M-1 President: If Fedor Says "Yes" I'll call Dana White Myself

The M-1 Boss commented some of the UFC fights, he says he is willing to help Dana White make Fedor vs. Lesnar come true, open for M-1 vs. UFC event, but explains why the UFC President will not dare to make such an event happen, this and much more exclusively for www.combatbear.com.

It is hard to talk about the fight card now. The tournament will be in the beginning of November. It is going be at least four tournaments before China. 

Will you sign some Chinese fighters for the show? 

Of course we will. Our matchmakers already started to watch the best Chinese fighters.

Will the tournament have some kind of co-promotion? 

Our Chinese partners will help us to organize the tournament, but still it will be M-1 Challenge. I would like to admit that the tournament will be the part of International Economic Forum. We are awaiting a lot of high-ranking guests from different countries. 

Do you have any more surprises or news for the M-1 fans?
 
We are going to make12 tournaments this year. Usually it is 10. There will be fights in Kazakhstan, Belarus, and China. 

Do you think you can compete with the UFC on the Chinese market? 

We are competing with nobody. And I’m not going to do this. I know that M-1 fighters are as good as UFC fighters. Otherwise they could not win when they start to fight in UFC. 
It is a lot of space in China; I think every organization can find its place and viewers there. 

Fedor is doing well. He is an Advisor of Sport Minister in Russia. He is doing a lot for MMA development in Russia. He is visiting many Russian cities, gives master-classes and watches MMA competitions. 

Did Fedor give up the thought of coming back?

I really want him to come back. He is full of energy and strength. But as a real champion he made the decision to finish his sports career.  

I think he could continue fighting. But he made a decision.

If Dana White called you now, asking if you could help him make the Fedor vs. Brock Lesnar fight come true, would you help him?

He called me about a year ago. But Fedor decided to finish his career. If Fedor says “yes” I’ll call Dana White myself. That could be a spectacular fight. 

Have you seen Dan Henderson vs. "Shougun" Rua? Did you like the rematch between them? 

Henderson proved in that rematch that he stays one of the best fighters in the world. I think he will win many fighters in the future. 

I try to stay in touch with him. Unfortunately I didn’t see that fight. 

Did you ever think of making an event called- M-1 vs. UFC? 

I don’t think it is possible. Actually I don’t mind. But UFC will not agree.

Do you think Dana White will ever dare to make such an event happen? 

I don’t think so. That would hurt UFC's reputation because M-1 fighters are (every bit ) as strong as their fighters.

And a last question; how much does M-1 cost right now? Roughly? 

A lot. They can not make me a proposal which I will not be able to reject.