Can’t Say We Didn’t See This One Coming: ‘Bigfoot’ Says He Was Injured Heading Into Fight With Cormier


(With a head that big, it’s no wonder “Bigfoot” has sore shoulders)

Chael Sonnen told me during an interview a couple years back that guys who go into a fight 100 percent healthy either didn’t train hard enough or they’re liars.

What he was referring to was the growing number of fighters who make excuses for losses or less than stellar wins after the fact by revealing that they were nursing an injury during the fight or training camp, since pretty much everyone has some kind of ailment or boo-boo come fight day.

Well, we can add another name to the list. Antonio “Bigfoot” Silva tells Tatame that he had a shoulder injury and was on anti-inflammatories when he was upset by heavyweight grand prix alternate Daniel Cormier Saturday night at Strikeforce: Barnett vs. Kharitonov in Cincinnati. Apparently the first jab he ate from the AKA fighter made him feel uncharacteristically dizzy and it was this bit of vertigo that led to him getting knocked out.


(With a head that big, it’s no wonder “Bigfoot” has sore shoulders)

Chael Sonnen told me during an interview a couple years back that guys who go into a fight 100 percent healthy either didn’t train hard enough or they’re liars.

What he was referring to was the growing number of fighters who make excuses for losses or less than stellar wins after the fact by revealing that they were nursing an injury during the fight or training camp, since pretty much everyone has some kind of ailment or boo-boo come fight day.

Well, we can add another name to the list. Antonio “Bigfoot” Silva tells Tatame that he had a shoulder injury and was on anti-inflammatories when he was upset by heavyweight grand prix alternate Daniel Cormier Saturday night at Strikeforce: Barnett vs. Kharitonov in Cincinnati. Apparently the first jab he ate from the AKA fighter made him feel uncharacteristically dizzy and it was this bit of vertigo that led to him getting knocked out.

Now, I’m no doctor, and the translation by Tatame may be a bit off, but I’m pretty sure that neither a shoulder injury or anti-inflammatories make you dizzy, nor do they make you more apt to be knocked out. And apparently if you add an “I’m not making excuses here,” prior to rambling off an excuse for why you failed to perform, it’s okay. It’s like how the word, “but” gives you free reign to tell it like it is, except it really means, “Forget everything I said before the ‘but.’” For example, when you tell a buddy, “I’m sorry knocking you out, but in my defense you were being kind of an asshole,” you’re really just saying, “You deserved getting KTFO because you were being an asshole.”

Here’s Bigfoot’s excuse reason for not beating Cormier after the breakthrough performance he had against Fedor earlier in the tournament:

“I came to fight knowing I would have to go through a surgery. I didn’t want to leave this GP, once Overeem left, and if I quit it wouldn’t be nice. Since Strikeforce belongs to Zuffa now, I could even be cut off. It’s not an excuse. I used corticoid, but I was reckless. Cormier is to be congratulated. I made a mistake. I’ll go through a surgery now and I won’t fight at ADCC,” he explained. “The doctor said that within a month I’ll be back to the trainings, and I hope to fight as soon as possible, maybe in December. I want to fight once again until the end of the year so I have a chance to redeem myself.”

The first step to redeeming himself would have been not mentioning that his shoulder hurt and giving Cormier credit for his performance instead of saying he won because you made a mistake. Son, I am disappoint.

Daniel Cormier: Yup, I Broked It

“This hurts me more than it does you.” PicProps: Esther Lin

Bad news for all you rabid Daniel Cormier fans: the big guy confirmed yesterday that his right hand is indeed broken after he used said hand to bludgeon Bigfoot Silva into La-La Land and out of the heavyweight grand prix:

Cormier worked his way from an alternate slot in the Strikeforce GP to a finals matchup with Josh Barnett, but his victories may be all for naught if he doesn’t heal quickly enough.

