Fedor Emelianenko has signed a multi-fight deal with Bellator, the promotion announced Saturday, and his first fight for the company will be at Bellator 172 in February against Matt Mitrione.
The two will headline the fight card, which will be held on Feb. 21 at SAP Center in San Jose and televised on Spike.
One regarded as the best fighter in the world, the luster came off Fedor after he lost three Strikeforce fights in a row from 2010-2011. He has aged and is now 40, but he has won five in a row since then, and he will still attract an audience based on his name alone.
Mitrione is 11-5 as a pro. Though he gained a name by beating Kimbo Slice in 2010, he’s lost to most of the big-name fighters he’s faced, such as Travis Browne, Roy Nelson and Brendan Schaub.
