MMA Universe

“I want you to write this down: Alistair Overeem wants to fight Fedor, April 2010. So write that down. (Asked where he wants the fight to take place) I don’t care. Maybe in DREAM, maybe in Strikeforce. I don’t care — rather in DREAM but Strikeforce is also OK.”

Strikeforce World Heavyweight Champion, Alistair Overeem, calls out the promotion’s most recent free agent acquisition — and arguably the top heavyweight fighter on the planet — Fedor Emelianenko, after dispatching of James Thompson in 33 seconds at DREAM 12. “The Demolition Man” hasn’t lost in nearly two years — a win streak that actually began when he submitted Paul Buentello to capture the title back in 2007. The only problem is he hasn’t even attempted to defend his title once since that time. Is 2010 the year Overeem returns to the states to defend his crown or will he continue to holdout overseas? Check out Overeem’s “colossal” beatdown of Thompson after the jump.

NEW YORK (Oct. 22, 2009)-In the wake of the critically acclaimed debut of FIGHT CAMP 360°: Inside The Super Six World Boxing Classic, SHOWTIME Sports® turns the spotlight to mixed martial arts with FIGHT CAMP 360°: Fedor vs. Rogers.

FIGHT CAMP 360°: Fedor vs. Rogers will feature unrestricted access to one of the most enigmatic professional athletes of today, Fedor Emelianenko and his next opponent, the undefeated Brett Rogers, as they prepare to headline “STRIKEFORCE/M-1 Global Saturday Night Fights” to be broadcast LIVE on Saturday, Nov. 7 (9:00 PM, ET/delayed PT) on the CBS Television Network.

FIGHT CAMP 360°: Fedor vs. Rogers will premiere on SHOWTIME® on Tuesday, Nov. 3 at 9:30 p.m. ET/PT. The CBS Television Network will also make the show available to its 203 affiliated stations for broadcast in advance of the fight.

From director Ron Yassen, who is embedded in Fedor’s training camp in Stary Oskol, Russia: “Fedor is beyond captivating as a fighter, and more so, as a man. It’s a pure joy to film him so intimately as he strives for perfection in life and sport with grace and charm. While training for this most important match, he kindly opened up his life to us in and out of the ring, without the ego that often comes with being the very best at one’s craft.”

Produced in conjunction with Roadside Entertainment, FIGHT CAMP 360°: Fedor vs. Rogers will showcase both fighters as they prepare for this historic fight. Nov. 7 marks the first time Fedor, widely considered the sport’s No. 1 fighter, will appear in front of a national broadcast television audience. Despite his iconic status within the sport, Fedor (30-1) remains shrouded in mystery, living and training in seclusion in a remote mining village in Russia far away from the spotlight afforded the sports’ very best.

Rogers lives and trains in Minneapolis, and enters the fight with an impressive 10-0 record after most recently dismantling former heavyweight champion Andrei Arlovski. Rogers, a quiet, soft-spoken giant outside the cage, who earlier this year quit his job as a tire technician at Sam’s Club, has the opportunity of a lifetime to dethrone the sport’s greatest in front of a national television audience.

“The response to our inaugural episode of Fight Camp 360°: Inside The Super Six World Boxing Classic chronicling the boxing tournament has been overwhelming,” said SHOWTIME Sports General Manager Ken Hershman, who commissioned the project. “Because of the subjects involved-the mysterious world champion set to fight a man living the American dream-we had to turn our lens in this direction. Special thanks to M-1 Global and STRIKEFORCE for affording us a level of access to both men that has been unparalleled in their respective careers.”

Scott Coker, president of STRIKEFORCE, added, “This is a one of a kind opportunity for fans to go behind the scenes and take a close look at the extraordinary, number one fighter in the world – Fedor – and his opponent who has become a symbol of The American Dream.”

Below are the air dates and times for FIGHT CAMP 360°: Fedor vs. Rogers on SHOWTIME and SHOWTIME 2®.

Tuesday, Nov. 3 9:30p (premiere) SHO

Tuesday, Nov. 3 10:00p SHO2

Wednesday, Nov. 4 11p SHO2

Thursday, Nov. 5 10p SHO2

Friday, Nov. 6 10p SHO2

Saturday, Nov. 7 4:30p SHO

Note: all times ET/PT

(Thanks to JRoland for the assist)

Props: BrasilCombate.com

Quoteworthy:

“Werdum is a good fighter, very experienced, cautious with good jiu-jitsu. He is famed among Strikeforce heavyweights and I want to be between the best ones to get the chance to fight Fedor, so I have to look for a knockout or a submission victory over him. I have improved my stand-up game in the past two years. I’m more confident, moving better, kicking and punching harder. I’m ready for any circumstance that may come up because my ground game is also very sharpened. It’s a fight and anything can happen, but I don’t see Rogers knocking out or submitting Fedor, despite his heavy hands. If you observe, he goes towards the opponent with his guard opened and Fedor hits very well in the short distance. I will be rooting for Fedor to keep winning.”

Former Elite XC heavyweight champion Antonio Silva (13-1) heads back to the United States to challenge Strikeforce heavyweight contender Fabricio Werdum at the Nov. 7 “Fedor vs. Rogers” event from the Sears Centre in Hoffman Estates, Illinois. “Junior” has been dabbling in the Japanese MMA scene while waiting out a steroid suspension by the CSAC — based on a test result that to this day, he still disputes. Now that he’s satisfied his term and can once again fight stateside, will he have the goods to get past “Vai Cavalo” and challenge the winner of Emelianenko vs. Rogers?

“Definitely me. I’m a proud Mexican fighter. Anybody who steps in that ring with me, it’s like fuck them, I’m gonna beat them. The guy’s gonna have to kill me. I think he’s an awesome fighter, he’s the best. It’s not like the movies or TV with the biggest and most muscular guy going out there and he’s the baddest guy, it’s not always like that. Like Cheick Kongo, I don’t look anything like him, but if you got the heart and the fighter spirit, that counts for a lot.”

So says UFC heavyweight prospect Cain Velasquez, who chats with MMA Fanhouse while doing the rounds to promote his fight against Ben Rothwell at UFC 104 from the Staples Center on Oct. 24. While it’s widely believed the “Last Emporer” will never step foot inside the Las Vegas Octagon, it’s not unrealistic to think that if he did, there would be plenty of guys waiting to take a crack at dethroning him (assuming Brett Rogers doesn’t beat them to it on Nov. 7). Would Velasquez have a chance? Or would the Russian juggernaut be too much, too soon?