Originally a member of Red Devil Sport Club after he and his brother Fedor left Russian Top Team, Emelianenko is currently at odds with Red Devil Sport Club's and Fedor's manager Vadim Finkelstein. In an interview published on , his brother Fedor, in response to a direct question, confirmed that Alexander had spent time in a prison after he was sentenced to 5 years, but was released after 3.5 years. Alexander, however, has several times denied ever spending time in prison, including in an interview published on in the same publication where his brother commented about the issue. Some commentators have put in doubt Emelianenko's prison time because of Japan's strict immigration policy against convicted felons, which normally would not allow him to fight in Japan as he has done, while others point out that some of his tattoos are an indication that he spent some time in prison, although some of his tattoos would indicate a status which he could not achieve at the time of his imprisonment for being too young. Emelianenko has studied English and, in 2003, he enrolled himself in economics courses at the Belgorod State University from which he graduated in 2009 with a bachelor's degree. Emelianenko has several tattoos on his body and claims that they do not really have a meaning for him, he just likes them as a hobby. Emelianenko likes hunting and once told in an interview that he killed a bear by piercing through its throat with a bear spear and then stabbing it in the heart with a knife, a traditional way of Russian bear hunting. After the 2008 South Ossetia Conflict he went to South Ossetia to train in preparation for his bout against Sang Soo Lee, in a sign of solidarity with the Ossetian people. In a controversy apparently sparked by Emelianenko's tattoos, a story shown in Russian channel NTV on presented Emelianenko as a Russian nationalist, equated with Roman Zentsov, which Emelianenko quickly denied, stating that he was only engaged in the development of MMA in his country, with no political motivations, especially for extremist groups. TV appearances Emelianenko has made some appearances in TV shows, including a Korean comedy show and Russia Channel One's show Big Races where he participated and lost two teeth in a competition against a bull in 2010. Emelianenko also participated as one of the protagonists, along with fellow MMA fighter