Jake Hager Says Bellator Tried To Get Fight Between Him & Fedor Emelianenko

Jake Hager says that Bellator MMA tried to get him into a fight with Fedor Emelianenko. Hager had four fights under the Bellator banner and told Monopoly Events recently that the company tried to work out a fight between him and the legendary MMA fighter.

“From the moment that I got to Bellator, I knew that it could happen,” Hager said (per Fightful). “Bellator was working for it to happen. Can you imagine the All American American fighting Fedor in Moscow. It’s Rocky. I really felt like it was my fight. They gave it to a very deserving ranked heavyweight. Fedor was on fire that night. He didn’t look old at all. He was quick, he was strong, it was an impressive showing.”

He continued, “Maybe I got lucky that they didn’t pick me. I would have taken it in a heartbeat.”

Emelianenko’s fight in question ended up being against Timothy Johnson and took place in October 2021. He won the fight via first round KO and retired after his next fight in February of 2023.