Before Alistair Overeem signed with GLORY to fight heavyweight kickboxing champ Rico Verhoeven, he was waiting on a fight with Fedor Emelianenko. And waiting.
The chance to realize a fight with the all-time great Emelianenko was something that had eluded Overeem on two previous occasions, he said on The MMA Hour, and after his release from the UFC, it was a grand pivot that offered another career highlight in over two decades of them.
The only problem was, Emelianenko – or at least those around him – didn’t seem interested.
“We tried to make that fight in 2010 when I fought [Fabricio] Werdum [in Strikeforce] and he fought Brett Rogers – declined,” said Overeem, who on Oct. 23 headlines GLORY: Collision 3 opposite Verhoeven. “After he lost to Werdum, we tried to make that fight. He declined. And now, he has declined, so that’s three declines. So I think, with all due respect, there’s no interest from that side to fight me.
“And I cannot blame Fedor, because I’m getting older myself, not to much older, but a little bit. He’s a little bit older than me. So I understand that. But I have done everything I can do to make that fight happen. Ten years ago, but also now.”
Emelianenko chose Tim Johnson, Bellator’s No. 2 ranked heavyweight, for an event in Moscow on Oct. 23. Overeem wasn’t the only marquee opponent snubbed. Among those who lost out on the opportunity: Werdum, who famously ended the Russian’s winning streak; Josh Barnett, who was booked opposite Emelianenko for an ill-fated Affliction event; and pro wrestling star turned MMA fighter Jake Hager.
Another pivot was in order for Overeem, whose history-making run as Strikeforce, DREAM and K-1 champ led to a 10-year UFC run before his move to the open market.
“If there’s no response, I’m not going to be sitting around waiting until the sun comes up,” he said. “You’ve got to move on. We had zero response. But listen, I still have a lot of respect for Fedor. I think he has an amazing career. I love the Russian fans. He’s going to his thing, I’m going to do my thing, and that’s that.”
