Stikeforce: Paul Daley and Kazuo Misaki Will Put on a Show Tonight

At 9PM CST live on Showtime, Strikeforce will put on its 39th live “numbered” event from Columbus, Ohio, featuring KJ Noons vs. Josh Thomson as well as the Strikeforce Women’s Bantamweight Champion Miesha Tate against undefeated Ronda Rousey.Before eit…

At 9PM CST live on Showtime, Strikeforce will put on its 39th live “numbered” event from Columbus, Ohio, featuring KJ Noons vs. Josh Thomson as well as the Strikeforce Women’s Bantamweight Champion Miesha Tate against undefeated Ronda Rousey.

Before either of those two bouts, however, UFC veteran Paul Daley and Sengoku veteran Kazuo Misaki will do battle at 170 pounds.

In the past, Misaki has shown proficiency on the feet, notably through his footwork, as well as fast hands, quick kicks, a strong mentality from bell to bell, solid grappling and submission skills, speed and a notable wrestling game.

He put it together quite nicely at 185, but many felt he was pretty light for a middleweight and might be better suited for the welterweight division.

That’s where the explosive knockout art of Daley intervenes, and then it gets really spine-tingling.

Daley’s one weakness has been the wrestling game, but Misaki is one of those fighters who will dare Daley to throw his left hand and try to knock him out.

Wise move?

Not at all, but anyone who has seen Misaki fight knows that he does not go down easily, and for however long this fight lasts, whether it lasts one minute, one round, or one minute short of the full three-round duration, the always-improving game of both fighters will show themselves in full tonight.

If it goes to the ground, Misaki’s got the win in the bag, but Daley has said that he’s done with snoozers and playing into the game plans of people who play the point game.

If tonight’s fight will not be left in the hands of the judges; it will end on Daley’s terms.

How long that takes depends on what kind of Misaki comes out to fight tonight, but rest assured that it will not be the easiest fight Daley’s ever encountered.

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Strikeforce: Why Paul Daley-Nate Marquardt Needs to Happen

Regardless of whether Paul Daley wins or loses tonight, he should face Nate Marquardt in a future Strikeforce event.Even if he gets beaten by his opponent, Kazuo Misaki, tonight, it is still the best fight that Strikeforce can make. That is because it …

Regardless of whether Paul Daley wins or loses tonight, he should face Nate Marquardt in a future Strikeforce event.

Even if he gets beaten by his opponent, Kazuo Misaki, tonight, it is still the best fight that Strikeforce can make. That is because it is the most marketable.

Both Marquardt and Daley are famous for two reasons. One is for the time they spent in the UFC as top contenders.

The other is the fact that they are both exiled from the company via banishment by Dana White.

For Daley, it was after he punched Josh Koscheck after their match at UFC 113.

Marquardt was cut for testing positive for banned substances before a fight on Versus.

Both men have had controversy in the world of MMA and have been blackballed because of it.

A high-profile fight outside the company, a win over a top contender, could sway White’s decision about their status. Both of them are about as well-known as any fighter outside of the UFC fold can be.

There isn’t another fight in the division, let alone the company, that would produce as much attention as theirs. 

It would help if they win their fights. Daley competes tonight against Misaki on the undercard. A knockout win would help raise his stature.

Marquardt is headed for a title fight with Tyron Woodley, as mentioned in an article by MMAJunkie.com

If both men were to fight for the title, it would improve their chances of getting back into the UFC and once again competing with some of the best fighters in the world.

All they need to do is fight. It’s what they do best, even when they can’t compete with the best.

That may change by the end of the year if they can square off with each other. Both men have survived getting fired by the UFC, but if they want to fight at the top level in MMA, they’ll need something more then a good match or a win streak.

They’ll need each other.

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Strikeforce: Why Paul Daley Will Knockout Kazou Misaki

Tonight, Paul Daley will land one of his trademark knockout punches on Kazuo Misaki, giving him an early victory.Daley isn’t the most technical fighter, so there isn’t much of a chance that his game plan will be anything different than what it has been…

Tonight, Paul Daley will land one of his trademark knockout punches on Kazuo Misaki, giving him an early victory.

Daley isn’t the most technical fighter, so there isn’t much of a chance that his game plan will be anything different than what it has been in the past: swing for the fences and try to take his opponent out.

It almost worked against Nick Diaz and, if Daley had landed a harder punch, he might have won. Daley was also facing a fighter who was willing to stand and trade with him as well.

