Iconic Russian heavyweight Fedor Emelianenko defeated Fabio Maldonado via majority decision Friday at an EFN-promoted event in St. Petersburg, Russia.
Emelianenko (36-4), 39, appeared close to being out in the first round after getting hit by a left hook, but he quickly came to and eventually got to his feet and continued. Maldonado looked exhausted from the exchange and never mounted a prolonged attack afterward.
Judges scored the fight for Emelianenko 29-28, 29-28 and 28-28. ESPN.com scored it a draw, 28-28.
Emelianenko, who entered the fight a massive betting favorite, warily admitted it wasn't his best performance. He was bleeding badly from the nose as early as the first round, and his left eye was swelled nearly shut.
"That was not the most pleasant," Emelianenko said through a translator.
In an appearance on "The MMA Hour" this week, Emelianenko said he would be free to sign with any promotion following Friday's appearance at EFN. Widely considered the greatest heavyweight in mixed martial arts history, Emelianenko has attempted to come to terms with the UFC multiple times during his career, but the two sides have never been able to do so.
UFC president Dana White has said the closest the UFC ever came to signing Emelianenko occurred in 2009, when it was looking to set up a fight between Emelianenko and WWE star-turned UFC champion Brock Lesnar. Emelianenko and his partner, Vadim Finkelstein, declined the deal and went on to sign with Strikeforce. Emelianenko went 1-3 with Strikeforce from 2009 to 2011, including consecutive losses to Fabricio Werdum, Antonio Silva and Dan Henderson.
When asked Friday if he has interest in signing Emelianenko following his latest fight, White responded via text, using only a wink emoji.
Emelianenko was aggressive in the first round against Maldonado (22-10), opening up with flurries after walking the Brazilian to the fence. Maldonado did well covering up, however, and dropped Emelianenko with a short left hook to the chin.
The shot sent Emelianenko spiraling to the canvas, and he appeared to briefly go unconscious as Maldonado dropped to the floor and followed with punches. The referee allowed the fight to continue, and Emelianenko eventually got to his feet, although he could barely stand the rest of the round.
In the second and third frames, it was obvious Maldonado had emptied the gas tank in his effort to finish the fight. He stood stationary against the fence and allowed Emelianenko to score points with the jab and leg kick. Emelianenko continued to open up with flurries as well, and Maldonado tried to catch him with counter left hooks.
A couple of left hands seemed to wobble Emelianenko again in the third, but his volume outweighed any offense Maldonado managed to land.
Emelianenko announced his retirement from MMA in 2012, but he returned in December for an appearance under upstart Japanese promotion Rizin FF. He easily knocked out professional kickboxer Jaideep Singh in the first round of his comeback fight Dec. 31.
