This Saturday night, Strikeforce: Overeem vs. Werdum goes down in Dallas, featuring two more bouts from the promotion’s heavyweight grand prix: Alistair Overeem vs. Fabricio Werdum, and Josh Barnett vs. Brett Rogers. Submit your predictions for these two fights in the comments section below, including the winner’s name, the method of victory, and the time/round of stoppage, if any. Your entry should be in this format:
This Saturday night, Strikeforce: Overeem vs. Werdum goes down in Dallas, featuring two more bouts from the promotion’s heavyweight grand prix: Alistair Overeem vs. Fabricio Werdum, and Josh Barnett vs. Brett Rogers. Submit your predictions for these two fights in the comments section below, including the winner’s name, the method of victory, and the time/round of stoppage, if any. Your entry should be in this format:
Alistair Overeem def. Fabricio Werdum via TKO, 2:53 of round 3
Josh Barnett def. Brett Rogers via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-26)
Please include the judges’ scores if you think a fight will end in a decision, in case we need them for a tie-breaker. The most accurate prediction wins the book, straight up. Entries must be in by this Saturday at noon ET, and we’ll announce the winner by Monday; one entry per person, please. Any other questions, let us know. Thanks for playing, and visit VictoryBelt.com for more great instructional books and DVDs.
Now that the cream of the UFC heavyweight division has risen to the top, MMA fans can turn their attention to the Strikeforce Heavyweight Grand Prix tournament quarterfinal fights this Saturday.The long-awaited Strikeforce: Overeem vs. Werdum fight car…
Now that the cream of the UFC heavyweight division has risen to the top, MMA fans can turn their attention to the Strikeforce Heavyweight Grand Prix tournament quarterfinal fights this Saturday.
The long-awaited Strikeforce: Overeem vs. Werdum fight card should answer a lot of questions for many fans who are wondering if the eventual winner of the Grand Prix could go on to dominate the top UFC heavyweights once Zuffa begins to incorporate the Strikeforce heavyweight talent under the UFC brand.
Fabricio Werdum is the one fighter in the tournament who is capable of showing us how the Strikeforce talent compares to the big men in the UFC.
Werdum has recently been in against the best fighters in both promotions, and how he fairs against Strikeforce heavyweight champion Alistair Overeem should not only set the tone for how the rest of the Grand Prix will likely play out, but it should also offer MMA fans an idea of how the eventual tournament winner might stack up against either Cain Velasquez or Junior dos Santos.
If Werdum can survive the initial barrage that Overeem will be bringing on June 18, and go on to beat the Strikeforce heavyweight champ, it will tell us that Overeem’s recent dominance is due to a lack of top-tier competition.
If the -315 favorite Overeem walks right through Werdum, as I fully expect he will do, then the champ will prove that he can indeed dominate top names in the division.
The same should apply for the other quarterfinal tournament fight on the card.
Josh Barnett is a heavy -300 favorite against the hard-hitting Brett Rogers, and if the former UFC heavyweight champ Barnett falls short in any way against his one-dimensional opponent, the chances of a 33-year-old Barnett winning the Grand Prix will be a long shot; let alone the notion of him going on to dominate in the UFC again.
Realistically, the only heavyweight fighter in the Strikeforce promotion that has a chance to come into the UFC and make a big impact is Alistair Overeem. If he wins the Strikeforce Heavyweight Grand Prix in convincing fashion you can bet that Zuffa is going to cash in on bringing him over, and we could potentially see him in the Octagon shortly after the Grand Prix wraps up, whenever that might be.
So how will Overeem stack up against the UFC elite?
His best chance at success would most likely be against Junior dos Santos. Overeem’s kickboxing skills could negate Dos Santos’ stand-up game, especially if Overeem can utilize his reach advantage and leg kicks to their potential.
Against Velasquez I give Overeem less of a chance. The counter-punching technique and wrestling skills of the UFC champ Velasquez should prove to be too much for an Alistair Overeem that has been capable of wilting when the pressure is turned up high and he is forced deep into fights.
