Several years before being elected president of the United States, Donald Trump had a keen interest in mixed martial arts and planned to co-promote events with Russia’s oldest promotion, M-1 Global.
The venture began in 2008, when a joint effort between Oscar de la Hoya's Golden Boy Promotions, M-1 Global and major shareholder Trump led to the formation of Affliction Entertainment. The promotion lasted two events, both headlined by legendary fighter Fedor Emelianenko (who won in a combined four minutes), before it went under ahead of the third show.
Despite the failed venture, Fedor’s longtime manager Vadim Finkelchtein, who worked with Fedor between 2003-12, maintains interesting memories of his interactions with Trump.