M-1: No UFC Talks Happening
Loretta Hunt Jan 5, 2010
M-1 Global President Vadim Finkelchstein said that reported recent
negotiations with UFC for the services of two M-1 fighters,
Fedor
Emelianenko and Gegard
Mousasi, have not taken place at all.
Emelianenko, the world’s top heavyweight, is contracted to rival promotion Strikeforce for at least two more fights under a co-promotional banner with M-1 Global with an option for additional fights. Strikeforce light heavyweight champion Gegard Mousasi has a multi-year contact with the promotion.
However, when asked, UFC President Dana White told reporters
Saturday that talks with M-1 had taken place, “more recently than
you would think," sparking conjecture that the two entities were
back at the bargaining table.
In a one-on-one video interview that followed with Sherdog.com’s Greg Savage, White also said, "Listen, I think there's a million different ways to cut deals. … I want Fedor more than the people that are yapping that they want him in the UFC, and I like Mousasi too. So I would love to have them both in the UFC. And there's a lot of different ways to cut a deal.”
Rumors were further fueled when some Web sites reported that Finkelchstein had confirmed the talks through an unverified Twitter account.
Finkelchstein denied that any recent talks had taken place via M-1 Global’s official Web site on Tuesday:
“Today I heard the rumors of me allegedly stating on my twitter account that we are negotiating with the UFC. I want to state that there are no talks with the UFC whatsoever,” read the post. “Our partner in the USA is STRIKEFORCE, we are happy to cooperate with STRIKEFORCE. Fedor (Emelianenko) and Gegard (Mousasi) fight there and they are quite happy with the conditions and how they are treated with respect there. Finally, I don’t have any account on Twitter. The account that ignited the rumors is false. Our attorneys are already aware of the situation and shortly this fake account will be deleted.”
Strikeforce CEO Scott Coker could not reached for initial comment.
Emelianenko, the world’s top heavyweight, is contracted to rival promotion Strikeforce for at least two more fights under a co-promotional banner with M-1 Global with an option for additional fights. Strikeforce light heavyweight champion Gegard Mousasi has a multi-year contact with the promotion.
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In a one-on-one video interview that followed with Sherdog.com’s Greg Savage, White also said, "Listen, I think there's a million different ways to cut deals. … I want Fedor more than the people that are yapping that they want him in the UFC, and I like Mousasi too. So I would love to have them both in the UFC. And there's a lot of different ways to cut a deal.”
Rumors were further fueled when some Web sites reported that Finkelchstein had confirmed the talks through an unverified Twitter account.
Finkelchstein denied that any recent talks had taken place via M-1 Global’s official Web site on Tuesday:
“Today I heard the rumors of me allegedly stating on my twitter account that we are negotiating with the UFC. I want to state that there are no talks with the UFC whatsoever,” read the post. “Our partner in the USA is STRIKEFORCE, we are happy to cooperate with STRIKEFORCE. Fedor (Emelianenko) and Gegard (Mousasi) fight there and they are quite happy with the conditions and how they are treated with respect there. Finally, I don’t have any account on Twitter. The account that ignited the rumors is false. Our attorneys are already aware of the situation and shortly this fake account will be deleted.”
Strikeforce CEO Scott Coker could not reached for initial comment.
