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By: Jamie Penick, MMATorch Editor-in-Chief
Fedor Emelianenko will return to Russia this June for a fight with an as-of-yet unannounced opponent. His management announced on Friday that Emelianenko will fight on June 21 at the Ice Palace in St. Petersburg.
According to a report from MMAJunkie.com, former professional wrestler, and two-time Strikeforce fighter, Bobby Lashley, is being considered for the bout.
The bout would be Emelianenko's third since being released from his Strikeforce deal last summer following a loss to Dan Henderson, his third straight in the organization. Emelianko defeated Jeff Monson and Satoshi Ishii in consecutive bouts to close out his 2011 campaign.
Lashley's name has been discussed for a bout with Emelianenko in the past, but it has yet to come to fruition. After a 2010 loss to Chad Griggs saw him leave Strikeforce, Lashley picked up two wins in 2011. However, his most recent win last November came against a light heavyweight in Karl Knothe who took the bout on extremely short notice.
Penick's Analysis: Emelianenko's name had been thrown out by fans for a replacement fight at UFC 146 with the loss of Alistair Overeem, but there wasn't likely any possibility of him being brought in. UFC President Dana White has said repeatedly that the UFC has no interest in bringing Emelianenko in following his three fight losing streak in Strikeforce, and with the contentious past relationship that the UFC and M-1 Global have had, the idea of him stepping in at UFC 146 if fights got shifted around was simply not realistic. Emelianenko's at the point right now where there aren't many intriguing fights for him outside of the Zuffa umbrella, so in that respect Lashley is fine as an opponent. Still, it's not going to be that intriguing for many fans.
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Jamie Penick, editor-in-chief
(mmatorcheditor@gmail.com)
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