Strikeforce World Grand Prix Heavyweight Tournament

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Who will win it all?


  • Total voters
    40
May 25, 2009
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Scott Coker on Dana White Twitter Rant: 'Keep Watching Strikeforce'

After Fedor Emelianenko lost on Saturday night's Strikeforce card, UFC President Dana White went wild on Twitter, where he ripped Fedor's management at M-1 Global for, in White's view, tarnishing Fedor's legacy by keeping him away from fighting in the sport's premier promotion.

White's tweets included comments like, "Fedor has been fighting bums for years!" and "Last nights fight was a set up for Fedor to win and he got his face smashed!" Many of the tweets included profane insults about Fedor's managers and fans, some of whom were using Twitter to argue with White about Fedor's legacy.

But while White was animated and many of his Twitter correspondents were, too, Strikeforce CEO Scott Coker said he didn't get worked up about any of it.

In fact, Coker told Ariel Helwani on The MMA Hour that he's just glad to know White was watching Showtime on Saturday night.

"At least the guy's watching, right? He's watching Strikeforce," Coker said. "As long as he wants to keep watching Strikeforce that's a good thing."

Coker refrained from criticizing White on the matter, but Coker did criticize one of his own business partners, M-1 Global's Evgeni Kogan, who responded to White on Saturday night.

"Easy to be a prick tweeting on your phone, isn't it? Come see us and say it to Vadim's face - we're in 'Jersey, coward," Kogan wrote in a tweet directed to White a few hours after Fedor's loss.

Coker said he thought it was silly for Kogan to respond that way.

"That's childish, 'Come to Jersey,'" Coker said. "Like Evgeni -- what's he gonna do?"

For his part, Coker said he admires the way White has worked to build the UFC and thinks that both promotions can coexist successfully.

"I respect Dana and what he's done," Coker said. "Their success is great and our success is great, too."
 
May 25, 2009
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Fedor Emelianenko wanted Strikeforce bout to continue, hints at future fights

Fedor Emelianenko apparently has had a change of heart.

After suggesting an imminent retirement following Saturday's doctor's-stoppage loss to Antonio Silva in the opening round of Strikeforce's eight-man heavyweight grand prix, the fighter today changed his tune.

In a series of Twitter messages, Emelianenko stated he wanted the fight to continue and said he hasn't decided whether he's going to retire.

The 34-year-old Russian headlined Saturday's Showtime-televised "Strikeforce: Fedor vs. Silva" event at IZOD Center in East Rutherford, N.J. After a close first round that Emelianenko won on two of the three judges' cards, the much-heavier Silva got him to the mat and unloaded a vicious ground-and-pound assault. Emelianenko's right eye became badly swollen during the exchanges, and prior to the third round, the cageside physician declared the fighter unable to continue.

As a result, Silva earned a TKO win and now advances to the semifinals with fellow weekend winner Sergei Kharitonov.

Conflicting reports then surfaced as to whether Emelianenko called for the fight to be stopped.

"I would have liked to continue to fight," Emelianenko stated in Russian via Twitter. "The doctor did everything possible, but it did not (continue) unfortunately."

He said a decision about whether to continue fighting or instead retire "will be resolved in the near future."

Emelianenko went unbeaten from 2000 to 2010 with a perfect 27-0 record against many of MMA's elite. However, the former PRIDE champion suffered a June 2010 submission loss to Fabricio Werdum, and with the defeat to Silva, now has suffered back-to-back losses. They're the only two legitimate losses of his 11-year pro career.

Despite his opening-round loss, Emelianenko could re-enter the grand prix as an alternate. Although three fighters earned wins in tourney-reserve fights, Strikeforce CEO Scott Coker told MMAjunkie.com (www.mmajunkie.com) Emelianenko could be the top alternate if a spot does open.
 
Oct 28, 2005
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www.myspace.com
All that "outweighed by X pounds" shit is, and always has been, bullshit said and perpetuated by losers.

The weight divisions do not fluxuate--they are set in stone. If you take a fight in the 265 pound division...don't be surprised if the other guy SHOWS UP WEIGHING 265 FUCKING POUNDS. If you don't LIKE that, then be a BITCH and negotiate a special contract with a 235 or whatever bitch-ass limit you feel comfortable with.

Until then, eat a dick.

Fedor's pride is killing him, and I can't say I feel sorry for the guy. Believing your own hype is a cardinal sin.
 
