected with Oscar De La Hoya's Golden Boy Promotions, however a June 28 Las Vegas date has since been discarded. Emelianenko, a 31-year-old sambo practitioner, has faced criticism from media and fans alike after a string of fights against less than stellar competition. Sylvia would represent the Russian's first ranked opponent since his unanimous decision over Mirko "Cro Cop" Filipovic nearly three years ago. Widely regarded as the top heavyweight fighter in the world, Emelianenko (27-1-0, 1 NC) was recently freed from a letter of intent binding him to the now-defunct M-1 Global promotion. Sylvia, 32, is coming off a submission loss to Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira (Pictures) in February at UFC 81. After a spirited performance that saw him batter his foe at will with strikes, Sylvia (24-4-0) eventually fell victim to a classic Nogueira come-from-behind performance and succumbed to a guillotine choke early in the third round.

[gunnerman]

Not exactly Randy but it'll do I guess.Fedors already lost a lot of his Pride hype, he needs top level competition on major TV or else he'll just be forgotten about.Sylvias an awkward fight, should be an interesting matchup but Fedor should win.

[Michael Scofield]

WILL HE EVA FITE RANDY THO ?

Randy said he'll fight Fedor anywhere as long as its not in the UFCFedor said the fans want the fight so lets do it. Randy is still under UFC contract so Dana White wont let him fight anywhere else. That means that in this present time the fight aint gonna happen. After Randy's contract with the UFC runs out we'll probably see Couture vs Fedor.

[lizdarocker]

well now fedor's and tim's managers are saying the fight isnt a done deal. they have the contracts, but nothing has been signed. ill believe that fedor is fighting decent competition when the bell rings.