For years, Strikeforce has been known for using creative match-making to put on exciting fights. With a thin roster, the business strategy was one of necessity, and it produced some memorable fights. The idea that Strikeforce will not be arou…
For years, Strikeforce has been known for using creative match-making to put on exciting fights. With a thin roster, the business strategy was one of necessity, and it produced some memorable fights.
The idea that Strikeforce will not be around much longer is a very real one. So let’s take a look back on some of those memorable title fights and reminisce on the MMA promotion that never quite achieved greatness but did provide fans with some great entertainment.
Here are the eight best Strikeforce title fights of all time.
When Zuffa purchased Strikeforce, it was believed that it would dissolve the company and bring all of the top talent to the UFC. The only question was when. Here we are, over a year later, and Strikeforce is still running events. It’s even …
When Zuffa purchased Strikeforce, it was believed that it would dissolve the company and bring all of the top talent to the UFC. The only question was when.
Here we are, over a year later, and Strikeforce is still running events. It’s even renewed its deal with Showtime for the duration of 2012.
But how long will Zuffa keep Strikeforce operational when most of its best fighters have already been signed by the UFC, and its ratings are steadily sliding into the gutter?
Strikeforce currently lacks champions in the heavyweight, light heavyweight and welterweight divisions. Daniel Cormier and Josh Barnett will finally conclude the heavyweight grand prix on March 19th, but Zuffa has made clear its intentions of doing away with the heavyweight division.
So aside from being just a good fight, it really has no promotional relevance.
Strikeforce’s three biggest stars—welterweight champion Nick Diaz, light heavyweight champion Dan Henderson and heavyweight champion Alistair Overeem—were all poached by the UFC.
It still has middleweight champion Luke Rockhold, who has all the makings of a future star—all except a suitable line of opponents. Double down on that for lightweight champion Gil Melendez, who is being kept criminally inactive in his prime athletic years due to the lack of credible challengers.
Dana White even tried to get BJ Penn to fight Melendez in Strikeforce, but Penn declined, citing not only his desire to take a break from fighting, but what must be a popular thought among UFC fighters: that going from the UFC to Strikeforce is a demotion.
The talent and charisma of Ronda Rousey has piqued a renewed interest in women’s MMA, but that’s really the only pro in a sea of cons for the organization.
Despite White’s insistence that Strikeforce will remain intact and things will be “business as usual,” the ratings are what matter. If ratings continue to be dismal, then plans will be re-calibrated.
Maybe there are things that we just don’t know, things that will keep Strikeforce afloat. After all, Zuffa is masterful at long-term business strategy. While smaller promotions are out there playing checkers, Zuffa’s always played chess.
It’s still just difficult to imagine how Strikeforce can remain functional when the few stars it has are famished for legitimate opposition. Great fights bring eyeballs, not just a great fighter here and there.
If Strikeforce is still around by this time next year, it’ll be a miracle. The Showtime deal was good through 2012. If ratings do not improve dramatically, then it will likely not be renewed.
Strikeforce is what it’s always been—a very good promotion that prides itself on putting together exciting matchups. So enjoy them while they last, because come 2013, Strikeforce will be just a fond memory.
Since Nate Diaz hit the big time on The Ultimate Fighter 5, he’s been largely viewed as Nick Diaz’s kid brother. Indeed, Nate relished in the label out of the immense respect he holds for Nick, but after earning himself a title shot in the …
Since Nate Diaz hit the big time on The Ultimate Fighter 5, he’s been largely viewed as Nick Diaz’s kid brother. Indeed, Nate relished in the label out of the immense respect he holds for Nick, but after earning himself a title shot in the deepest division in the sport, Nate is now officially his own man.
Like Nick, any analysis of Nate Diaz is typically met with fanatical reaction. You either love him or you hate him; there is no middle ground.
But even Diaz’s most ardent critics must now admit that Nate is a phenomenal mixed martial artist, who, win or lose, comes to fight his guts out.
Maybe it’s the in-cage smack talk, the flexing, the taunts or simply his relation to the notorious Nick Diaz, but Nate rubs many people the wrong way.
To his fans, Diaz represents a sort of purity in fighting. He’s not just an athlete out to collect a paycheck. Diaz takes his fighting personally, and his behavior reflects that. However, when the buzzer sounds and the victor is crowned, even if it’s not him, Diaz the sportsman appears to embrace his opponent.