Oct 27, 2008
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All that "outweighed by X pounds" shit is, and always has been, bullshit said and perpetuated by losers.

The weight divisions do not fluxuate--they are set in stone. If you take a fight in the 265 pound division...don't be surprised if the other guy SHOWS UP WEIGHING 265 FUCKING POUNDS. If you don't LIKE that, then be a BITCH and negotiate a special contract with a 235 or whatever bitch-ass limit you feel comfortable with.

Until then, eat a dick.

Fedor's pride is killing him, and I can't say I feel sorry for the guy. Believing your own hype is a cardinal sin.
um.. i'm not sure you know what you're talking about.
 
Feb 7, 2006
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May 25, 2009
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Miguel Torres: Fedor Should 'Man Up or Get Left Behind'

It's not often Fedor Emelianenko and Miguel Torres are talked about in the same conversation.

Fedor is a soft-spoken 230-pound heavyweight from the heart of Russia. Torres is a 135-pound Mexican-American bantamweight living in the shadow of Chicago, and a few glances at his Twitter feed shows he's far from shy. Physical and social equals, they are not.

Fedor has been synonymous with the sport of mixed martial arts for years – so much so that he needs only one name. But only in the last three years did Torres get widespread recognition.

There was a time two years ago when Fedor was at the top of most pound-for-pound discussions, and Torres himself had entered the top-5 mix. But beyond that, the two had little reason to be mentioned together.

But they might be more alike than most people think. Torres believes the similarities are there – and he believes Fedor, following back-to-back losses for the first time in his career, needs to do just what he did last year after suffering a similar, formerly unthinkable skid: Pack the bags and change things up, or he'll only have himself to blame.

"He's at a crossroads in his life," Torres told MMA Fighting last week. "(He's been) dominating his division, plus the popularity, exposure and everything that comes with being The Man, a showman, a father, representing a country and people – and being a fighter.

"He needs to adjust to the times and start working on being a cerebral fighter (again) and not a showman. He needs to play catch-up in a world he used to dominate. That stings really bad, but you man up or get left behind."

For nearly 10 years, Torres dominated the lighter weight classes of the sport, and was doing so long before there was a WEC home for smaller fighters. He started his career 20-0 – and 32-0 if you count a dozen off-the-books fights, taking on whomever the "promoters" would match him up against in barrooms around Northwest Indiana.

His first loss came after an 18-month layoff from a knee injury – a fight he has said he wasn't yet ready for, but couldn't wait to get back to work. He regrouped, went on a tear of more than five years and 17 straight wins, and avenged his loss to Ryan Ackerman by breaking his arm and chasing him from the sport.
Russia will always be [Fedor's] home, but he lacks growth. Sometimes loyalty can hold you back.
-- Miguel Torres
Though Torres wasn't beating the same caliber "name" fighters as Fedor during that same time period in Pride, it was largely because the bantamweight division wasn't on the map yet. Torres helped put it there when he signed with the WEC and quickly became its 135-pound champion. He even had some, including former UFC heavyweight champ Frank Mir, saying he was the best in the world. Yes, even better than Fedor.

Torres defended his WEC bantamweight strap three times after winning it, and he did it all by training himself at his own gym in Hammond, Ind. He would make occasional treks elsewhere to learn new techniques, and he'd bring in other pros to work with him. But mostly he ran his own show the way he always had – much like Fedor.

Then he got caught by Brian Bowles, the first knockout of his career. He thought he learned a lesson about being over-aggressive. But against Joseph Benavidez, he got more than just caught. He got beaten, soundly, and he got the message.

Torres regrouped, packed his bags and got out of his comfort zone. He moved to Montreal for his next camp, living in Firas Zahabi's basement while training at Tristar Gym for Charlie Valencia. For the first time, Torres was working with a head coach that wasn't himself. He submitted Valencia in the second round and followed that up with a dominating standup performance against Antonio Banuelos two weeks ago. He'll return to Montreal in April to begin preparations for the next step on his comeback trail, Brad Pickett at UFC 130. He says working with Zahabi has rejuvenated and refocused his career.

Much like Torres' only loss in a 10-year stretch coming with an asterisk, Fedor's only loss before his recent fall came in the fifth fight of his career – and it was from a cut. The cut came from an illegal elbow, but because it was a tournament, Fedor had to take the loss when the fight was stopped. But for 10 years, he dominated everyone in his path.

