LAS VEGAS – Soon, the Strikeforce heavyweight grand prix will come to a conclusion, and the entire division then will be sent to the UFC.
But first, the tournament champion – either Josh Barnett or Daniel Cormier – will get one more Strikeforce fight against an opponent to be determined.
While Strikeforce CEO Scott Coker said some of those options were eliminated when the UFC gobbled up a handful of Strikeforce fighters for upcoming cards, one famous Russian remains a possibility.
So could Emelianenko fight the tourney winner?
"That's interesting," Coker said. "I'm not sure what Fedor has planned. I haven't spoken to M-1. I know (M-1 executive) Steve Bash was in the audience tonight, but we haven't had that conversation yet."
While Emelianenko recently has expressed interest in competing the UFC, UFC president Dana White has cast some doubt. In a recent TMZ video, he said the former PRIDE champion "sucks," and his struggles in negotiating with the fighter's representatives are well-documented. But a win over the grand-prix champion certainly could justify a UFC contract for Emelienanko.
MMAJunkie.com