“This hurts me more than it does you.”   PicProps:  Esther Lin

Bad news for all you rabid Daniel Cormier fans: the big guy confirmed yesterday that his right hand is indeed broken after he used said hand to bludgeon Bigfoot Silva into La-La Land and out of the heavyweight grand prix:

Cormier worked his way from an alternate slot in the Strikeforce GP to a finals matchup with Josh Barnett, but his victories may be all for naught if he doesn’t heal quickly enough.

MMAJunkie relayed that Scott Coker would like to have Cormier in the finals, but speaking hypothetically, “if Daniel wasn’t available for an extended period of time, [Strikeforce would] consider another opponent” for the final bout of the tourney.

That final bout is tentatively scheduled for sometime early next year, but Strikeforce has shown impatience before with tournament entrants taking time off for injuries, so … paging Chad Griggs?

[RX]

Daniel Cormier Confirms Broken Hand

Filed under: Strikeforce, NewsA visit to the doctor Monday confirmed Daniel Cormier’s initial impression of a break in his right hand in his win Saturday against Antonio Silva in the Strikeforce Heavyweight Grand Prix semifinals in Cincinnati.

“Just g…

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A visit to the doctor Monday confirmed Daniel Cormier‘s initial impression of a break in his right hand in his win Saturday against Antonio Silva in the Strikeforce Heavyweight Grand Prix semifinals in Cincinnati.

“Just got done seeing doctor,” Cormier wrote late Monday on his Twitter. “Hand is broken [and I] will be on the shelf for a while. Still looking forward to finishing the tourney. Thanks for the support.”

Cormier will likely have enough time to rehab and train without the need to delay the tournament final since his fight against Josh Barnett is being targeted for early 2012.

With that said, Coker said on Saturday he would consider a replacement if Cormier was out for an extended amount of time past first quarter of 2012.

In his upset win, the former Olympic wrestler Cormier floored the 6-foot-4 Silva twice in the fight before finishing with hammerfists at three minutes and 56 seconds. According to Cormier, he felt something was wrong right early in the fight.

“The very first right hand, man,” he told MMA Fighting after the fight. “The very first right hand I hit him on the chin, he went down, and I went to punch him and I felt my hand crack a little bit under me.

Cormier improved his record to 9-0 with his win over Silva, setting up a meeting with former UFC champion Barnett (31-5), who advanced the same night with a submission win over Sergei Kharitonov.

 

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Barnett Top Money Earner On $942,150 Payroll for Strikeforce: Barnett vs. Kharitonov Event Saturday Night


(“Cormier has been fighting how long and he made how much?!” -Photo courtesy of Ric Fogel/ESPN.com)

Strikeforce Heavyweight Grand Prix finalist Josh Barnett’s $150,000 salary accounted for 16 percent of the $942,150 payroll of Saturday night’s Strikeforce: Barnett vs. Kharitonov event in Cincinnati. The man Barnett defeated, Sergei Kharitonov and his fellow HWGP finalist Daniel Cormier both tied for the second best paid fighters of the night with $100,000 a piece for their efforts, followed closely by Muhammed “King Mo” Lawal who received a flat fee of $85,000 for his win over Roger Gracie, who got $80,000.

Newly-crowned Strikeforce middleweight champ Luke Rockhold netted $50,000 for his win over Ronaldo Souza, who took home $70,000 and no belt.


(“Cormier has been fighting how long and he made how much?!” -Photo courtesy of Ric Fogel/ESPN.com)

Strikeforce Heavyweight Grand Prix finalist Josh Barnett’s $150,000 salary accounted for 16 percent of the $942,150 payroll of Saturday night’s Strikeforce: Barnett vs. Kharitonov event in Cincinnati. The man Barnett defeated, Sergei Kharitonov and his fellow HWGP finalist Daniel Cormier both tied for the second best paid fighters of the night with $100,000 a piece for their efforts, followed closely by Muhammed “King Mo” Lawal who received a flat fee of $85,000 for his win over Roger Gracie, who got $80,000.

Newly-crowned Strikeforce middleweight champ Luke Rockhold netted $50,000 for his win over Ronaldo Souza, who took home $70,000 and no belt.

