Fedor Vladimirovich Emelianenko is a Russian heavyweight mixed martial artist (MMA), sambist, and judoka, currently competing for Rizin Fighting Federation and Bellator MMA.
He has won championships and accolades in multiple sports, most notably in MMA Pride Fighting Championships (heavyweight champion 2003-2007), FIAS World Combat Sambo Championship (Heavyweight Champion 2002, 2005, 2007), and Russian Judo Federation National Championship (Bronze medal 1998, 1999).
Emelianenko has earned numerous MMA accolades. Sports Illustrated, among other publications, named him the top MMA fighter of the 2000s.
Emelianenko is currently a staff member of Russia’s Presidential Council on Physical Fitness & Sports.
On 14 July 2015, after a three-year hiatus from mixed martial arts, Emelianenko announced that he was returning to active competition. As of May 10, 2022, he is #3 in the Bellator Heavyweight Rankings.
Fedor Emelianenko Salary: How much does Fedor Emelianenko get paid?
Top mixed martial arts fighters’ salaries and contract terms are closely guarded. The UFC, for example, keeps their contracts entirely under wraps. No one knows exactly how much top fighters make—and that’s just the way the promotion likes it.
Fedor Emelianenko is one of the top ten richest MMA fighters in the world. Depending on the MMA promotion, he makes anywhere near $300,000 to $2 million in salary for an event.
Fedor fought three times over the term of this contract. Because he won each of those bouts, he was paid $2 million a fight. Combined with his signing bonus of $1.5 million, he took home some significant cash for his trouble.
The leaked contract states: Global and Fighter are parties to a binding Letter of Intent dated September 25, 2007 (“LOI”) and Fighter has received the first payment of $1,500,000, a signing bonus, as provided therein.
The UFC pays fighters a win bonus, usually the same amount they make to show up and fight. M-1 Global has something similar for Fedor. He didn’t earn a win bonus, but he did get paid more if he was winning fights than he did if he was losing them.
Emelianenko is slated to earn a flat $300,000 purse with no win bonus for the heavyweight championship matchup, while Bader is similarly set to earn a flat $150,000 purse with no win bonus.