That may not be the case tonight with Misaki.

Misaki is the better fighter and, if the fight was happening back in 2006, there is a good chance that Misaki would win.

But Misaki is fighting the opponent of old age as well, having turned 35 last year and approaching his next birthday quickly. He isn’t the fighter he once was and it is affecting him as it does all professional fighters. He has started losing more matches.

Back in 2006, Misaki was a force to be reckoned with in Pride, getting wins over Dan Henderson and Denis Kang. It wasn’t until 2009 that the losses started piling on.

He made a great showing against Jorge Santiago in 2010, having one of the best fights of the year, but time plays a factor once again. It has been two years since that fight and, since then, Misaki has only beaten two opponents—both who have less then stellar records.

Misaki is still a dangerous veteran in his own right. He has only been knocked unconcious once as two of the three KOs on his record come from getting a broken arm in one fight and a corner stoppage in the other.

The catch is that two of the knockouts just happened recently. Misaki may want to continue competing, but if he keeps getting knocked out, it will shorten his fighting career.

Daley is only 29 and has seen less wars than Misaki. Along with his power, he should swarm Misaki and take him out, netting himself an impressive, highlight-reel KO in the process.

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Strikeforce: Live Main Card Results and Analysis of Miesha Tate vs. Ronda Rousey

Strikeforce returns with an action-packed night of fights on Saturday, live from Columbus, Ohio, and the time for the talking is now officially over.Strikeforce women’s bantamweight champion Miesha “Takedown” Tate contests her gold against the undefeat…

Strikeforce returns with an action-packed night of fights on Saturday, live from Columbus, Ohio, and the time for the talking is now officially over.

Strikeforce women’s bantamweight champion Miesha “Takedown” Tate contests her gold against the undefeated 4-0 record of undefeated Judoka and No. 1 challenger “Rowdy” Ronda Rousey, with a co-headliner of KJ Noons vs. Josh Thomson in what will likely result in the winner challenging Strikeforce lightweight champion Gilbert Melendez.

Also in action are Paul “Semtex” Daley and Kazuo Misaki, both of whom have their eye on Strikeforce welterweight gold, as well as former Strikeforce middleweight champion Ronaldo “Jacare” Souza’s welcoming of Bristol Marunde into the Strikeforce cage, Lumumba Sayers taking on Scott Smith and an undercard topped off by a women’s bantamweight title eliminator between Alexis Davis and former champion Sarah Kaufman.

Ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls, children of all ages, without further interruptions, Bleacher Report MMA presents its live and unfiltered coverage of Strikeforce 39: Tate vs. Rousey and Noons vs. Thomson. Updates will be added below as things develop. 

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Strikeforce: Paul Daley and the 10 Most Controversial Fighters in MMA

Nothing generates interest like a little bit of controversy. Sometimes it happens by accident, but more often it is a result of two fighters simply not liking each other and wanting to get under the other’s skin. Fans love it when two fighters genuinel…

Nothing generates interest like a little bit of controversy. Sometimes it happens by accident, but more often it is a result of two fighters simply not liking each other and wanting to get under the other’s skin.

Fans love it when two fighters genuinely dislike each other. It creates for some good back stories to the actual fight. It can even make some of the mid-card fights overshadow the actual main events.

Not all fighters create controversy by simple trash talk. The athletes have found numerous ways to create a stir that causes MMA fans to head to the nearest computer. Nevertheless, these fighters create controversy and with it, an overwhelming interest in their careers.

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Anthony Johnson and 6 Fighters That Never Know If They’ll Make Weight

It’s become commonplace in the mixed martial arts world that everyone cuts weight.For some fighters, they see the ability to shed pounds of water as a science and added advantage come fight time. Don’t believe me? Ask Anthony Johnson. “Rumble…

It’s become commonplace in the mixed martial arts world that everyone cuts weight.

For some fighters, they see the ability to shed pounds of water as a science and added advantage come fight time. 

Don’t believe me? Ask Anthony Johnson. 

“Rumble” regularly competed as a welterweight, where he dwarfed all of his opposition. Several times, Johnson struggled to make the required 170-pound weight limit, prompting a move to the middleweight division, where his weighty concerns have followed him.

Johnson’s not the one who should take the full brunt of the backlash, so here are others who in the past have showed blatant disregard in making weight for their respective weight classes. 

 

Anthony Johnson/ Sherdog.com

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