"I can say that the guaranteed -- and the word ‘guaranteed' is of great importance here -- the guaranteed offer made by the UFC is less than what Fedor made before. The five-million (per fight) is way, way, way out of range. Half of that is even way out of range of what they offered. And there were a number of provisions attached to that offer that made it very much less interesting. We made it clear that Fedor, now and forever is part, even part owner, of M-1 and those two cannot be separated. If the rest of M-1 is excluded from any kind of deal, it makes the deal difficult. Sometimes the fans don't realize that there is a business to run and all these statements, ‘These M-1 idiots, why don't they just give Fedor to the UFC because they've offered him the best money?' This is a completely unsubstantiated rumor that the UFC has offered the best money for Fedor ever. This is just not the case. We had a very professional, productive and respectful meeting with the UFC. I think both parties walked away (knowing) even though a deal wasn't made, that a very decent meeting was had."

-M-1 Global CEO Joost Raimond takes issue with a recent report floated by CBS Radio's Carmichael Dave which states that the UFC offered Fedor Emelianenko a 6-fight, $30 million dollar deal.

Raimond suggests that the guaranteed portion of the UFC's offer is less than what the heavyweight juggernaut made with Affliction. Further reports put the guaranteed offer at 3-fights for $6 million dollars -- a far cry from the Carmichael Dave report.  

Raimond also confirms that Emelianeko is part owner of M-1 Global which explains a great deal. If Emelianenko has a vested stake in the company, and believes in their business model and the direction of the promotion, then one could understand his insistence on the health and business prospects of M-1 Global to the apparent detriment of his personal interests, which at first glance, appears to be the case. 

Raimond did leave MMA fans pulling for a UFC signing a ray of hope, calling the UFC meeting "very professional", "respectful" and stating that the meeting was productive, even though no deal was consummated.

The word is that the UFC made an offer and M-1 Global countered and is now waiting to hear back from the UFC which is scheduled to hold a press conference tomorrow to address a number of issues. It's highly unlikely that the organization will make it out of the presser without addressing the Emelianenko negotiations.

We'll continue to keep you updated on the latest regarding this extremely fluid situation and we'll have complete coverage of the call which starts at 2PM EST.