What idiot does the match making for Bellator?

[CC27]

Coker def has a say like Dana does with certain fights but he has guys who matchmake for him. I dont know who that is with Chou gone, maybe Kogan?

 

[ThunderL1ps]

 

[BFoe]

So Sergei Kharitonov is fighting Cheick Kongo and Fedor Emelianenko is fighting Tim Johnson. Seems to me that Fedor vs Sergei and Kongo vs Johnson would make a lot more sense and probably bring in more viewers.

Fedor has been very clear that he wants Russian MMA and Russian MMA fighters to succeed, and has no desire to have to beat another Russian. A fight with Sergei was never going to happen. Bellator has a lot of problems when it comes to promotion and matchmaking, but not booking Fedor vs Sergei isn’t one of them. It’s an unrealistic fight that was never going to be made.

Also, this idea that I see ITT that they went with Johnson because he’s cheapest to pay is ridiculous too.

 

[GOAT.]

Also, this idea that I see ITT that they went with Johnson because he’s cheapest to pay is ridiculous too.

It's not that ridiculous tbh. Nobody knows who Johnson is. He has 11k followers on Instagram. That's less than most Instagram thots. He has no leverage when it comes to negotiating. He probably took the fight for 50k and another 100-200k of sponsor money. Compared to someone like Reem or JDS who wouldn't pull up for less than 300k. Going to Moscow to put on a show isn't cheap and a guy like Johnson allows Bellator to cut some corners.

 

[SalvadorAllende]

Could be but there are better fights to make. Overeem, JDS, and Barnett aren't signed to any MMA promotions and I don't think Overeem's kickboxing deal is exclusive.

Exactly

About 90% of potential matchups for Fedor are better than this Tim Johnson pile of shit. Tim Johnson? Really?

Fuck, throw some money at Wanderlei.

 

[BFoe]

It's not that ridiculous tbh. Nobody knows who Johnson is. He has 11k followers on Instagram. That's less than most Instagram thots. He has no leverage when it comes to negotiating. He probably took the fight for 50k and another 100-200k of sponsor money. Compared to someone like Reem or JDS who wouldn't pull up for less than 300k. Going to Moscow to put on a show isn't cheap and a guy like Johnson allows Bellator to cut some corners.

I’m sorry, an idea like that *is* ridiculous. You really think that Bellator decided to put together this big event in Moscow, headlined by Fedor in his last fight ever in Russia (maybe last fight ever period), and said “Ok, let’s make sure that when we book the main event, Fedor fights some cheap bastard so we can cut a few corners”?? That’s silly.
I’m sure money factored into the negotiate with JDS or Reem or whomever, but probably in the sense that we’ve talked about: Bellator is trying to move away from being a legends league, and doesn’t feel like geriatric Reem or JDS is worth paying 500K for a 6 fight deal. Coker was willing to do one-off deals, and obviously that wasn’t going to interest those fighters.
We all like to play Fantasy Booker—myself included—but there has to be some reality in the fantasy too, you know? It’s easy to say, “I’d book Fedor to fight JDS!” But those deals aren’t always a reality. And yes, the fact that they didn’t get done could definitely speak to Coker’s shiftiness as a promoter too.
So let’s play Fantasy Booker. Who should Fedor fight?
JDS, Reem, Werdum? Off the table. They want more than the org is willing to pay, or a longer fight deal than the org is willing to negotiate based on their age/status. It’s sucks, but here we are.
Kharitonov or Minakov? Fedor won’t fight another Russian, so forget it.
What are we left with? Who are the current ranked HWs on the roster?

