StrikeForce News - Page 29

Brother vs. brother is one fight several major promotions have tried – and failed – to put together. It's an easy sell on the business side, but not so much for the family involved. Plus, there's often a weight class or two between siblings. Still, there have been a few willing participants. The most popular example to American MMA fans is Ken Shamrock vs. Frank Shamrock, who were raised by the same adoptive father but aren't related by blood. The matchup fizzled when the two sides couldn't come to terms on the particulars of a fight contract. Strikeforce could be the first promotion to get brother vs. brother done, and it looks like they've got two willing participants if the stars correctly align: Strikeforce heavyweight champion and heavyweight grand-prix competitor Alistair Overeem and his older brother, possible tourney alternate Valentijn Overeem. The brothers say they'll get in the cage if the tournament format dictates they do so and if the fans want to see it. But there are many variables that stand in the way of the potential bout.

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"Fedor was checked last night and seemed fine this morning, in good spirits and walking around in sunglasses like a Hollywood star." "They're going back to Russia tomorrow, and I think things should become clear over the next month or so about the future." Doctor asked Fedor: "Can you continue?" Fedor shook his head and said – "No, I can’t" – accrdng to the doctor that spoke to Russian reporter

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Fedor Emelianenko suffered no major facial damage from his loss at the hands of Antonio Silva. Doctors checked Emelianenko's right eye, which was swollen shut in a dominant second-round offensive by Silva, and found no problems, M-1 Global director of operations Evgeni Kogan told MMA Fighting. "Fedor was checked last night and seemed fine this morning, in good spirits and walking around in sunglasses like a Hollywood star," Kogan said. Doctors had originally feared the possibility of a broken orbital bone.

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Although the MMA legend hinted at retirement following a second-round TKO loss to Antonio Silva, Fedor Emelianenko's fighting career may not be over. Both Strikeforce CEO Scott Coker and Emelianenko's agent, M-1 Global president Vadim Finkelchtein, want the 34-year-old to continue. And Coker could dangle an intriguing opportunity should Emelianenko wish to continue fighting: first dibs on any alternate spots that open in the Strikeforce heavyweight grand prix. Emelianenko (31-3 MMA, 1-2 SF) and Silva (16-2 MMA, 3-1 SF) headlined Saturday's Showtime-televised "Strikeforce: Fedor vs. Silva" event at the IZOD Center in East Rutherford, N.J. After a close first round, Silva unloaded a brutal ground-and-pound assault in the second. With the Russian's right eye swollen shut, the cageside physician halted the bout after before the start of the third round, which resulted in Emelianenko's second consecutive defeat since a legendary decade-long win streak. The bout was part of the opening round of Strikeforce's eight-man, season-long heavyweight tournament. And though three tourney-reserve bouts populated Saturday's main card, any available alternate spots instead could go to Emelianenko. "There's absolutely a possibility he could be a replacement," Coker told MMAjunkie.com (www.mmajunkie.com) after the show. "That's the beauty of the tournament. You don't know what could happen in the next leg of the tournament. As this tournament unwinds over the year, there could be an injury, and you could see Fedor back in the tournament." Decisions about injury replacements ultimately will be made by a Strikeforce committee, as Coker previously announced. And though Shane Del Rosario, Chad Griggs and Valentijn Overeem all won reserve bouts at Saturday's show, Emelianenko could cut to the front of the line.

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Strikeforce's debut in the state of New Jersey resulted in a solid attendance figure of 11,287. A Strikeforce official confirmed the tentative tally with MMAjunkie.com (www.mmajunkie.com). If the New Jersey State Athletic Control Board verifies the number, Saturday's "Strikeforce and M-1 Global: Fedor vs. Silva" event will go down as the organization's second-highest attended show in its past 18 events. It'll also mark just the seventh time in 44 events the organization has drawn at least 11,000 fans.

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Citing a leg injury, Luke Rockhold has withdrawn from a planned matchup with Tim Kennedy at March's "Strikeforce: Feijao vs. Henderson" event. Melvin Manhoef will be the replacement. Manhoef actually is the third proposed opponent for Kennedy at Strikeforce's debut show in the Buckeye State. Prior to the Rockhold booking, officials initially targeted a rubber match between Kennedy and Jason "Mayhem" Miller that recently was scrapped. "I come to fight and give my very best," Manhoef stated in an official release. "I am very, very hungry. I need to win this fight. I am looking forward to fighting Tim Kennedy."

