Tag: daniel cormier

Falling Action: Best and Worst of the Strikeforce Heavyweight Grand Prix

Filed under: StrikeforceStrikeforce delivered a full night of exciting fights in the latest installment of the World Heavyweight Grand Prix, but what did we learn once the dust had settled? To find out, we sort through Saturday night’s biggest winners,…

Filed under:

Strikeforce delivered a full night of exciting fights in the latest installment of the World Heavyweight Grand Prix, but what did we learn once the dust had settled? To find out, we sort through Saturday night’s biggest winners, losers, and everything in between.

Biggest Winner: Daniel Cormier
The former Olympian got a few laughs at the pre-fight press conference by making it very clear that he didn’t mind winning a decision over “Bigfoot” Silva. Then he went out and demolished the much larger Brazilian with some punishing right hands, rocketing himself up the ranks and into the big time. The win proved not only that Cormier can hang with quality heavyweights, but also that his size isn’t necessarily a deal-breaker. There aren’t a whole lot of 5’11” heavyweights in the top ten, but when you’re as quick as Cormier — and when you have wrestling skills that allow you to do something other than stand at the end of a taller man’s reach — maybe it doesn’t matter. Now Cormier’s in a no-lose situation. Even if he gets beat by Barnett in the finals, it won’t be so devastating. It will be just his tenth pro fight, after all. If he wins, he’s the newest heavyweight superstar. Now let’s just hope that his hand injury isn’t too serious. The most disappointing possible outcome would be Strikeforce replacing him in the finals. It would also be the dumbest possible outcome, but more on that later.

Biggest Loser: Yoel Romero
The Cuban light heavyweight came into his undercard bout with “Feijao” Cavalcante looking like he had all the makings of a future star. Between his wrestling skills and his mini-Bobby Lashley physique, he seemed like someone who might be only a big win or two away from being thrust into the spotlight. But after a bizarre first round in which referee Dan Miragliotta actually called timeout so he could implore Romero to fight, he got knocked into the land of wind and ghosts by a brutal assault that left him stretched out on his back. That’s not the image you want to leave people with. Especially not after you just spent five minutes breakdancing. All in all, it was a bad night with a worse ending for Romero. Now it’s just a question of what he decides to do with it.

Most Consistent: Josh Barnett
When the Grand Prix bracket was first revealed it seemed like Barnett had the surest path to the finals. But then, between Fedor Emelianenko’s opening round loss and Alistair Overeem’s withdrawal, nothing in this tournament worked out the way it was supposed to. Nothing except Barnett, that is. He rolled right through his first two opponents and now he’s through to the finals with a minimum of cage time. Though everyone else derailed in one way or another, Barnett is pulling into the station right on schedule. He’s also keeping things interesting with his pro wrestling-style promos from time to time, and yet not overdoing it to the point where it becomes cloying. Basically, Barnett’s starting to look like he could be a valuable asset for the UFC. It’s just that history of failed drug tests and the contentious relationship with Dana White that stands in his way. The former has a lot to do with the latter, but all he can do now is play by the rules, make nice, and hope for the best.

Most Remarkable Recovery: Luke Rockhold
Several times in his middleweight title fight with “Jacare” Souza he got rocked by big right hands, but thanks to his mutant healing powers he was right back in it before Souza could capitalize. I still gave the slight edge to Souza in the bout, but it was close enough that I can absolutely see how you might score it 48-47 for Rockhold (though, 50-45? that’s just crazy talk). At least the title shake-up gives Strikeforce some much-needed options at middleweight, since Souza had already fought just about everyone there was in the division. Rockhold is probably looking at a fight with Tim Kennedy now, but whether he wins or loses, this is a problem that isn’t going away. The pool of contenders at 185 pounds is too small in Strikeforce. If they end up passing the title back and forth among each other, it won’t take long before fans lose all interest. Meanwhile, the UFC could sure use some new faces at middleweight now that Anderson Silva has demolished every credible contender. I have an idea for a solution that could benefit both parties…

