Fedor Emelianenko is making his return to Russia with Bellator MMA. Many were surprised to hear that he would be facing Tim Johnson.

Many were hoping he would continue to face former Pride fighters or even take on fun legacy fights. This isn't the case with Tim Johnson as he has been a serious heavyweight contender since joining Bellator.

Fedor Emelianenko spoke to the media heading into the Bellator event in Russia. He acknowledged that there were a few choices including former UFC heavyweight champion Junior dos Santos.

“Aside from Tim Johnson, dos Santos for example had a serious streak of losses alongside [his record] and he was also fired from the UFC as well,” Emelianenko said.

“That is why I don’t think it would be very much suitable to fight him compared to Tim Johnson. Not to mention Bellator came up with a bunch of options and Tim was quite an obvious choice.”

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Many were hoping for the fight with Junior dos Santos as it puts a former UFC champion against a former Pride champion. The fight against Tim Johnson received many mixed reviews on social media.

Fedor Emelianenko is coming off of a December 2019 knockout win over Quinton ‘Rampage' Jackson from when Bellator had an event in Japan. The matchup had a theme as both men had competed in Pride during their respective primes.

Fedor Emelianenko has gone 3-2 in Bellator with wins over the aforementioned Jackson, Chael Sonnen, and Frank Mir. His losses came by knockout against Matt Mitrione and Ryan Bader.