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Strikeforce heavyweight champion Alistair Overeem admits that UFC champion Cain Velasquez is the No. 1 heavyweight in mixed martial arts. But Overeem says that won't be the case by the end of the year. "Cain Velasquez is No. 1 now because I haven't competed against the names," Overeem told MMAFighting.com. "So there is that argument, that I haven't fought the caliber opponents I should -- I wanted to, but either they wouldn't fight me, or the schedule didn't work out. But that's what this tournament is about."

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American Kickboxing Academy prospect Luke Rockhold has been forced to withdraw from his upcoming middleweight clash with Tim Kennedy at Strikeforce “Feijao vs. Henderson” due to a leg injury sustained during training. A source close to the fighter informed Sherdog.com Thursday afternoon of Rockhold's injury, asserting that it would take two to three weeks to heal. Rockhold has posted pictures of his bruised leg and foot on Twitter. Sherdog.com also learned Thursday from an additional source that Strikeforce is hoping to fill the void left by Rockhold with Dutch striker Melvin Manhoef. This marks the third opponent Kennedy has been speculated to face on March 5. It is currently unknown if bout agreements are in place for the matchup.

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Melvin Manhoef is the latest addition to next month's "Strikeforce: Feijao vs. Henderson" event. The Dutch-Surinamese fighter announced his participation via Twitter today, though an opponent was not revealed. Manhoef is just 2-4 in his last 6 MMA fights.

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Fedor Emelianenko (32-2 MMA, 1-1 SF) is the title, tournament, and big fish all wrapped into one, says Antonio "Bigfoot" Silva (15-2 MMA, 2-1 SF). He's not even remotely concerned about what comes next. Some look at Silva as a mere placeholder for the Russian's advance in the Strikeforce heavyweight grand prix. "Bigfoot" says they're about to get a big surprise, just like they did this past summer. Silva said he was supposed to lose to Andrei Arlovski this past May at "Strikeforce: Heavy Artillery." The former UFC champion had hit the skids with back-to-back losses against Emelianenko and Brett Rogers, and he needed a win. Silva would be the pivot for a career turnaround.

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Strikeforce's first event of 2011 was a hit with Showtime viewers. Overall, the event averaged 561,000 viewers, which is more than any single Strikeforce event broadcast on Showtime in the past year. The peak was 853,000 viewers for the Nick Diaz-Evangelista Santos main event.

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Afghan-born fighter Siyar Bahadurzada may regret some of the language he used when lashing out at Strikeforce over the internet last week, but he stands by the sentiment, Bahadurzada told Ariel Helwani on Monday's edition of The MMA Hour. Though Bahadurzada said he signed a contract to fight for Strikeforce in April of 2010, he has yet to be offered a fight with the organization, and said repeated attempts to contact Strikeforce about the situation have been ignored.

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Paul Daley has other business on his fighting agenda before he can lock up a Strikeforce welterweight title shot against current champion Nick Diaz, but that doesn't mean the hard-hitting Brit isn't already looking forward to the possibility of facing Diaz. Daley needs to win a Feb. 26 match in the UK with Yuya Shirai, and if he does, a date with Diaz awaits him. While Diaz recently said he's "not impressed with Paul Daley as a mixed martial artist" aside from his standup, Daley indicated on Monday's edition of The MMA Hour that he'd have more than enough firepower to wrest the belt from him.

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Eight fighters from this past weekend's "Strikeforce: Diaz vs. Cyborg" event were issued medical suspensions, and three face layoffs of up to six months or more. Those facing extended suspensions are Robbie Lawler (foot), Nate Moore (wrist) and Nathan Coy (precautionary reasons). MMAjunkie.com (www.mmajunkie.com) today requested and received the list of medical suspensions from the California State Athletic Commission. "Strikeforce: Diaz vs. Cyborg" took place Jan. 29 at the HP Pavilion in San Jose, Calif., and aired on Showtime.

