On this week's episode of MMA Live on ESPN.com the crew talks about the possible retirements of Quinton "Rampage" Jackson and Mirko "Cro Cop" Filipovic. They also take a look back at Vitor Belfort and UFC 103 in Dallas.
Mirko "Cro Cop" Filipovic doesn't know why the world's largely regarded top heavyweight, Fedor Emelianenko, refuses to fight in the UFC, but he did make it clear that he thinks Fedor and every other top fighter should focus their efforts on the MMA juggernaut.
"I don't know if somebody controls (Fedor), if he has the power to express his wishes to go wherever he wants. Maybe he has to do what some other people tell him to do, I don't know situation," said Cro Cop during a UFC 103 media conference call on Tuesday.
"I really don't why he doesn't want to enter UFC. Definitely UFC offered him, I know for sure, they offered him the best possible deal today, much more than Dream can offer or Strikeforce can offer, but he's just refusing to go there.
"I think that every true fighter should fight in the UFC today because UFC definitely the only worldwide organization today."
Cro Cop says his own reasons center on competition, wanting to prove that he is still to be feared among the world's best, the way he was in his heyday while fighting for Pride Fighting Championships.
"I liked Pride more than anything, but those days are gone and UFC is the main on the MMA market today. I think my place is to fight in the UFC and that is it," he told reporters.
"I don't think that (Fedor is) afraid of someone and maybe he just wants to keep his perfect score... I don't know."
Fedor recently signed with Strikeforce. He will face Brett Rogers in his first bout for the promotion, but a date and venue have yet to be revealed.
(Audio courtesy of Steve Cofield - ESPN Radio 1100)
The Phenom, former UFC light heavyweight champion Vitor Belfort, makes his long-awaited return to the Octagon to face UFC superstar Rich Ace Franklin in the main event of UFC 103. Also featured on the biggest MMA event to ever hit Texas will be perhaps the most explosive heavyweight battle of the year when one of the sports most feared strikers, Mirko Cro Cop, takes on Brazilian knockout artist Junior Dos Santos.
In recent days, rumors have abounded about Randy Couture's next fight. In early January, the former heavyweight champ could not accept a fight with Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira for the first half of 2009 due to a nagging elbow injury that needed surgery. Couture expected to eventually face the Brazilian, but was booked for the coming months with the upcoming action flick "The Expendables" starring Sylvester Stallone.
Several reports said Couture's rumored participation in the UFC's trip to Germany at UFC 99 had become a reality, with the 46 year-old fighter scheduled to face off-again/on-again UFC'er Mirko "Cro Cop" Filipovic in the main event of the June 13 card.
However, a source close to Couture says it is virtually impossible that the popular fighter will grace the card due to his film obligations and need for a proper 8 week training camp. Couture will, however, assist the UFC in a yet-undefined promotional role for the event.
Couture is fluent--with a little dust-off--in German from his days there in the US Army.
The source said a summer appearance was likely, but there were a number of variables that would play into Couture's eventual return. Of the "Natural"'s elbow, he is reportedly back in the gym as his hectic schedule allows.
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