Fedor Emelianenko. Ed Mulholland-USA TODAY Sports

Fedor Emelianenko challenges Mike Tyson for his boxing debut

By Michael Gallagher | Last updated 8/9/23

Former PRIDE heavyweight champion Fedor Emelianenko (40-7-1) is making plans for his post-mixed martial arts career and he has one of the biggest names in boxing at the top of his hit list.

Emelianenko, who’s largely regarded as the best heavyweight fighter in MMA history, is trading in cage fighting for professional boxing, and he wants to Mike Tyson (50-6-2) to be his first opponent.

“Mike Tyson would be an interesting fight,” Emelianenko confirmed through a translator on “The MMA Hour” on Wednesday. “He has a big name, he’s a legend. ... It would be interesting because you can see a lot of his videos on YouTube and all over the place, he’s still in good shape. He still works pads, he still has that same power.”

Former UFC heavyweight champion Francis Ngannou is training with Mike Tyson for his upcoming boxing debut against Tyson Fury

(via @francis_ngannou/ IG) pic.twitter.com/maBD0Qhbzv
— ClutchPoints (@ClutchPoints) August 5, 2023

Though his MMA career may have ended on a bit of a sour note with losses in two of his final four fights and six defeats in his last 15 bouts after a run of 28 straight fights without a loss that spanned nearly a decade, there’s no question Emelianenko is one of the best to ever step into a cage.

He retired from MMA in February after a first-round TKO loss to Ryan Bader for the Bellator heavyweight championship. It was his second loss to Bader in as many fights. But now, he’s out for a new challenge in a sport that’s less demanding on his body.

Bellator boss @ScottCoker gives a classy farewell to "the greatest heavyweight of all time" Fedor Emelianenko after his retirement.

Full interview: https://t.co/1LYqP8biJ6 pic.twitter.com/j8vAf42yfM
— MMA Junkie (@MMAJunkie) February 5, 2023

“I’m not going back to MMA,” Emelianenko added. “I want to try myself in boxing. I think that’s going to be interesting. After the last fight with (Ryan) Bader, I took a break. I started lifting weights a little bit, got some muscles back so my injuries are going away, so my shoulder feels better a little bit, and I started boxing, so I feel pretty good and pretty confident in boxing.”

Tyson’s last boxing match was in 2005 — a sixth-round corner retirement against Kevin McBride. It was his third loss in his last four fights, which included an eighth-round knockout to Lennox Lewis in a bout for the WBC, IBF, IBO and The Ring heavyweight titles.

Of Tyson’s 50 wins, 44 have come by knockout and he won the WBA, WBC, IBF and The Ring heavyweight titles over the course of his 20-year career.

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