The Strikeforce Heavyweight Grand Prix Tournament began with an early exit of the legendary Fedor Emelianenko and a devastating knockout of former UFC Heavyweight Champion Andrei Arlovski.As a result, all the hype is swirling around the rematch between…
The Strikeforce Heavyweight Grand Prix Tournament began with an early exit of the legendary Fedor Emelianenko and a devastating knockout of former UFC Heavyweight Champion Andrei Arlovski.
As a result, all the hype is swirling around the rematch between the man who bested Fedor Emelianenko, Fabricio Werdum and the current DREAM, Strikeforce and K-1 World Grand Prix Champion, Alistair Overeem.
Now, the tournament’s second half of opening round bouts begins with Strikeforce: Overeem vs. Werdum.
However, here are three fights happening on the same card that could end up stealing the show from Overeem and Werdum.
Strikeforce will present the second set of quarterfinal bouts in its World Grand Prix Heavyweight Tournament on Saturday, June 18 from American Airlines Center in Dallas, Texas.The main event on the card will feature Alistair Overeem, who holds the Str…
Strikeforce will present the second set of quarterfinal bouts in its World Grand Prix Heavyweight Tournament on Saturday, June 18 from American Airlines Center in Dallas, Texas.
The main event on the card will feature Alistair Overeem, who holds the Strikeforce heavyweight title, the Dream interim heavyweight title facing off against Fabricio Werdum, who is best known as the fighter that ended Fedor Emelianenko‘s 28-fight winning streak.
Werdum also holds a win over Overeem. The two first met more than five years ago, but a win is a win and you can bet that Overeem has not forgotten that indignity.
The other quarterfinal tournament bout on the card will feature Brett Rogers versus Josh Barnett. Rogers has gone 1-2 in his last three fights with his two loses coming at the hands of Overeem and Emelainenko, while Barnett is on a six-fight winning streak.
The winner of the Overeem vs Werdum fight will move on to face Antonio Silva in the semifinals of the Grand Prix tournament, while the winner of the Rogers vs. Barnett bout will be matched up against Sergei Kharitonov.
HDNet and Showtime will be broadcasting different portions of the fight card.
Main Card Bouts on Showtime at 10 p.m. ET
Alistair Overeem vs. Fabricio Werdum
Josh Barnett vs. Brett Rogers
K.J. Noons vs. Jorge Masvidal
Daniel Cormier vs. Jeff Monson
Valentijn Overeem vs. Chad Griggs
Preliminary Card Bouts on HDNet at 8 p.m. ET
Gesias Cavalcante vs. Justin Wilcox
Conor Heun vs. Magno Almeida
Nah-Shon Burrell vs. Joe Ray
Todd Moore vs. Mike Bronzoulis
Brian Melancon vs. Isaac Vallie-Flagg
Stay tuned to Bleacher Report as we provide you with pre-fight, in-fight and post-fight coverage of Strikeforce: Overeem vs Werdum.
Strikeforce heavyweight champion Alistair Overeem returns to the cage for the first time in over a year this Saturday night when he faces Fabricio Werdum in the main event of the Strikeforce: Overeem vs. Werdum fight card.Though he has not fought in…
Strikeforce heavyweight champion Alistair Overeem returns to the cage for the first time in over a year this Saturday night when he faces Fabricio Werdum in the main event of the Strikeforce: Overeem vs. Werdum fight card.
Though he has not fought in Strikeforce since May 2010 when he defeated fellow Strikeforce Heavyweight Grand Prix fighter Brett Rogers, Overeem has been active over in Japan fighting for both the Dream and K-1 promotions.
“It was not my fault that it took over a year to come back. We tried to put together the fight against Werdum: the winner of the Fedor-Werdum fight,” he explained the situation to MMAFighting’s Ariel Helwani. “Werdum was injured, needed surgery on his elbow.”
With Werdum unable to fight, Overeem and his camp looked to fight Fedor.
“Fedor declined to fight me for the second time. At that time, I decided to compete in the K1 [Grand Prix] because there were no fights for me in Strikeforce.
“I don’t know, I can’t say what’s going through their minds, but we tried to put together that fight.”
As he said, Overeem competed in and eventually won the K-1 kickboxing World Grand Prix tournament in December 2010. He also went on to defeat Todd Duffee to win the Dream interim heavyweight championship later that month.
