Emelianenko Says Health is Fine, “I was just late.”

Russian heavyweight Aleksander Emelianenko (13-3) spoke with Life.ru last week about his absence from the Affliction: Banned card 19 July, where he was scheduled to face “Headhunter” Paul Buentello (26-10).

Emelianenko insisted that everything is in order with his health, and that the reason for his absence was his failure to meet the California State Athletic Commission’s deadlines.

“From a medical point of view everything is fully in order. I got through the medical board successfully and received my license to fight without any problems,” he said.

“But the fact is that in California the commission is very strict about allowing you to fight. One of the main conditions… is that you must pass all the tests on time. I should have been in America on the thirteenth [of July]. They gave me my visa only on the fourteenth, and our tickets were purchased only on the fifteenth of July. I was just late.”