Least Secure Future: (tie) Antonio Silva and Sergei Kharitonov
As we’ve already noted, fate has not been kind to the losers in the heavyweight Grand Prix thus far. At least Silva and Kharitonov made it into the semis before getting beat, but now what do you do with them? I suppose you could have them fight each other in some kind of third-place match, but that’s probably not going to excite the fan base all that much. In the end, Zuffa is still looking at two mid-level heavyweights who don’t speak much English. When the UFC eventually absorbs these guys (come on, we all know that’s what’s eventually going to happen) you have to wonder how much value it will see in Silva and Kharitonov. If they do meet each other, it might be in a bout that’s more of an audition than anything else.

Worst Idea, Even in Theory: Replacing Daniel Cormier
When Strikeforce’s Scott Coker said that the organization might have to move on with the Grand Prix final without Cormier if his hand injury sidelines him for too long, I admit I was stunned. I could see replacing someone earlier in the tournament, but in the final? Barnett-Cormier is the only fight that makes sense at this point, and it’s the only one anyone wants to see. It’s a great match-up too, plus there’s Cormier’s whole Cinderella story as an alternate who made the most of an unexpected opportunity. Even if it takes a year, I think you have to wait it out. There are simply no other decent options. Who would you even replace Cormier with at this point? Who’s the alternate for the alternate? Chad Griggs? Antonio Silva? Fabricio Werdum? None of those would feel like a genuine tournament final bout. It would be better to risk leaving this unfinished than to move on with some artificial ending that Strikeforce tries to sell as a meaningful finale. Not only would no one believe it, it would just be insulting and degrading for all of us, Strikeforce included.

 

Permalink | Email this | Linking Blogs | Comments

“Strikeforce: Barnett vs. Kharitonov” Fight Video Highlights

(Props: shosports)

In case you missed the action on Saturday night. After the jump: Full videos of Josh Barnett vs. Sergei Kharitonov and Daniel Cormier vs. Antonio “Bigfoot” Silva. Check ’em out while they last…


(Props: shosports)

In case you missed the action on Saturday night. After the jump: Full videos of Josh Barnett vs. Sergei Kharitonov and Daniel Cormier vs. Antonio “Bigfoot” Silva. Check ‘em out while they last…

Promotion May Be in Limbo, but Strikeforce Fighters Continue Delivering

Filed under: StrikeforceDepending on who you talk to, Strikeforce is either dying a slow death or in need of a life-saving procedure. Either way, things don’t look great for the promotion that just a few months ago, seemed poised to steal some of the U…

Filed under:

Luke Rockhold, Ronaldo Depending on who you talk to, Strikeforce is either dying a slow death or in need of a life-saving procedure. Either way, things don’t look great for the promotion that just a few months ago, seemed poised to steal some of the UFC‘s spotlight.

After being purchased by the UFC’s parent company, the company has seen some of its best parts cherry-picked away for the bigger brand. Its heavyweight champion Alistair Overeem is gone. Its welterweight champion Nick Diaz is gone. Its light-heavyweight champion Dan Henderson is likely to be gone soon enough.

This is good and bad of course. Those transactions are likely to lead to superfights in the UFC, but they are just as likely to damage Strikeforce or put it out of business altogether. Most of this is simple business. Zuffa now has UFC under a brighter spotlight, and so it makes sense to have all its resources available to its bigger promotion. And when it comes to Strikeforce, Zuffa wants shows to turn a profit, and that’s no simple task when events include highly paid fighters. Because of those reasons, it seems logical to move its biggest names to UFC if possible. But what about those who remain?

Saturday night’s World Grand Prix semifinals showed that Strikeforce’s remaining athletes have plenty of fight in them yet, with a series of bouts that delivered. It’s a shame that more people didn’t see them. According to reports from the U.S. Bank Arena in Cincinnati, the event was sparsely populated, though at least those who attended made their share of noise.

My colleague Ariel Helwani reported on fight night that there may have been 1,500 people in the stands. Contrast that to the opening night of the Grand Prix back in February, when the excitement surrounding the tournament drew 11,287 fans to the Izod Center in East Rutherford, New Jersey, and you can clearly see the dropoff has been fast and precipitous.

Though that is the case, we can’t really blame the fighters. There have been plenty of memorable moments in recent months, from Paul Daley and Nick Diaz producing possibly MMA’s round of the year, to Dan Henderson knocking out Fedor Emelianenko to Miesha Tate upsetting Marloes Coenen.

It was more of the same on Saturday, which boasted an overall event that — fight-for-fight — could rival the excitement level of nearly any card all year.

Just in the main card, there was Muhammed “King Mo” Lawal knocking out Roger Gracie, Luke Rockhold shocking Ronaldo “Jacare” Souza, submissions by Pat Healy and Josh Barnett, and Daniel Cormier blasting his way through Antonio Silva.

While in recent Strikeforce events, there still seemed to be a bit of uncertainty about the future, now the promotion’s athletes seem to be a little more sure that they see the end coming. A week prior to the event, Lawal infamously compared the organization to a “dying cancer patient,” saying, “We’re just waiting for it to die, to pass.”

But, he added, “As long as I can get my fights in and they’re still around, I want to get them in.”

That seems to be the prevailing thought of every fighter competing under the banner. Barnett and Cormier lobbied for Strikeforce to name the Grand Prix winner as the heavyweight champion. After all, Overeem essentially vacated the belt when he was moved over to the UFC. The pair never got an answer to their request, but the winner might as well be the de facto champion, and both performed well enough to make you wonder how they would have done against Overeem had he stuck around.

Whether they do or don’t, it’s obvious that the fighters will continue to do what they do. As anyone who has worked at a company in trouble probably knows, it’s not always easy to concentrate on your job when the future is in doubt. At this time next year, anything is possible. Maybe Lorenzo Fertitta finds a way to make the math work and Strikeforce is still running, or maybe Showtime doesn’t want to give up on mixed martial arts and extends its option. Or maybe neither of those things happens, and Strikeforce is just a memory, with its talent absorbed into the exploding UFC.

Either way, the fighters continue to leave us with good memories. It shouldn’t be possible to take away so much talent and not hurt the product, but as Cormier, Rockhold and the rest showed on Saturday night, you can take away the fans and the spotlight, but you can’t take away their pride.

 

Permalink | Email this | Linking Blogs | Comments

‘Strikeforce: Barnett vs. Kharitonov’ Aftermath: UFC Auditions, Sans Mansion

King Mo, during the UFC application process post-fight interview. Props: Showtime Sports

Last night, the real story behind “Barnet vs. Kharitonov had nothing to do with the heavyweight grand prix. It had nothing to do with the middleweight championship of a sinking organization. Last night, as with every other Strikeforce show since the promotion was purchased by Zuffa, was little more than an audition. It was about who will get a UFC contract when Strikeforce goes under, and who will have to go through TUF. The fans knew it, the announcers knew it, going as far as confirming the Belfort vs. Le rumor, and the fighters definitely knew it.

Despite Strikeforce’s best efforts to hype Josh Barnett vs. Sergei Kharitonov as a potentially close fight, we all knew what to expect: A repeat of Kharitonov vs. Monson, except with a far superior version of Jeff Monson. Because of this, it’s hard to be impressed with anything that Josh Barnett does at this point. The tournament’s biggest names and most intriguing matchups for Barnett- Fedor, Werdum and Overeem- were all removed well before last night. Barnett has become such an overwhelming favorite to win that when he wins, he’s simply living up to expectations. He was paired up against an opponent with weak grappling credentials, knew he would dominate the fight once Kharitonov was on the ground, and fought accordingly. At least the tournament was set up so that he would get to face a competent grappler in the finals.


King Mo, during the UFC application process post-fight interview. Props: Showtime Sports

Last night, the real story behind “Barnet vs. Kharitonov” had nothing to do with the heavyweight grand prix. It had nothing to do with the middleweight championship of a sinking organization. Last night, as with every other Strikeforce show since the promotion was purchased by Zuffa, was little more than an audition. It was about who will get a UFC contract when Strikeforce goes under, and who will have to go through TUF. The fans knew it, the announcers knew it, going as far as confirming the Belfort vs. Le rumor, and the fighters definitely knew it.

Despite Strikeforce’s best efforts to hype Josh Barnett vs. Sergei Kharitonov as a potentially close fight, we all knew what to expect: A repeat of Kharitonov vs. Monson, except with a far superior version of Jeff Monson. Because of this, it’s hard to be impressed with anything that Josh Barnett does at this point. The tournament’s biggest names and most intriguing matchups for Barnett- Fedor, Werdum and Overeem- were all removed well before last night. Barnett has become such an overwhelming favorite to win that when he wins, he’s simply living up to expectations. He was paired up against an opponent with weak grappling credentials, knew he would dominate the fight once Kharitonov was on the ground, and fought accordingly. At least the tournament was set up so that he would get to face a competent grappler in the finals.

Oh, about that: Looks like the answer to overcoming Antonio “Bigfoot” Silva’s sheer size and strength lies in exploiting that glass chin. Much like he did in his fight with Jeff Monson, Cormier kept the one dimensional grappler standing as often as possible. Although he showed off his wrestling credentials with an occasional takedown, Cormier refused to fight Silva in his comfort zone by forcing the fight to be stood up every time Silva was on his back. That strategy will work against Antonio Silva, but is his striking good enough to do that against Josh Barnett? For that matter, is Josh Barnett’s grappling going to prove too much for Cormier at this point in his career? We’ll have to wait until Cormier recovers from the hand injury he suffered, which will more than likely be early 2012. Assuming that Strikeforce is around at this time, of course.

If there’s one fighter who didn’t seem to realize that last night was an audition, it was “Jacare” Souza. Souza seemed to buy into the nonsense that some people were spewing about how Jacare vs. Anderson Silva would be a fight worth watching, and seemed to believe that as long as he could go the distance against Luke Rockhold, the judges would give him the fight. Yes, it was far closer than the 50-45 fight that some people seemed to believe it was. Yes, Jacare probably should have lost by split decision instead of unanimous decision. But does it really matter? A losing effort, no matter how close, is still a losing effort. Still, give Luke Rockhold the credit that he deserves for his performance last night. After shaking off the cobwebs that come with over a year and a half away from competition during the first round, Luke Rockhold fought like someone who saw the fight for the audition that it was. It’ll be interesting to see who he gets to defend the title against (again, assuming Strikeforce is around long enough for him to do so).

Other than that, King Mo showed that having “good striking for a Gracie” is like being “a good fighter for a professional reporter”, shutting out Roger Gracie’s lights early. Do we even bother angling for a fight against Dan Henderson, or do we just assume that both guys will be in the UFC before the next Strikeforce card? That isn’t rhetorical, comments section. Also, Pat Healy managed to survive Maximo Blanco’s wild strikes- some of which illegal- long enough to spoil Blanco’s hype. Healy sure has a habit of killing the hype for Strikeforce prospects. Let’s see if that translates into a step up in competition for him.

Full results, courtesy of MMAJunkie:

OFFICIAL MAIN CARD RESULTS

Josh Barnett def. Sergei Kharitonov via submission (head-arm triangle choke) – Round 1, 4:28
Daniel Cormier def. Antonio Silva via knockout (strikes) – Round 1, 3:56
Luke Rockhold def. Ronaldo Souza via unanimous decision (50-45, 48-47, 48-47)
Muhammed “King Mo” Lawal def. Roger Gracie via KO (punch) – Round 1, 4:33
Pat Healy def. Maximo Blanco via submission (rear-naked choke) – Round 2, 4:24

OFFICIAL PRELIMINARY CARD RESULTS

Mike Kyle def. Marcos Rogerio de Lima via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 30-27)
Rafael “Feijao” Cavalcante def. Yoel Romero via KO (strikes) – Round 2, 4:51
Jordan Mein def. Evangelista “Cyborg” Santos via TKO (strikes) – Round 3, 3:18
Alexis Davis def. Amanda Nunes via TKO (punches) – Round 2, 4:53
Dominique Steele def. Chris Mierzwiak via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-27, 29-27)

AKA Goes Undefeated at Strikeforce, to Mild Surprise of at Least One Team Member

Filed under: StrikeforceCINCINNATI — Heading into Saturday night’s Strikeforce event, American Kickboxing Academy middleweight Luke Rockhold predicted a perfect 4-0 night for himself and his teammates. It was an ambitious prediction that ended up bein…

Filed under:

CINCINNATI — Heading into Saturday night’s Strikeforce event, American Kickboxing Academy middleweight Luke Rockhold predicted a perfect 4-0 night for himself and his teammates. It was an ambitious prediction that ended up being accurate, but it also seemed at least somewhat like the kind of thing you say to boost everyone’s confidence rather you really believe it or not.

But Rockhold, who took a close decision over Ronaldo Souza to claim the Strikeforce middleweight title, insisted he knew all along that his squad would end the night undefeated.

“I don’t speak nonsense,” he told reporters at the post-fight press conference. “I was just really confident in my team.”

One of Rockhold’s coaches — AKA’s Javier Mendez — wasn’t quite so sure, however.

“I was confident, honestly, with 3-1,” Mendez told MMA Fighting. “I was hoping for four, but my concern was Mike Kyle.”

As Mendez explained, it wasn’t that he thought Kyle was outmatched against Marcos Rogerio de Lima on the prelim portion of the card. Instead, he was worried about whether Kyle had been healthy enough to adequately prepare for the fight.

“He just got through going through a broken hand. He didn’t get to spar [in training],” Mendez said. “We didn’t want him sparring because we were afraid he would re-break his hand. So I was concerned with him. I wasn’t concerned with Mo [Lawal], wasn’t concerned with Daniel [Cormier], but I was most confident in Luke.”

As it turned out, Rockhold’s fight was the biggest nail-biter of the night for the AKA crew. He and Souza went back and forth for five rounds, the outcome was difficult to call as they stood in the center of the cage awaiting the judges’ decision.

“I felt good about it,” Rockhold said afterward. “I might have got a little rocked, but I came back strong and I think I won some rounds.”

Mendez was similarly confident, but even he couldn’t justify giving all five rounds to Rockhold, as judge Bruce Snell did.

“I thought we had it for sure, based on the fifth round, how he came out and what he did. It was pretty close there, but when he came out and did the most damage, being the aggressor, I knew he had it,” Mendez said. “But the score of 50-45 for Luke? Whoever that was, no. That was wrong. I thought it was 48-47 for Luke.”

However you score it, the AKA squad went home unbeaten thanks to the decision wins for Rockhold and Kyle, and knockout victories by Lawal and Cormier. With that, the whole team returned to San Jose, Calif. with smiles on their faces and a renewed swagger in their step. Just ask the new Strikeforce middleweight champ.

“AKA,” Rockhold grinned. “Watch out. Don’t step on our turf.”

 

Permalink | Email this | Linking Blogs | Comments

Josh Barnett in Right Frame of Mind Heading Into Strikeforce GP Finals

Filed under: , , , ,

CINCINNATI — MMA Fighting spoke to Josh Barnett following his submission over Sergei Kharitonov on Saturday night about the victory, his mental state, fighting Daniel Cormier in the finals, fashion and whether he thinks he is one step closer to returning to the UFC.

 

Permalink | Email this | Linking Blogs | Comments

Filed under: , , , ,

CINCINNATI — MMA Fighting spoke to Josh Barnett following his submission over Sergei Kharitonov on Saturday night about the victory, his mental state, fighting Daniel Cormier in the finals, fashion and whether he thinks he is one step closer to returning to the UFC.

 

Permalink | Email this | Linking Blogs | Comments