With Zuffa having recently purchased Strikeforce, there has been increasing rumors that Overeem will eventually have to relinquish his K-1 title. But he claims that is not the case. At least not yet.
“My contract states that I can fight in other promotions” he stated. “Obviously that’s going to be a talking point in the negotiations, but we’ll deal with that when the time comes.”
Regardless of the contract situation, though, “The Reem” understands that this tournament is perhaps the most meaningful time in his career. Though his Strikeforce heavyweight championship will not be on the line, he believes that there may actually be added incentive for him in this tournament.
“I like the idea that there’s something new on the line. There is something for me. There’s the GP title,” he explained. “There is room for another belt.”
To become the Strikeforce Grand Prix champion, though, he will need to avenge a loss he previously had when he faces Fabricio Werdum in the first round of the tournament this Saturday night. When asked about the previous fight, which took place in May 2006, Overeem seemed almost unaffected by it.
“It’s one of these fights where you’re not entirely in shape. Or actually in bad shape going into the fight,” he confirmed. “Going into that fight, I just had surgery. The surgery had a big impact on my body, on my conditioning.”
Nevertheless, the champion does want to redeem that loss.
“It was one of those fights that kept nagging me and I’ve been wanting this rematch for a very long time,” he continued. “I think Fabricio has perfected himself to be the best grappler in MMA and I think I’ve perfected myself to be the best striker in MMA.”
But despite being known as one of the best strikers in the sport and holding numerous titles, there are still critics who doubt him as a top five or even top 10 fighter. Though he doesn’t agree with that sentiment, Overeem does understand where his critics are coming from.
“I understand it very well,” he admitted. “You could say Alistair is not top 10 or top 5 because he has not fought this guy and that guy, but I think where the fans get their motivation is that I did fight a lot, I did have a lot of knockouts or submissions. I am the only fighter to hold a major MMA belt as well as the K1 organization. Nobody has ever done that before.
“The only way to find out is for those fights to happen. Now that Zuffa has fought Strikeforce, it’s one step closer.”
Join Bleacher Report cageside for live Strikeforce: Overeem vs. Werdum results, analysis and commentary.There is a strong chorus of voices out there that will tell you Strikeforce: Overeem vs. Werdum features the two hottest heavyweights that mixed mar…
Join Bleacher Report cageside for live Strikeforce: Overeem vs. Werdum results, analysis and commentary.
There is a strong chorus of voices out there that will tell you Strikeforce: Overeem vs. Werdum features the two hottest heavyweights that mixed martial arts has to offer at the moment.
Given the injury to UFC Heavyweight Champion Cain Velasquez and the demise of Brock Lesnar, that chorus can make a pretty persuasive argument for Strikeforce Heavyweight Champion Alistair “Demolition Man” Overeem and Fabricio “Vai Cavalo” Werdum.
Granted, the UFC’s new top contender at 265 pounds, Junior “Cigano” dos Santos, slammed his name into the discussion with his decisive win over Shane Carwin at UFC 131, but you get the point.
Overeem and Werdum are both scorching at the moment.
That fact has given the second installment of the Strikeforce Heavyweight Grand Prix Quarterfinal bouts a considerable buzz.
The Demolition Man has, well, demolished his last three opponents and hasn’t lost since suffering a 2007 knockout at the hands of Sergei “The Russian Mercenary” Kharitonov (who lurks on the other side of the bracket). Meanwhile, his Brazilian counterpart is “The Man Who Beat Fedor” and who, one fight before that, also defeated the behemoth awaiting the Overeem/Werdum winner in the semifinals (Antonio “Bigfoot” Silva).
Not to mention the victory Werdum already boasts over Overeem from 2006.
And that’s just the main event.
The card also features Josh “The Babyfaced Assassin” vs. Brett “The Grim” Rogers in the other heavyweight quarterfinal bout, K.J. “King” Noons in a lightweight match with Jorge “Gamebred” Masvidal and everyone’s favorite anarchist, Jeff “The Snowman” Monson making his return to the bright lights of a big event.
So join Bleacher Report at cageside in the heart of the Lone Star State and get up-to-the-minute results for each fight listed below:
