[Gren]

Just this morning I've read threads on how "Fedor would be crushed in the cage", "his talent is now in question following CC's second consecutive loss", and read in someone sig that "Fedor is the one with something to prove".
It seems that most Sherdoggers chase the latest trends more closely than a 15 year old school girl and have a memory worse than Nick Diaz. There are apparently three main reasons for all the "doubting" that's been going on:

1) Randy's comeback. I'm not going to take anything away from Randy's last two fights, they were both incredible performances and deserve any fight fan's respect. But what does that have to do with Fedor?! I'll be the first to admit that if the two ever fight it will most likely be a very competitive match but until they do it's all just speculation. Bottom line is that two impressive wins in most forum members' minds equal the same thing as a legacy (such as Fedor's) just because they are fresh wins. Just wait until Randy loses (if he does before retirement), then we'll have 2000 threads questioning if Randy's comeback was a fluke.

2) CC's losses. Crocop vs. Fedor no doubt belongs in the top ten Pride fights of all time. Not only was it one hell of a fight but also it was between the number 1 and arguably number 2 (or at least 3) HW at the time. However now that CC's lost two fights consecutively this win isn't worth shit anymore. I won't go into the debate whether or not Crocop was ever that good but if you don't think Crocop was ever anything but a walking highlight reel maybe you need to pull a James Thompson and watch some DVDs. What this comes down to is that Crocop's lackluster showing in the UFC has absolutely nothing to do with Fedor.

3) Fedor's fights post CC. Fedor fought four times against Zulu, Coleman, Hunt and Lindland respectively. I won't go into an in depth analysis on the level of this competition but let's not forget the circumstances. Fedor did not handpick his opponents, Pride did that for him. After CC won the OW tourney many were calling for a rematch with Fedor. However since Pride was on the brink of financial ruin while trying to break into the US market, do you think it really would have made sense to match up their best fighter against someone whom he might very well lose against (of course he wouldn't have; Crocop is after all a complete fraud)? Hence the fights against Coleman and Hunt, although it should be mentioned that Hunt IS very game competition and not sub par like some people out there would have you believe. And the Lindland fight? Fedor fights for a living and at least he kept on fighting during the time when it wasn't clear what was happening with Pride. And for all of you who scream "OMG FEDOR GRABBED THE ROPZ LOLZ LINDLAND WOULD HAVE BEEN THE PWNZER
+1+1" I seem to remember that fight being over rather quickly once it hit the ground....


I don't expect this thread to last long - it's a relatively long read. But if this last paragraph is all you read then I'd just like to draw your attention to the fact that Fedor is pretty much the only fighter who is universally respected by professional fighters and the media alike. And yes, these people know the fight game a lot better than any Sherdogger with a purple belt and a join date that ends in 07.

[Shaydawg]

Of course there is going to be doubts and that is just want Dana wants too. Dana wants the doubts out there as strong as possible to help his bargaining power.

Does not mean it is going to work though because none of us know if Fedor even gives a shit about proving to the casual fans who he is.

As a fan I would love for him to come to the UFC and prove all the doubters wrong. But I dont really know that Fedor has that much to gain by doing it. Someone is going to pay him the money he deserves regardless of what org he fights for and he will still have legendary status. If he comes to the UFC and loses then a lot of that "godlike" status goes away.

[LiamC]

Doubt Fedor at your peril. He doesn't have to prove anything to anyone.