All MMA fans, regardless of their personal feelings for Nate Diaz, must respect his skills, though. When the cage door closes behind his back, those personal feelings should be put aside because it’s time to sit on the edge of your chair and just enjoy the show.
Diaz is an exciting fighter. In 16 UFC appearances, five of them losses, he’s never been finished. And of his 11 wins, he’s finished nine of those fights, seven by submission.
Diaz has quietly racked up nine Fight Night bonuses. That’s one more than Anderson Silva, and only one less than the reigning bonus king, Chris Lytle. At only 27 years old with a fighting deserving of fat bonus checks, he will almost certainly surpass Lytle. Just take a quick look at his stats.
Now of course there’s more to being an exciting fighter than just cashing checks, but you don’t get nine of them by being boring. Nate gives the fans what they want every time he steps into the Octagon. You don’t have to like him, but you do have to acknowledge that he is an exciting, young fighter.
Nate Diaz has earned his title shot, and unlike his brother, he will be at every press event. He will “play the game” because as much alike as the Diaz brothers are, Nate is not only his own man, but his own fighter.
The prevailing opinion about Frank Mir’s chances against Junior Dos Santos is that he’s going to get smashed; plain and simple, cut and dried. It’s about as absolute as a 15th Century papal decree. Even the bookmakers think so, listin…
The prevailing opinion about Frank Mir’s chances against Junior Dos Santos is that he’s going to get smashed; plain and simple, cut and dried. It’s about as absolute as a 15th Century papal decree.
Even the bookmakers think so, listing Dos Santos as a huge favorite at -550 to Mir’s +350.
But let’s not go digging Mir’s grave just yet.
Mir has been doing his thing in the Octagon for over a decade. He’s faced the best guys and compiled a UFC record of 14-5 in the process. He’s a two-time UFC heavyweight champion. Basically, the dude can scrap.
Sure, Mir is going up against a monster in Dos Santos. The Brazilian slugger is the best boxer the heavyweight division has ever seen, and so far he’s been nearly impossible to take down, let alone keep down.
But lest we forget, Frank Mir is a bonafide bone breaker. This guy grabs a limb and applies merciless torque. He snapped Tim Sylvia’s forearm in half, and tweaked Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira’s arm back to a nauseating degree, again for the snap.
This is not a guy you want to be rolling around on the mat with. No one in the heavyweight division should want to. Mir has a lethal combination of technique and power that you just don’t often see, especially among heavyweights.
He’s a power submission fighter. His technique is good enough to gain the advantageous position, and his crushing power bats clean-up to finish the job. And he has the limbs hanging from his mantel to prove it.
Mir has a tall order in front of him. He’ll need to somehow get Dos Santos to the ground. That will not be easy. He’s not a good enough wrestler to take Dos Santos down with a straight up shot, and he’s going to get tooled on the feet.
But, if – and yes that is a big if, but if Mir can manage to get the fight to the ground, whether he can land a clean shot to rock Dos Santos, or if there’s a scramble and he ends up in top position, then he has a great chance.
Undoubtedly, Dos Santos is a very competent grappler. He’s a brown belt under the Nogueira brothers, but as Mir proved when he snapped Big Nog’s arm, he has few peers on the ground.
More than likely Frank Mir is going to take the beating at UFC 146 that mostly all MMA fans believe he will. But Mir is a warrior, and such a warrior should never be so easily discounted.
In 19 UFC fights, Mir has gone to a decision only twice. It’s kill or be killed with Frank Mir. And at UFC 146 it will be no different.
He will either get knocked out within two rounds or take home a third limb to complete his disturbed mantle motif.
A bill to sanction mixed martial arts in the state of New York has failed to make it onto the assembly floor for a vote…again. As always, there will be lots of questions: Why didn’t the bill make it to a vote when the support for it…
As always, there will be lots of questions: Why didn’t the bill make it to a vote when the support for it is actually growing?
Was the indomitable Bob Reilly behind the killing of this bill? And does it have anything to do with the long-running feud between the UFC’s principle owners, the Fertitta brothers, and the Culinary Workers Union?
Those are all valid questions, if this song and dance even interests you any longer. Really though, the only question that matters anymore is: Who cares?
MMA is regulated in 46 American states. The UFC has brought the sport global in recent years. They have their FOX deal that will guarantee MMA reaches the widest audience possible. We will get about 25 UFC events this year, seven or eight Strikeforce events, and 20 or so Bellator events.