1. Ryan Bader, Champ—tied up in the LHW Grand Prix. Plus, while I’d like to see Fedor have a rematch in which he’s not totally riddled with injuries like the first one, he doesn’t really deserve a TS at this point.
2. Valentin Moldavsky, Interim Champ—teammate of Fedor’s, so def not happening.
3. Tim Johnson

And that’s the fight that was booked. Fedor simply fought the highest ranked HW that was available to fight. Has nothing to do with cutting corners. “But Jake Hager would be a better fight”—bullshit. If Fedor fights Hager, he’d get shit on by mouth breathers for “fighting another pro wrestler can.” Ppl say Fedor should fight fellow legends, but when he fought old ass Rampage he got shit on for that. Book him against the #3 HW who just fought for the interim belt, and somehow people shit on that too. Unless you can make the legends fantasy match of someone’s dreams, Fedor gets shit on by fickle MMA fans no matter who he fights.

 

[Hellowhosthat]

I’m sorry, an idea like that *is* ridiculous. You really think that Bellator decided to put together this big event in Moscow, headlined by Fedor in his last fight ever in Russia (maybe last fight ever period), and said “Ok, let’s make sure that when we book the main event, Fedor fights some cheap bastard so we can cut a few corners”?? That’s silly.
I’m sure money factored into the negotiate with JDS or Reem or whomever, but probably in the sense that we’ve talked about: Bellator is trying to move away from being a legends league, and doesn’t feel like geriatric Reem or JDS is worth paying 500K for a 6 fight deal. Coker was willing to do one-off deals, and obviously that wasn’t going to interest those fighters.
We all like to play Fantasy Booker—myself included—but there has to be some reality in the fantasy too, you know? It’s easy to say, “I’d book Fedor to fight JDS!” But those deals aren’t always a reality. And yes, the fact that they didn’t get done could definitely speak to Coker’s shiftiness as a promoter too.
So let’s play Fantasy Booker. Who should Fedor fight?
JDS, Reem, Werdum? Off the table. They want more than the org is willing to pay, or a longer fight deal than the org is willing to negotiate based on their age/status. It’s sucks, but here we are.
Kharitonov or Minakov? Fedor won’t fight another Russian, so forget it.
What are we left with? Who are the current ranked HWs on the roster?

1. Ryan Bader, Champ—tied up in the LHW Grand Prix. Plus, while I’d like to see Fedor have a rematch in which he’s not totally riddled with injuries like the first one, he doesn’t really deserve a TS at this point.
2. Valentin Moldavsky, Interim Champ—teammate of Fedor’s, so def not happening.
3. Tim Johnson

And that’s the fight that was booked. Fedor simply fought the highest ranked HW that was available to fight. Has nothing to do with cutting corners. “But Jake Hager would be a better fight”—bullshit. If Fedor fights Hager, he’d get shit on by mouth breathers for “fighting another pro wrestler can.” Ppl say Fedor should fight fellow legends, but when he fought old ass Rampage he got shit on for that. Book him against the #3 HW who just fought for the interim belt, and somehow people shit on that too. Unless you can make the legends fantasy match of someone’s dreams, Fedor gets shit on by fickle MMA fans no matter who he fights.

Noone is shitting on Fedor bro, everyone is shitting on Coker for booking him a borderline unwinnable fight in Russia for him to retire on. People wanted someone like Hager because they wanted him to go out on a win.

 

[BFoe]

Noone is shitting on Fedor bro, everyone is shitting on Coker for booking him a borderline unwinnable fight in Russia for him to retire on. People wanted someone like Hager because they wanted him to go out on a win.

I get that, but Coker also said that Fedor gave him a list of names that he was interested in, and they set about trying to get some of of those deals done.

You (and others) will probably just chalk what I’m about to say up to me being a Fedor fanboy, but this is actually a very winnable fight for Fedor. It’s not borderline unwinnable at all. I’m actually thinking of making a thread when we get a bit closer to fight time, analyzing this fight and making the case for exactly why Fedor is winning this.

 

[Hellowhosthat]

I get that, but Coker also said that Fedor gave him a list of names that he was interested in, and they set about trying to get some of of those deals done.

