Current Bellator heavyweight and one of the greatest of all time, Fedor Emelianenko (39-6, 1 NC), has been hit by COVID-19. According to the former Pride heavyweight champion, he’s been in the hospital dealing with COVID.
He posted on his official Instagram this morning with the news. However, the Bellator heavyweight did assure fans that he is going into recovery stating, “I am going into recovery. I’m grateful to the doctors and medical staff for their care and hard work.â€
Not the most comforting thing to read that one of the best ever has been in the hospital with COVID. However, at least fight fans can breathe a little easier hearing that Fedor is heading for recovery.
Fedor hasn’t fought since December of 2019 and spent 2020 waiting on the sidelines during the pandemic. Bellator was hesitant to book Fedor for another fight because it’s known that his next fight might be his last.
Bellator’s Plans for Fedor
At this time, it’s not known how long it will take Fedor to recover from his battle with COVID-19. As mentioned, the news just came out today that he had to go to the hospital due to the symptoms.
Bellator has been exploring options for Fedor’s last fight. Scott Coker has said that he wanted to do a show in Russia with fans for Fedor’s sendoff. However, the pandemic has really handcuffed them on their options.
Reports had suggested that Fedor was ready to get back into the Bellator cage and compete. At 44 years old, Fedor knows that he doesn’t have much time left in his fighting career. Once we get a better idea of his recovery timeline, we should get a better feel for Bellator’s plans.
My guess is that this really doesn’t impact them much. We know that Bellator wants to do a show with fans in Russia and that’s not going to happen anytime soon. That said, it should give Emelianenko plenty of time to recover before his return bout is booked in what might be his retirement fight.