Exclusive: Why Henderson Chose Strikeforce
(sherdog.com)herdog.com: Why did you pick Strikeforce over the UFC?
Henderson: The decision was based on a number of things. It wasn’t just a financial thing. It was the fact that I felt I wasn’t getting the fight that I wanted in the UFC. That was a big part of that -- that I wasn’t and that it got yanked away from me. I think I stepped up for the UFC a number of times and had earned that right again for a title fight. And the fact that publicity-wise, CBS offers quite a bit more than a pay-per-view and Spike TV.
Henderson Reaches Agreement with Strikeforce
(sherdog.com)“Dan chose to sign with Strikeforce after careful consideration," Crecy told Sherdog.com via e-mail on Monday. "He approached the process with an open mind, and over the course of the past couple months became increasingly impressed with the Strikeforce organization. It was not a decision that Dan took lightly." Henderson could debut for Strikeforce as early as April on a tentatively planned CBS event, Sherdog.com has learned, and might face the promotion’s middleweight champion, Jake Shields, right out of the gate. Henderson, who also fights at light heavyweight, is being eyed for matchups against Strikeforce light heavyweight champion Gegard Mousasi and the world’s No. 1 heavyweight, Fedor Emelianenko, said a source with knowledge of the deal.
Herschel Walker's MMA debut date set; no opponent yet
(sports.yahoo.com)Strikeforce announced today that Herschel Walker will make his debut on Jan. 30 in Sunrise, Fla. Walker, who will be 47 at the time of the bout, recently started training mixed martial arts after winning the Heisman trophy, a career as an NFL running back, a stint as an Olympic bobsledder, and a fifth-degree black belt in Tae Kwon Do.
K.J. Noons expects Jan. 30 Strikeforce debut, open to Nick Diaz rematch
(mmajunkie.com)After spending the past year working on his boxing career, recent Strikeforce signee and former EliteXC lightweight champion K.J. Noons is ready to concentrate solely on MMA in 2010.
Noons (7-2) discussed his plans with MMAjunkie.com (www.mmajunkie.com) a day after Strikeforce officially announced the signing.
Noons expects to make his promotional debut on the organization's Jan. 30 card in Florida, and while not "calling him out," the Hawaiian-born fighter is certainly open to a rematch with Nick Diaz.
Strikeforce announces Nick Diaz for Jan. 30 event in Florida
(mmajunkie.com)Veteran Nick Diaz (20-7) has been added to the fight card for the Jan. 30 Strikeforce event at the BankAtlantic Center in Sunrise, Fla., the organization today announced.
No opponent was announced for Diaz, who could compete for the vacant Strikeforce welterweight title at the upcoming show.
Strikeforce also previously announced 145-pound women's champion Cris "Cyborg" Santos (8-1) and former NFL great Herschel Walker (0-0) for the Showtime-televised main card of "Strikeforce in Miami."
Opponents also were not revealed for those fighters.
Prangley Expected to Face Lawler at Evolution
(mmaweekly.com) American Kickboxing Academy standout Trevor Prangley is expected to face Robbie Lawler at Strikeforce: Evolution on Dec. 19 in San Jose, Calif.
Multiple MMAWeekly.com sources indicated the bout was all but signed. One source said Prangley, 37, is awaiting a bout agreement and is expected to sign as soon as Monday afternoon.
Lawler was rumored to face Melvin Manhoef, a bout long campaigned for by Strikeforce CEO Scott Coker, but Manhoef is committed to fight on the Dream vs. Sengoku New Year’s Eve event against an opponent yet to be announced.
Strikeforce Signs Melvin Manhoef To Exclusive US Deal
(mmajunkie.com)Strikeforce has just put it's Middleweight division on notice: Start writing your wills. Their latest huge signing is one of the world's most feared strikers-"Marvelous" Melvin Manhoef. He's signed an exclusive multi-year US deal with the promotion, exact terms not disclosed. He could debut at the 12/19 event against Robbie Lawler, but that's not yet official.