You (and others) will probably just chalk what I’m about to say up to me being a Fedor fanboy, but this is actually a very winnable fight for Fedor. It’s not borderline unwinnable at all. I’m actually thinking of making a thread when we get a bit closer to fight time, analyzing this fight and making the case for exactly why Fedor is winning this.

I dunno, he's a HW so he always has a punchers chance but Johnson is pretty sturdy, isn't going to get taken down by 2021 Fedor and can crack on the feet. I think Johnson will be at least a -400 favourite come fight night.

 

[mime]

Kongo vs Fortune
Sergei vs Mowry
Fedor vs Mitrione II
Minakov vs Vassel

This makes more sense though mitrione is cut they could have kept him for one more. They werent going to have fedor fight a russian and johnson already just fought kongo in a boring fight. People who will watch will tune in to fight fedor regardless hoping he wins.

 

[BFoe]

I dunno, he's a HW so he always has a punchers chance but Johnson is pretty sturdy, isn't going to get taken down by 2021 Fedor and can crack on the feet. I think Johnson will be at least a -400 favourite come fight night.

To me, Bader was a much more unwinnable fight. I mean, technically it was winnable, and I do think Fedor could have a better performance if he hadn’t been riddled with injuries. But an explosive wrestler with good strikes and dynamic movement was always going to be tough for current Fedor. Johnson though is a fat, slow, plodding, overextending striker who is available for Fedor’s counter. And while Fedor is not the grappler he once was, I see no reason why Fedor couldn’t take him down—he certainly took 260 pound Mir down. Fedor is a few years older now, but also getting his left knee fixed up seemed like it made him much more mobile.

With Fedor being 45, and his chin being totally fucked, Johnson should rightfully be the favorite. I really do understand why people think he’s winning. But to me, not only is he the highest ranked HW in Bellator that’s available for Fedor, this is actually a good stylistic matchup for Fedor. Doesn’t mean he’ll win, because one shot and his chin explodes. But I like Fedor to win this fight.

 

[BFoe]

This makes more sense though mitrione is cut they could have kept him for one more. They werent going to have fedor fight a russian and johnson already just fought kongo in a boring fight. People who will watch will tune in to fight fedor regardless hoping he wins.

It makes more sense, but I don’t think Mitrione was just cut—his contract was up.

 

[SokoudjouFanboy]

Fighters that would have made more sense then Tim Johnson to fight Fedor in Russia

Barnett
Anderson Silva
JDS
Werdum
Overeem
Wanderlei Silva
Bigfoot Silva
Mitrione
Hager
Machida
Manhoef

That's 11 including 4 actively on the roster. Am I missing any?

 

[BFoe]

Fighters that would have made more sense then Tim Johnson to fight Fedor in Russia

Barnett
Anderson Silva
JDS
Werdum
Overeem
Wanderlei Silva
Bigfoot Silva
Mitrione
Hager
Machida
Manhoef

That's 11 including 4 actively on the roster. Am I missing any?

I count 3 currently on the roster—Barnett, Machida, and Hager. And whatever is going on with Barnett is questionable AF. Why would Machida make more sense than a top ranked heavyweight? Fedor has 2 fights left on his contract, and it’s up in the air as to whether he’ll retire after the Johnson fight. Johnson is a winnable fight, and Fedor arguably could get a TS if he wins (obviously the interim title situation with Moldavsky would have to be worked out). Judging by Fedor having entered the HW Grand Prix, he obviously had goals for his return.

 

[SokoudjouFanboy]

I count 3 currently on the roster—Barnett, Machida, and Hager. And whatever is going on with Barnett is questionable AF. Why would Machida make more sense than a top ranked heavyweight? Fedor has 2 fights left on his contract, and it’s up in the air as to whether he’ll retire after the Johnson fight. Johnson is a winnable fight, and Fedor arguably could get a TS if he wins (obviously the interim title situation with Moldavsky would have to be worked out). Judging by Fedor having entered the HW Grand Prix, he obviously had goals for his return.

