Tim Leidecker over at Sherdog has given us another update in the European and Asian markets of the MMA world with a story regarding Bodog's recent moves in the Russian community. In his article, he mentions the feud between Bodog and M-1 Mixfight that occurred over the Clash of Nations card that featured Fedor Emelianenko vs. Matt Lindland. In interviews that were done at Sherdog some time ago, Vadim Finkelstein, Fedor's agent and M-1 Mixfight promoter, mentioned that he had done all the legwork in setting up the Bodog event, and even brought in big name VIPs such as Vladmir Putin, the Russian president. Bodog denies those claims and states that they 100% financed the event and held their end of the bargain.
Let's think on a larger scale though. Considering the fact that Vadim Finkelstein has the connections in Russia to produce a mixed martial arts event that will sell, it has been perceived that Bodog's initial thoughts were to use Finkelstein to get to those connections and then move on to do their own work in Russia. That thought is now becoming a reality.
Bodog will hold a Russian event known as "Russia vs. The World". It'll feature fighters such as Zuluzinho, Ibragim Magomedov, and Andrei Semenov. Although not a star-studded cast of great fighters, there is some interest in the event in Russia due to the popularity of a few of the stars. Semenov is featured on a Russian TV series that is equivalent to the U.S.'s Prison Break, according to the article. Semenov was thrown off the Red Devil Team for the decision to fight with Bodog instead of M-1. There must be some money being thrown around by Bodog if Semenov was willing to leave Red Devil to fight for Bodog.
The bigger picture
Has Bodog managed to sabotage M-1's plans already? According to the article, M-1's non-exclusive agreement structure has had its first lapse. Daniel Tabera, an undefeated Light Heavyweight prospect, has signed on with Bodog to fight on the card, but he's on contract with M-1 Global non-exclusively. This presents a problem because their events are two weeks apart, and it will cause Tabera to be unavailable for the M-1 Global event. Unfortunately, it seems that M-1 didn't take the lessons learned from the American market when creating these contracts.
Other promotions have stipulations that bar fighters from fighting two weeks, three weeks, even a month before and after their matchup in the promotion. HDNet has been in the spotlight with this clause. Sean Salmon was hurt badly in the Strikeforce Middleweight Tournament, and had to pull out of his fight with Jason Miller with only two weeks until their showdown. Luckily, Tim Kennedy stepped in. It's situations like those that should be considered when these contracts are made.
We may now have a turning point for M-1 Global. Will their attitude toward Bodog in Russia cause them to become stiffer on their contract clauses or possibly go non-exclusive so that Bodog cannot tap into the younger Russian talent? It's very possible considering Bodog's biggest MMA market is Russia.
A power struggle has begun in Russia in the mixed martial arts market. Fedor holds the reputation as being the best in the world, bringing fighters in to want to train with him, but Bodog seems to be offering more money as it tries to pull in more fighters within the market. The two are destined to clash, and it could mean more restrictive contracts from both promotions. It could also mean less opportunity for fans to see upcoming talent in action in the States.