Fedor Emelianenko and Gegard Mousasi? "King Mo" says bring it
(mmajunkie.com)While just five fights into his MMA career, multi-weight-class contender Muhammed Lawal (5-0) is already looking to take down some of the sport's best fighters.
A recent Strikeforce signee, Lawal recently told MMAjunkie.com Radio (www.mmajunkie.com/radio) that WAMMA heavyweight champ Fedor Emelianenko and Strikeforce light heavyweight title holder Gegard Mousasi were just two potential future matchups he thinks he could win.
But don't mistake Lawal's claims for cockiness. As the 28 year old preps for a bout with Mike Whitehead at "Strikeforce: Evolution" on Dec. 19, "King Mo" is just confident.
"I'm not overlooking anybody, but my plan is to beat Mike Whitehead, then keep on winning," Lawal said. "Any opponent, I'm not going to be like, 'Oh, it's going to be a tough fight.' I'm going to be like, 'I'm going to win.'
MMAmania.com Interviews Fedor Emelianenko
(mmamania.com)
In the sport of mixed martial arts, five-time world champion Fedor Emelianenko still reigns supreme. After nearly a decade in the fight game this Russian heavyweight, simply now known to the world as "Fedor," still has an unblemished record.
He does, however, technically have one loss on his resume from the RINGS "King of Kings" Tournament that was held in December 2000 in his fight against Ysuyoshi Kohsaka.
He sustained a cut 17 seconds into the match from an unintentional (but illegal under RINGS rules) elbow strike -- a cut bad enough to warrant a doctor stoppage. In a non-tournament fight it would have been ruled a no contest or a disqualification victory for Fedor. This is precisely why many fans and media pundits still consider him undefeated.
Recently he recorded his 31st career victory with a dominating performance over Brett Rogers at the Strikeforce: "Fedor vs. Rogers" CBS event that will likely lead to a potential 2010 match-up against either Fabricio Werdum or current Strikeforce Heavyweight Champion Alistair Overeem.
"The Last Emperor" took some time out of his schedule to discuss his most recent fight against "The Grim" including what it was like fighting in a cage for the first time, if he felt he executed his game plan and whether or not he was in any real danger in the first round of the fight.
Check it out:
Derek Bolender (MMAmania.com): Do you feel like you executed your game plan against Brett Rogers? Did the fight play out like you anticipated?
Fedor Emelianenko: Yes, it sure did. The first round I was trying to see how he fights, which pace, how he stands and reacts, etc... to find his weak spot and then take advantage of it.
Derek Bolender (MMAmania.com): When you were on your back in the first round and Rogers was raining down punches, how badly were you hurt and were you in real danger?
Alistair Overeem: Compared to MMA, K-1 is easy
(mmamania.com)"Though they look similar, they are totally different sports. There is no fighter who holds the top title in both [K-1 and MMA]. If the other top eight K-1 fighters fought me in MMA, I would beat them in two or three minutes. It's a different arena. Anyway, K-1 isn't my ultimate goal. It's a side road. A checkpoint. I just want to have fun. If it's not, I'll just go back to MMA. MMA is a tough sport. There are five, five-minute rounds, and you have stand-up and ground techniques. You have not only punches, but you get kneed in the face repeatedly. Then K-1 is three, three-minute rounds. PRIDE had 10 minutes per round, right? Even with conditions like that, I am one of the top fighters. Compared to that, K-1 is easy."
Diaz will still fight in Cali, but Florida on tap
(mmaweekly.com)Nick Diaz will not be deterred by the California State Athletic Commission’s formal stance on medical marijuana.
Diaz’s manager, Cesar Gracie, said Monday that his fighter would continue to fight in the Golden State, though perhaps not as often.
“Just when he gets licensed, he probably shouldn’t smoke,” said Gracie. “That’s my advice to him. If you’re going to fight, don’t smoke. Besides that, there are a lot of states in the country. He could go fight in Japan. He could fight wherever he wants.”
