Sherdog’s Top 10: Greatest Entrances

6. Fedor Emelianenko

Not all entrances are about spectacle. Emelianenko was never flashy or over the top, but his walks to the ring or cage always conveyed the understated, ice-cold menace that made him one of the greatest fighters in the history of the sport. His demeanor never changed, no matter the opponent, what was at stake in the fight or the venue.

During his time in Pride Fighting Championships, Emelianenko walked out to Era’s “Enae Volare Mezzo,” which mixed and matched chant, opera and contemporary production. In his later fights, he walked out to a modern rendition of a Russian folk song: “Oy, to ne vecher,” performed by an Orthodox priest. The second song, in particular, summed up the great man’s increasing spirituality and, frankly, his turn toward a more explicitly Russophile perspective as his career moved into its later incarnations.

Number 5 » For as intimidating a competitor as he was especially during his prime in Pride, the choice of “Wild Boys” might seem a bit incongruous. At a time when Kazushi Sakuraba went over the top with “Super Mario Brothers” and Anderson Silva was swaying his way to the ring to Michael Jackson, he was a model of reasonably understated consistency, and he remains so today.