If not for Tito Ortiz’s $450,000 payday for his win over Ryan Bader, this card’s payroll would have eclipsed UFC 132′s, which is the last UFC event with a mandatory disclosed salary ledger.

Strikeforce: Barnett vs. Kharitonov
Saturday, September 10, 2011
U.S. Bank Arena in Cincinnati, Ohio

Main Card

Josh Barnett: $150,000 (no win bonus) def. Sergei Kharitonov: $100,000

Daniel Cormier: $100,000 (includes $50,000 win bonus)
def. Antonio Silva: $100,000

Luke Rockhold: $50,000 (includes $25,000 win bonus) def. Ronaldo Souza: $70,000

Muhammed “King Mo” Lawal: $85,000 (no win bonus) def. Roger Gracie: $80,000

Pat Healy: $17,500 (includes $5,000 win bonus) def. Maximo Blanco: $13,000

Preliminary Card

Mike Kyle: $44,000 (includes $22,000 win bonus) def. Marcos Rogerio de Lima: $5,000

Rafael “Feijao” Cavalcante: $60,000 (includes $30,000 win bonus) def. Yoel Romero: $10,000

Jordan Mein: $16,000 (includes $8,000 win bonus) def. Evangelista “Cyborg” Santos: $20,000

Alexis Davis: $6,000 (includes $3,000 win bonus) def. Amanda Nunes: $7,500

Dominique Steele: $5,000 (includes $3,000 win bonus) def. Chris Mierzwiak: $3,000

Disclosed fighter payroll: $942,150

———-

UFC 132: Cruz vs. Faber
Saturday, July 2, 2011
MGM Grand Garden Arena
Las Vegas, Nevada

Main Card

Dominick Cruz: $40,000 (includes $20,000 win bonus) def. Urijah Faber: $32,000

Chris Leben: $92,000 (includes $46,000 win bonus) def. Wanderlei Silva $200,000 (flat rate)

Dennis Siver: $50,000 (includes $25,000 win bonus) def. Matt Wiman: $18,000

Tito Ortiz: $450,000 (flat rate; no win bonus) def. Ryan Bader: $20,000

Carlos Condit: $68,000 (includes $34,000 win bonus) def. Dong Hyun Kim: $41,000

Preliminary Card

Melvin Guillard: $64,000 (includes $32,000 win bonus) def. Shane Roller: $21,000

Rafael dos Anjos: $28,000 (includes $14,000 win bonus) def. George Sotiropoulos: $15,000

Brian Bowles: $34,000 (includes $17,000 win bonus) def. Takeya Mizugaki: $12,000

Aaron Simpson: $34,000 (includes $17,000 win bonus) def. Brad Tavares: $10,000

Anthony Njokuani: $16,000 (includes $8,000 win bonus) def. Andre Winner: $14,000

Jeff Hougland: $12,000 (includes $6,000 win bonus) def. Donny Walker: $6,000

Disclosed fighter payroll: $1,277,000 58,045.45

Strikeforce Isn’t Rushing to Name New Champions (And That’s Totally Fine)

Great belt, or the greatest belt? PicProps: AnnieSHOSports/Twitter

After another fun night of heavyweight action, the Strikeforce Grand Prix finals are set: Josh Barnett and Daniel Cormier will fight to be recognized as the best heavyweight in the world, except for those guys in the UFC. Or the guys that have left Strikeforce in the past few months. Whatever.

Anywho, you may have seen pictures of the GP championship belt that showed up last week, and heard that Coker and company are still lukewarm about the idea of calling the GP winner the Strikeforce champion. We thought that didn’t really make sense, and Josh Barnett agrees. At the Strikeforce press conference Saturday night, Barnett tried to twist Coker’s arm a bit, asking: “Why don’t we sweeten the pot?” Barnett asked. “Why don’t we put that title on the line between me and Cormier?”

Coker, bless his heart, didn’t want to commit to that, and you have to wonder: “Why?”

Great belt, or the greatest belt? PicProps:  AnnieSHOSports/Twitter

After another fun night of heavyweight action, the Strikeforce Grand Prix finals are set: Josh Barnett and Daniel Cormier will fight to be recognized as the best heavyweight in the world, except for those guys in the UFC. Or the guys that have left Strikeforce in the past few months. Whatever.