Brett Rogers wants to strip Alistair Overeem
(mmamania.com)"[Fedor] is certainly the best heavyweight in the world. But he does have weaknesses. We all do – isn’t that what makes champions great -- they win even with weaknesses? They win even though they can be beat? He is not a machine.... I want to fight soon, and I want to fight Alistair. I’m 100% healthy and took zero damage in the fight; so I’m ready to go right now. As I said Strikeforce is my home; I love Strikeforce and in my opinion Alistair holding the title belt is an insult to every fighter in this organization, every fan and to Scott Coker. Champions defend their titles. And either Scott strips him and real fighters battle for it; or I will take it off him the hard way."
Brett Rogers reflects on his recent knockout loss to Fedor Emelianenko and is eager to put it behind him and get back inside the cage sooner rather than later. He's wants to mix it up with Strikeforce Heavyweight Champion, Alistair Overeem, saying that the Dutch fighter -- who has never defended his belt since defeating Paul Buentello to capture it more than two years ago -- needs to get busy or get out.
Radach Out, Lawler Awaits New Opponent for Dec. 19 Strikeforce
(sherdog.com)Benji Radach will not face off against Robbie Lawler in a featured middleweight bout at Strikeforce “Evolution” on Dec. 19 at the HP Pavilion in San Jose, Calif.
Radach’s agent, Ken Pavia, said the fighter still hasn’t been medically cleared to begin training again following surgery on his right hand last April. Radach, 30, broke his hand in multiple places during his third-round loss to Scott Smith at Strikeforce “Shamrock vs. Diaz” on April 11. Pavia said Radach would be cleared “soon” to resume training, but didn’t give a specific timeline.
Jake Shields: Cung Le showed his true colors by ducking me
(mmamania.com)"I’m a little frustrated. I thought [Cung and I] were friends, but I kind of lost respect for him when he decided not to fight me and hand picked his [next] opponent. I expected it from him, honestly, because people for years were telling me that Cung Le was that way and would never fight with me, so he showed his true colors ... We have trained together and we both know what would happen, so I guess he would just prefer to give up his belt and pick fighters that he matches up well with. For a guy like me it’s hard to understand, because I try to test myself against the best."
Newly crowned Strikeforce Middleweight Champion Jake Shields slams Cung Le for his decision to vacate the 185-pound title and agree to fight Scott Smith at "Evolution" on Dec. 19 rather than defend it against the surging jiu-jitsu phenom.
25 MIllion Watch SF's 11/7 Event Worldwide
(411mania.com)M-1 Global and Strikeforce have announced that the November 7th Strikeforce: Fedor vs. Rogers event was viewed by 25 million homes. The show scored 5.46 million viewers in the United States on the CBS Network, along with 16 million viewers in Fedor's home country of Russia on Channel 1. The event was also broadcast in Korea, China, Latin America, United Kingdom, New Zealand, Ukraine, Finland, Africa, Turkey, Israel, Indonesia, Bulgaria, Romania, and Malta.
Alistair Overeem Still Prefers MMA, Even as He Seeks K-1 Title
(mma.fanhouse.com)"My passion is in MMA," said Overeem, the Strikeforce heavyweight champion. "That's what I like to do. But now that I beat Peter Aerts (to get to) the Final 8, I feel like the title is within reach, so I'm going to get it." K-1 seems to like playing up the MMA vs. K-1 angle when promoting Overeem, and no matter how he does in the Grand Prix Final, K-1 is hoping to have Overeem fight in its sister MMA promotion, Dream, next year. Overeem says he wants to fight Fedor Emelianenko next year, either in Dream or Strikeforce.
Muhammed “King Mo” Lawal: ‘My slowest is faster than Whitehead’s fastest’
(fiveouncesofpain.com)It’s not hard to see why Muhammed “King Mo” Lawal is widely touted as one of the sport’s fastest rising prospects with all of the early indications of a future champion. A freestyle wrestler of the highest caliber in his prime that has made the transition to the brutal world of mixed martial arts look easy, Lawal accomplished the unheard of in his first professional bout, stopping a veteran of over sixty fights riding a nine fight win streak with ease.
Since the first round beating Mo put on Travis Wiuff during Sengoku VI, Lawal has gone on to put together an unblemished record of 5-0 while rocking what is disputedy the game’s best ring entrance prior to every beatdown served up.
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