Barnett took advantage off this in the final seconds off the last round. Emelianenko dominated the entire fight well on his way to a decision victory moving on to the next round off the tournament. Emelianenko used his brutal striking exchanges during the first round and broke Barnett's nose. Official doctors claimed that Emelianenko had fever and sickness before the fight, with the doctors advising him not to fight that night, which he ignored because it was the Openweight Grand Prix, the most important competition at the time. In his last fight in Pride, Emelianenko defeated former teammate and fellow Russian Sergei Kharitonov via TKO in a back and forth match which ended in the first round after Emelianenko punched and kneed Kharitonov relentlessly on the ground, forcing the referee to stop the fight at Pride Final Conflict Absolute on . After Pride Two months after his last fight, on at the event 2 Hot 2 Handle: Pride & Honor in Rotterdam, Emelianenko faced Brazilian Jiu-jitsu specialist Fabrício Werdum, who defeated Emelianenko in the first round via submission (arm triangle choke). In an interview with Sherdog, Emelianenko stated that he did not train at all for the Werdum fight as his original opponent was not going to be Werdum, and he would like a rematch with him. On at Bodog Fight Series II: Clash of the Nations, Emelianenko fought once again in Russia, knocking out American Eric Pele with punches in the first round, the first time that Pele was knocked out in his career. In his next match, Emelianenko faced Dutch Jessie Gibbs (called Gibson at the time), who was a late replacement for Gilbert Yvel. Emelianenko defeated Gibbs with a kimura submission in the first round at M-1 Mix Fight Championship: Russia vs Europe on . Fighting for the first time in North America and originally scheduled to fight Wesley Correira, Emelianenko defeated American super heavyweight Dan Bobish via submission (guillotine choke) in the first round on at Hardcore Championship Fighting: Title Wave in Calgary. This was Bobish's last professional bout as he injured his back in the fight and refused to have surgery. Returning to Saint Petersburg, on , Emelianenko fought Brazilian Silvao Santos, defeating Santos by TKO (punch) at M-1 Challenge 2. Affliction controversy Emelianenko was signed to make his United States debut at Affliction: Banned on . But at the weigh-ins for the event, it