By MATT MOLGAARD
MMANEWS.COM Staff Writer

Negotiations between Strikeforce and M-1 Global have stretched beyond any predictable timetable. Fedor Emelianenko stands behind the fact that he plans to continue fighting, and he’s expressed interest in doing so under the Strikeforce banner, yet here we are, still looking at negotiations float on the ponds of limbo.

Emelianenko last fought in June, when Fabricio Werdum shocked the world and Fedor by finishing the fight in just 69 seconds with a triangle armbar combination. Since then, it’s been a rollercoaster ride to get the Russian back inside the cage to complete the last fight of his Strikeforce contract.

Still, Strikeforce CEO Scott Coker is confident that Fedor will fulfill his contract soon, and possibly extend his business relationship with the former pound for pound king of Mixed Martial Arts.

“All I can tell you is we’re closer than we’ve ever been,” Coker recently told Sherdog.com. “I look forward to Fedor fighting. I believe he’ll be fighting in the first quarter of next year.”