Despite a shallow talent pool from which to draw challenging opponents for it’s champions, Strikeforce proved once again that they can build exciting events.
Saturday night we saw an emotional Shinya Aoki celebrate his first victory on US soil, we watched a battered and bloody Keith Jardine gut it out for three rounds against Gegard Mousasi, and we saw two champions defend their titles in spectacular fashion.
Lightweight title holder Gilbert Melendez showed the world why he holds a legitimate claim to the No. 1 ranking While welterweight champ Nick Diaz slugged it out for almost five minutes against Paul Daley, to earn his tenth straight win.
To touch on Diaz’ win even further, he did it by fighting Daley where he was the strongest instead of taking the fight to the mat where the Brit is weakest. Even UFC President Dana White Tweeted “Holy fuckin shit!!” in response to the action in the cage.
So if Strikeforce is putting on good shows like this, why should their fighters move to the UFC to fight the best? Maybe the UFC should move their fighters to Strikeforce instead.
The Ultimate Fighting Championship certainly pits some of the best against the best, but fans can never be sure of an exciting match, let alone four standout fights in one telecast.
Diaz last two fights have been exciting to watch, as he’s refused to shy away from either Daley or Evangelista “Cyborg” Santos, despite the Brazilian’s ranking outside of the top 20 he came to fight, and he’s come away the winner both times bringing fans to their feet.
While UFC welterweight champ Georges St-Pierre has ground out four unanimous decision wins in his last five fights, and would have likely done the same against BJ Penn if his corner hadn’t thrown in the towel.
Fans are currently waiting for the next 170 lb contender in either Jon Fitch, widely regarded as a boring fighter, or BJ Penn, who looks to rebuild a sagging record after back-to-back title losses. With both men on the injured list fans and fighters are forced to wait for the rematch, leaving fighters like Carlos Condit, Diego Sanchez, and Thiago Alves waiting on the sidelines for their turn.
Why not throw them into the Strikeforce cage and give them an immediate shot at a title? Condit is certainly deserving of a top fight, he’s only been begging for a shot for months now.
You can also apply this reasoning to other UFC divisions like heavyweight and lightweight, were fighters are being kept in limbo over Cain Velasquez injury and the impending rematch between Frankie Edgar vs. Gray Maynard.
I’m sure fighters like Jim Miller, Anthony Pettis, Melvin Guillard, and Clay Guida would jump at a chance to meet Melendez, and not just for the Strikeforce title, but to prove that they are the best.
So again, why not bring some of the UFC’s best to Strikeforce instead of the other way around?