Alistair Overeem Blasts Fedor Emelianenko: He Took The Easy Route
Alistair “The Reem” Overeem, put simply, is a legend of the heavyweight division. The veteran Dutch kickboxer is a former DREAM and Strikeforce champion and will get the opportunity to add a UFC title to his collection when he faces off with reigning divisional kingpin Stipe Miocic in the main event of September 10’s UFC 203 live on pay-per-view (PPV) from Cleveland, Ohio. While his long list of accomplishments speak for themselves, becoming a UFC champion could be the icing on the cake in cementing Overeem as one of the best heavyweights of all-time if not the best, although “The Reem” recently told Luke Thomas at SiriusXM that it wasn’t up to him to label himself that.
One man who could challenge Overeem for that label would be former longtime PRIDE champion Fedor “The Last Emperor” Emelianenko, a man many consider not only to be amongst the best heavyweights of all-time, but amongst the best fighters of all-time period. “The Reem” doesn’t appear to agree with that theory, however, saying that Emelianenko took the ‘easy route’:
“I like the wording. I like it, but I don’t think it’s up to me to give it to myself.”
“He kind of always took the easy route, which he’s doing now. He had an excellent run in Rings in Japan. I fought there, even, in ’99. Excellent run there, excellent run in PRIDE, but after PRIDE he never really tested himself.
“If he really wanted to go down as the best heavyweight ever, then he should’ve signed with the UFC and taken the hard route, because the UFC is the hardest division. That’s just what it is.”
After going nearly eight years without suffering a defeat, “The Last Emperor” went on a downward spiral, losing three straight in Strikeforce in 2010 and 2011. He would later take a hiatus from the sport before returning earlier this year to fight under the Rizin banner where he submitted a relative unknown in Jaideep Singh last December. Emeliaenko then took on ex-UFC light heavyweight Fabio Maldonado at EFN 50 this past June, taking home a highly controversial decision victory.
Despite his harsh comments, Overeem appeared to be respectful of Emelianenko, but do you see where he’s coming from here? “The Last Emperor” was rumored to be in talks with the UFC in past months, but it’s unlikely that he’ll ever grace the Octagon at this point in his career. Has that damaged his legacy?