And he did it, like Torres, using the same training methods that had come to work for him for so long. Nothing was broken, so why fix it? He stayed home in Russia, going to Japan when it was time for his fights in Rings or Pride. There was no need to alter the program.

Then he got caught last June by Fabricio Werdum, jumping into his guard and a triangle-armbar combination. He tapped out for the first time. Like Torres' first loss after years of domination, it was assumed Fedor just got caught. He wouldn't make that mistake again, he said, but "everybody loses – I'm just a human being."

Against Antonio Silva last week, like Torres against Benavidez, he got more than caught. He got beaten down, his right eye sealed shut, forcing the doctor to stop the fight for a second straight loss – unthinkable just a year ago.

The question is, will Fedor get the same kind of message Torres got? Will he change up his training to get back on track, an acknowledgment that perhaps the sport is rapidly changing and he could benefit from outside coaching help? Or will he stay in Russia, in his comfort zone?

Torres said Fedor needs to experience training somewhere else – the way he did.

"I say yes, (he needs to leave)," Torres said. "Russia will always be his home, but he lacks growth. Sometimes loyalty can hold you back."

Torres said when he left his longtime Northwest Indiana training home, it wasn't well received in the community he had become a fixture in.

"I left to find growth – and everyone hates me for it, saying I'm a deserter and forgot where I came from," Torres said. "Even now, with my new style, people say I'm scared or not exciting. When I was training here, I didn't give a (care) and fought for the fans. When I lost, everyone threw (crap) on me saying I was nobody. My new style is actually cerebral and smart. I don't get hurt anymore, but lost fans. When I get the belt back, they will (love me) again, but I won't care. I'm all grown up."

But the bottom line, as Torres sees it, is Fedor must do what's best for him and his fighting career, not the people around him, not Russia, not the fans. That's his best shot at a return to glory.

"When you man up, people will critique you and hate you for leaving, call you names and judge you for doing what's good for you," Torres said. "I feel Fedor's situation. It (freaking) sucks, but (crap) happens. All we can do is get better – and (screw) everyone else."
 
Sep 20, 2005
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FUCK YOU
Following sale to UFC, Strikeforce grand prix could mark pay-per-view debut

Strikeforce never made it to pay-per-view on its own, but that could change under its new ownership.

UFC president Dana White today said the finals of the eight-man Strikeforce heavyweight grand prix might be worth a $44.95 price tag.

"Yeah, I think so," White today said when asked about the possibility of putting the planned event on pay-per-view.

Of course, that idea might be putting the cart before the horse in the wake of the UFC's recent buyout of Strikeforce. Both White and UFC executive and co-owner Lorenzo Fertitta said it's far too early to sign off on a variety of issues that could arise from the sale, such as the possibility of someday folding Strikeforce fighters into the UFC or superfights between promotional champions.

That's to say nothing of integrating the heavyweight grand prix into the UFC's core business. The eight-man competition kicked off this past February and is scheduled to continue with additional opening-round matchups on June 18 in Dallas.

Strikeforce CEO Scott Coker previously had said the grand prix would help his promotion enter the pay-per-view market and possibly return to CBS sometime this year. That prediction no doubt was aided by the buzz that followed the heavyweight grand prix's first event, which featured a headlining bout between Fedor Emelianenko and Antonio Silva that broke Strikeforce-Showtime ratings records with a peak of 1.1 million viewers.

But the promotion seemed to hit a snag when it decided to delay the tournament's second opening-round event from April until June. Coker, however, said it came out of a desire to capitalize on that buzz.

In the wake of the buyout, there was speculation that the tournament delay might have been prompted by Coker's pending deal with the UFC, which is the current international king of PPV. But during today's call, he said that wasn't true.

"That was a decision that was made way before this thing was inked," Coker said. "So it had nothing to do with it, and really, it had more to do with finding the right location for the heavyweight tournament. Once we found Dallas as a venue, we notified the fighters, and they were all OK with it. [The UFC purchase] had nothing to do with it.

The second event features two quarterfinal matchups: Alistair Overeem vs. Fabricio Werdum and Josh Barnett vs. Brett Rogers. Silva and Sergei Kharitonov earned passes to the semifinals with wins over Emelianenko and Andrei Arlovski, respectively.

Coker said the tournament finals could take place in December, though nothing is set.