Is Fedor the best pound-for-pound fighter in the world?

This week, The Court of MMA will look into the case of whether or not Fedor Emelianenko should be considered the number one pound-for-pound fighter in the world.

Presenting the argument against the notion will be MMAMadness.com’s Associate Editor Cameron Gidari.

The idea that Fedor Emelianenko can still be considered the number one pound-for-pound fighter is laughable.

Proponents of Emelianenko love to trumpet his dazzling 30-1 record, and are quick to point out that his one loss came from a controversial cut stoppage.

In the pound-for-pound game, though, it’s not how many times you win, but who you beat. Look at Emelianenko’s last five wins and you’ll see what I mean.

He beat Tim Sylvia, who was just knocked out in nine seconds by an ex-boxer pushing 50.

He beat Andre Arlovski, who displayed his own glass jaw by getting run over by Brett Rogers one fight later.

Hong Man Choi? He sports an impressive 2-2 record, with one of those wins coming against Jose Canseco. Yes, the baseball player Jose Canseco.

Mark Hunt’s record is 5-6. Matt Lindland is fighting at middleweight.

The bottom line is that Emelianenko has not had a difficult fight in years. No fighter with a recent win over Hong Man Choi can be considered the best fighter in the world. As the saying goes, if you want to be the best, you have to beat the best.

You compare the difficulty level of Emelianenko’s record to those of some other p4p contenders, and the results aren’t even close.

Georges St. Pierre’s six-fight win streak has come against mostly top ten talents (excluding BJ Penn, who would give most welterweights trouble).

If you’re going by record alone, which Emelianenko defenders have to, Miguel Torres’ 37-1 (including 22 submission victories) is even more impressive.

Say what you will about Anderson Silva’s recent performances, but he has dominated the likes of Rich Franklin, Dan Henderson and Nate Marquardt.

If Emelianenko had fought and beat Josh Barnett, it would have gone a long way to helping his p4p argument. As long as he and M-1 continue to sidestep the real heavyweight competition (read: UFC), then his p4p argument will never hold any water.

Defending the notion will be MMAMadness.com’s Feature writer Gary Wimsett (an actual attorney).

Typically, I do not engage in the “pound-for-pound” parlor game, because I am a serious man and life is too short for games. I relented on this occasion because of the recent firestorm in the MMA press regarding contract negotiations between Zuffa and my pick for pound-for-pound king – Fedor Emelianenko. 

I have not seen the numbers offered to Emelianenko and neither have most of you, so take a deep breath and relax. When it makes financial sense for this deal to happen, it will happen. I am confident, however, that the nature of the negotiations suggests that, like me, powerful players in Zuffa understand and appreciate Emilianenko’s unique, fearsome and extremely marketable abilities.  Without Emelianenko, most serious observers of the sport know that the man wearing the UFC’s heavyweight belt is holding it for the “Last Emperor”.

Of course, there are many great fighters to consider when discussing pound-for-pound rankings. George St. Pierre is without rival in his weight class.  Anderson Silva will be extremely difficult to beat in his.  Then there’s the truism that the greatest living fighter is that as-yet-undiscovered champion toiling away in obscurity in a nondescript gym in some forgotten corner of the globe.

It pains me to know that scores of new MMA fans are coming to our sport during the Brock Lesnar era.  I do not have anything against Mr. Lesnar per se.  I think he is an outstanding athlete.  At this point in his career, though, he is not a mixed martial artist as I define the term.  He is very strong and very physical and he is able to
impose his ill will on most heavyweights.

Most, but not all.  As sure as Lesnar was destined to punish Frank Mir with his “lunch bucket”-like fists, Lesnar would lose and lose in shocking fashion to a gentleman by the Russian Military Experiment – easily the greatest pound-for-pound mixed martial artist in the sport now and arguably the best MMA fighter of all time.  Lesnar would not leave the Octagon with thoughts of Coors Light, Bud Light or even of getting on top of his lady friend for a few extra rounds.  He would get exposed and he would get hurt.  Sadly, so many MMA fans have never seen Emelianenko fight. Fedor destroys people.  Big people, small people and everyone in between.

If Emelianenko ever signs with Zuffa and fights in the UFC, the wider world will be treated to his unique brand of controlled, explosive violence. Despite the opinions of so many breathless UFC fanboys, however, Fedor does not need a UFC contract to cement his legacy as one of the greatest fighters of all time.  He has been proving it on the world stage (far from the eyes of the American fight fan to be sure) for years.

Sometimes he fights in a silly-looking Sambo uniform and it is hard not to snicker (from a safe distance).  He competes in and dominates judo tournaments.  He showcases his ferocious MMA skills in rings in the Far East against opponents you do not know.  Every once in a while, he is paired against a name most of us recognize, like Andrei Arlovski.  He knocked Arlovski out in mid-air. 

 He brutalized Tim Sylvia in 36 seconds.  Along the way, he has compiled a record of 30 wins and 1 loss (a controversial stoppage due to a cut).  He knocks some of his opponents out, he submits more of them, and he wins decisions when he is forced to go the distance.

Fedor Emelianenko is the best fighter you have never seen; he is the best pound-for-pound MMA fighter in the world; and, he is the best all-around MMA fighter who has ever lived.

There you have it!  Now it’s time for you to be the jury and voice your opinions on who has won this case below in our comment section.