Mirko “Cro Cop” Filipovic and Alexander Emelianenko will face each other in a rematch later this year, according to a reports on Monday morning.
The Cro Cop-Emelianenko bout will take place in Moscow in the “Legend” promotion, according to the report. While an exact date is unknown at this time, reports state October and November to be the target months for the affair.
“I think that providing a rematch to one of the legends of this sport and especially in his homeland … gives Cro Cop and our entire team that additional challenge and maximum motivation,” Filpovic’s manager, Orsat Zovko, told FightSite.hr.
Filipovic (28-10-2, 1 N.C.) announced his retirement from mixed martial arts competition in October 2011, following a TKO loss to Roy Nelson at UFC 137. However, the former Pride Grand Prix champion went on to fight one more time, beating Shinichi Suzukawa by armbar in December 2012. The famed striker also went on to win his first K-1 Grand Prix kickboxing title last March.
“After winning the K-1 WGP title, we had offers coming from all over the world, from Brazilians who were one of the most determined, to Japan, U.S. and Europe,” Zovko said.
Emelianenko (22-6), brother to former Pride heavyweight champion Fedor Emelianenko, last competed in a one-sided win over Bob Sapp last month. The Russian heavyweight is 5-1 over his last six matches.
The first bout between the two fighters ended with Cro Cop earning the win by knockout.