Do the math and that averages out to a mixed martial arts event just about every week of the year.
Why on earth does it matter that one state won’t allow MMA? The sport is doing just fine, and will continue to thrive with or without New York.
So what’s all the hubbub about?
Well, New York is the media capital of America. And Madison Square Garden is a historic venue that would make a fine host for a huge UFC event. But getting sanctioned in New York would be mostly just a symbolic victory.
It wouldn’t magically transform casual fans into hardcore fans. It wouldn’t send pay-per-view sales skyrocketing. It wouldn’t mean more events on free TV. The heavens wouldn’t open up and shower beer and Buffalo wings on us.
It would create a little buzz, and positive media attention is never a bad thing, but for the most part, it wouldn’t change much.
Presumably, the UFC’s seemingly simple effort for legalization in New York has morphed into a political urination contest. You can read all about it here and here.
Draw your own conclusions, but ask yourself this: Why else would New York deny MMA other than to appease some special interest?
To protect children from violence? In the year 2012, no one can afford to be that naive.
New York gets nothing out of not allowing MMA. They would, however, get something out of allowing it: revenue, Recovering from the worst financial catastrophe since the Great Depression, revenue seems like a mildly important issue.
Eventually mixed martial arts will be sanctioned in New York. It’s just a matter of time. Until then though, who cares?
Before Zuffa purchased the UFC in 2001, there was never more than seven events in a single year. Then in 2005, there was 10. In 2008 there was 20. In 2011, 27. Now, between the UFC, Strikeforce, and Bellator there is an average of about an event per we…
Before Zuffa purchased the UFC in 2001, there was never more than seven events in a single year. Then in 2005, there was 10. In 2008 there was 20. In 2011, 27. Now, between the UFC, Strikeforce, and Bellator there is an average of about an event per week.
So can it get any better? It’s pretty obvious that it can.
Any discussion about future fighters versus current fighters is usually centered around the thought that today’s fighter typically comes from a single discipline, such as wrestling or BJJ, and builds their skill set around that one dominating aspect (like a Matt Hughes). Tomorrow’s fighter will have started training in all areas of MMA and will be a hybrid man-beast capable of leaping tall buildings in a single bound—such as Rory MacDonald.
There is some validity to that line of thought, but the fact that many young fighters are starting out training in every aspect of the sport doesn’t take away the reality that NCAA wrestlers and BJJ champions will continue to enter the sport in droves.
And why? Because of financial incentives.
The correct way to look at the question of whether or not tomorrow’s fighters will transcend today’s is not from a skill-set point of view, but rather from an economic one.
In 2011, the median annual salary in the U.S, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, was roughly $45,000. The average UFC salary was twice that amount—without even counting such unknowns as sponsorship dollars, pay- per-view percentages and unreported bonuses (via MMA Manifesto).
Sure, the upper percentile earners are what kick that figure up so high, but that’s reflective of the greater economy. A CEO may earn $20 million, while the guy who empties his garbage earns $20,000.
It doesn’t change the fact that there is a great incentive for athletes to get into fighting—not because they’re guaranteed a high salary, but because the opportunity is there to earn substantially more than in some boring office job, and should they rise to the top of the heap, they can make millions.
It’s the same with any profession. Just going to law school doesn’t guarantee you a six-figure salary. However, being a successful lawyer does.
The one absolute truth in economics is that people respond to incentives. Viewed through that lens, the decision to pursue a fighting career is one that will become more popular as long as the potential to earn a lot of money exists.
Because higher salaries entice more people into certain jobs, it makes sense that the pool of athletes seeking a fighting career will only grow in the future. That expands the talent pool, which in turn increases the chances that more phenomenal athletes will get into MMA in the future.
It’s difficult to look at an Anderson Silva, or a GSP, and imagine a fighter ever transcending them. But not very long ago, the same was thought of Fedor and Chuck Liddell. Then all of a sudden, a guy like Jon Jones comes along and reminds us that aside from an anomaly here and there, even the most indestructible athletes of yesteryear seem mortal when compared to the latest young wunderkind.
This is just the start.
As MMA continues to grow around the world, the financial incentives will become greater, and more and more young athletes will decide to pursue fighting as a career. This generation of fighters has been phenomenal and lifted the sport to where it is today. It’s almost too exciting to think of what the next generation will bring.
When Zuffa purchased Strikeforce, it was believed that it would dissolve the company and bring all of the top talent to the UFC. The only question was when. 
Since Nate