I have zero desire to see Fedor in fights that even resemble meaningful in 2021 and it's everyone not named Fedor's job to tell him that. The only way this is justifiable is if everybody did tell him that and he insisted on a highly ranked guy anyway. That's it.

 

[GOAT.]

Fighters that would have made more sense then Tim Johnson to fight Fedor in Russia

Barnett
Anderson Silva
JDS
Werdum
Overeem
Wanderlei Silva
Bigfoot Silva
Mitrione
Hager
Machida
Manhoef

That's 11 including 4 actively on the roster. Am I missing any?

Tito

 

[GOAT.]

I count 3 currently on the roster—Barnett, Machida, and Hager. And whatever is going on with Barnett is questionable AF. Why would Machida make more sense than a top ranked heavyweight? Fedor has 2 fights left on his contract, and it’s up in the air as to whether he’ll retire after the Johnson fight. Johnson is a winnable fight, and Fedor arguably could get a TS if he wins (obviously the interim title situation with Moldavsky would have to be worked out). Judging by Fedor having entered the HW Grand Prix, he obviously had goals for his return.

What's this obsession with "top ranked HW" and why such emphasis on it? Fedor isn't ranked so it should be pretty obvious that this isn't an important element in 2021 Fedor fights. Especially when there is a list of 15 fighters out there who would be far more interesting to the target audience. Bellator needs to focus on what they're good at and what they're able to provide that the UFC isn't and that's legends fights. Fedor deserves a legends fight FFS.

 

[GOAT.]

Tito vs Fedor in Russia would have been incredible.

 

[BFoe]

What's this obsession with "top ranked HW" and why such emphasis on it? Fedor isn't ranked so it should be pretty obvious that this isn't an important element in 2021 Fedor fights. Especially when there is like a list of 15 fighters out there who would be far more interesting to the target audience.

It’s not an obsession at all. But the emphasis on it is because that is why the fight makes *some* sense.
Fedor is only unranked due to inactivity. He was ranked #4 in Bellator. It seems pretty clear that Fedor had some things in mind for his return in 2016: he wanted to test himself against some of today’s fighters (e.g. Mitrione), wanted to win a title (hence entering the Grand Prix and fighting 3 times in 9 months, which was pretty crazy), and wanted to avenge some losses if the opportunity presented itself.
When the Johnson fight was announced, I felt the same disappointment that everyone else did when we didn’t get a JDS or Werdum fight. But then I switched my mindset to: “Ok, Coker fucked those deals up. So who on the roster makes sense for Fedor?” Why anyone thinks Tito Ortiz FFS, or Machida, would be a better fight is beyond me. This is a relevant fight rankings-wise, potentially with interesting title implications, that Fedor has a very real chance of winning. I wouldn’t say it’s a good fight, but it’s a relevant and interesting fight. Like you said before, I’m happy anytime the GOAT steps in the cage, so I’d support him in an Ortiz fight. But I think I’d rather see the Johnson fight than Ortiz, honestly.

 

[BFoe]

I have zero desire to see Fedor in fights that even resemble meaningful in 2021 and it's everyone not named Fedor's job to tell him that. The only way this is justifiable is if everybody did tell him that and he insisted on a highly ranked guy anyway. That's it.

After Johnson, Fedor has one more fight on his contract. I’ll cross my fingers that they can make a deal with Evangelista Cyborg or Scott Smith for you
Jokes aside, it really depends on who the opponent is. People say that if Fedor loses to Johnson, he’s losing to a no-name fighter. Personally, I think losing to an actual highly ranked HW is preferable than losing to an old MW like Machida. And Machida, being very elusive and a great counter-striker, is more problematic in some ways for Fedor than slowass, plodding Johnson is.
But yes: I’d rather he fought Werdum or JDS. But that horse left the barn, and Johnson makes a hell of a lot more sense than someone like Machida does.