Anywho, you may have seen pictures of the GP championship belt that showed up last week, and heard that Coker and company are still lukewarm about the idea of calling the GP winner the Strikeforce champion. We thought that didn’t really make sense, and Josh Barnett agrees. At the Strikeforce press conference Saturday night, Barnett tried to twist Coker’s arm a bit, asking: “Why don’t we sweeten the pot?” Barnett asked. “Why don’t we put that title on the line between me and Cormier?”

Coker, bless his heart, didn’t want to commit to that, and you have to wonder: “Why?”

It seems that we here at CagePotato were more right than we knew when we said that championship belts just may not be a good idea in Strikeforce. Anyone who can claim a title in Strikeforce is obviously headed to competition in the big show, so why bother naming a champ if you don’t have a champion’s clause to keep him? Strikeforce would constantly be having tournaments and bouts to fill vacant championships, and you can imagine how much esteem the title would hold if a fighter claims the Strikeforce title, gets called up to the UFC, drops two straight, and then gets sent right back to Strikeforce. Is that fighter an automatic contender for the Strikeforce strap?

So upon reflection, it seems Coker has the right idea: trophies and belts are great for designating a big win like sweeping through a tournament field. Fighters should get some kind of tangible reward (aside from cash) for their wins. But with it now crystal-clear that Strikeforce will hand over its best and brightest to the UFC roster, there’s no need to anoint one person as the best in Strikeforce. That’s just the on-deck circle for the big leagues now.

You know, business as usual.

[RX]

Strikeforce: Barnett vs. Kharitonov Fighter Salaries

Filed under: Strikeforce, NewsThe Strikeforce: Barnett vs. Kharitonov fighter salaries are out and Josh Barnett received the biggest payday with $150,000 for his win over Sergei Kharitonov, $100,000, Saturday at the U.S. Bank Arena in Cincinnati.

All …

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The Strikeforce: Barnett vs. Kharitonov fighter salaries are out and Josh Barnett received the biggest payday with $150,000 for his win over Sergei Kharitonov, $100,000, Saturday at the U.S. Bank Arena in Cincinnati.

All four of the Heavyweight Grand Prix semifinalists on the card earned at least six figures. On the other side of the bracket, Daniel Cormier was paid $50,000 to show and another $50,000 to win for a total of $100,000. Antonio Silva, who suffered a first-round TKO loss to Cormier, made $100,000.

Check out below the rest of the fighter purses, courtesy of the Ohio athletic commission.

Please note: The numbers below are the salaries Strikeforce reported to the commission and may not accurately reflect a fighter’s final earnings. Fighters earn additionally through sponsorships and possibly, other bonuses handed out by the promotion.

Showtime Bouts
Josh Barnett ($150,000) def. Sergei Kharitonov ($100,000)
Daniel Cormier ($50,000 + $50,000 win bonus = $100,000) def. Antonio Silva ($100,000)
Luke Rockhold ($25,000 + $25,000 win bonus = $50,000) def. Ronaldo “Jacare” Souza ($70,000)
Muhammed “King Mo” Lawal ($85,000) def. Roger Gracie ($80,000)
Pat Healy ($12,500 + $5,000 = $17,500) def. Maximo Blanco ($13,000)

Preliminary Bouts on HDNet
Mike Kyle ($22,000 + $22,000 win bonus = $44,000) def. Marcos Rogerio de Lima ($5,000)
Rafael “Feijao” Cavalcante ($30,000 + $30,000 win bonus = $60,000) def. Yoel Romero ($10,000)
Jordan Mein ($8,000 + $8,000 win bonus = $16,000) def. Evangelista “Cyborg” Santos ($20,000)
Alexis Davis ($3,000 + $3,000 win bonus = $6,000) def. Amanda Nunes ($7,500)
Dominique Steele ($3,000 + $2,000 win bonus = $5,000) def. Chris Mierzwiak ($3,000)

 

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