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Strikeforce’s March 5 bill in Columbus, Ohio, will feature an important middleweight showdown between Tim Kennedy and Luke Rockhold, as well as a lightweight bout pitting unbeaten Billy Evangelista against veteran Jorge Masvidal. The promotion on Monday announced that both fights will be featured on the Showtime-televised portion of Strikeforce “Columbus,” which emanates from the Nationwide Arena. Two expected title bouts were also made official, as 205-pound champion Rafael “Feijao” Cavalcante will defend against former two-division Pride Fighting Championships titleholder Dan Henderson, and 135-pound women’s ace Marloes Coenen will meet Miesha Tate. A former U.S. Army Ranger, Kennedy will make his first appearance since losing a five-round unanimous decision to Strikeforce middleweight champion Ronaldo “Jacare” Souza in August. That loss snapped a four-fight win streak, during which Kennedy finished veterans Trevor Prangley and Nick Thompson. Kennedy was originally rumored to take part in a rubber match with Jason “Mayhem” Miller in Columbus, but that matchup was scrapped for unknown reasons.

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Strikeforce welterweight champion Nick Diaz ($150,000) and fellow defending champion Ronaldo "Jacare" Souza ($85,000) were the top earners at this past weekend's "Strikeforce: Diaz vs. Cyborg" event. MMAjunkie.com (www.mmajunkie.com) today requested and received the list of salaries from the California State Athletic Commission. The event took place at the HP Pavilion in San Jose, Calif., and aired on Showtime. The total disclosed payroll for the event was $463,500. Diaz defeated Evangelista "Cyborg" Santos ($20,000) in the night's headliner, and middleweight champ Souza stopped Lawler ($65,000) in the co-headliner. Perhaps the most notable figure was the salary attached to former NFL great Herschel Walker. Despite his heavy promotion of the card and the interest he drew for his second pro fight, he earned a flat rate of $5,000. However, additional compensation likely came in other forms for the 48-year-old fighter. The full payouts include: Champ Nick Diaz: $150,000 (no win bonus) def. Evangelista "Cyborg" Santos: $20,000 Champ Ronaldo "Jacare" Souza: $85,000 ($15,000 win bonus) def. Robbie Lawler : $65,000 Herschel Walker: $5,000 (no win bonus) def. Scott Carson: $5,000 Roger Gracie: $75,000 (no win bonus) def. Trevor Prangley: $30,000 Nate Moore: $4,000 ($2,000 win bonus) def. Nathan Coy: $3,000 Isaiah Hill: $3,000 ($1,500 win bonus) def. Bobby Stack: $1,500 Ron Keslar: $3,000 ($1,500 win bonus) def. Eric Lawson: $1,500 Germaine de Randamie: $3,000 ($1,000 win bonus) def. Stephanie Webber: $1,000 James Terry: $3,000 ($1,500 win bonus) def. Lucas Gamaza: $1,500 Jenna Castillo: $3,000 ($1,500 win bonus) def. Charlene Gellner: $1,000

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A potential 3rd match between Jason Miller & Tim Kennedy will not be part of Strikeforce's Ohio event in March. The fight was reportedly being finalized earlier this month, but a Strikeforce official confirmed the scrapped plans over the weekend. No reason was given for the change, though spokesperson Mike Afromowitz said the matchup never had been signed in the first place. The fighters will be shifted to other matchups.

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A long-rumored title fight between Strikeforce light-heavyweight champion Rafael "Feijao" Cavalcante (10-2 MMA, 3-1 SF) and notable Dan Henderson (26-8 MMA, 1-1 SF) is set for March's "Strikeforce: Columbus" event. MMAjunkie.com (www.mmajunkie.com) first reported the bout in early December, and the organization made it official on Saturday. The March 5 event takes place at Nationwide Arena in Columbus as part of Strikeforce's Ohio debut.

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Strikeforce's return to its home base resulted in its largest attendance of its past four "Arena Series" shows. SF CEO Scott Coker announced the attendance for last night's event was 9,059. Despite the numbers the series has drawn over 10,000 for an event just once in the last 8 such events.

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SAN JOSE, Calif. – No titles changed hands in Strikeforce's first championship doubleheader of 2011. In the organization's first major show of the year, Strikeforce welterweight champion survived very live underdog Evangelista "Cyborg" Santos and ultimately scored a second-round submission victory. The bout headlined Saturday's "Strikeforce: Cyborg vs. Santos" event at the HP Pavilion in San Jose, Calif. The event aired on Showtime. Although scheduled for five rounds, Santos clearly had no intention of going the distance. And though criticized as an unworthy title challenger, the former PRIDE fighter tripped up Diaz early.

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