Bobby Lashley Signs Strikeforce Deal
by Brent Brookhouse on Dec 11, 2009 4:46 AM EST
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From the official Strikeforce press release:
NEW YORK (December 10, 2009)-Former World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) heavyweight champion and undefeated mixed martial arts (MMA) fighter has signed a multi-year agreement with STRIKEFORCE and will make his debut for the world championship MMA promotion at BankAtlantic Center in Sunrise, Florida on Saturday, January 30.
The 6 foot 3 inch, 250 pound Lashley, also a former collegiate wrestling star for Missouri Valley College and member of The United States Army, will face an opponent that has not yet been determined during the live, SHOWTIME® telecast of STRIKEFORCE: Miami, the historic, first-ever STRIKEFORCE event in the state of Florida.
In his last MMA start on June 27, 2009, the 33-year-old pulverized and scored a first round (3:17) TKO on 6 foot 5 inch, 350 plus pound goliath Bob "The Beast" Sapp with a barrage of punches in Biloxi, Mississippi. The win brought Lashley's overall MMA record to 4-0.
To cut through the obvious parallels to a certain UFC star this is taken from my article on the signing over at SBNation.com:
This signing has been rumored since Strikeforce's Scott Coker promised two new heavyweight signings following their November 7 CBS event. The other rumored heavyweight name was Andrei Arlovski. This move has some parallels to the UFC's move to get Brock Lesnar except that Lashley never managed to hit the levels of stardom that Lesnar did in the WWE despite being a champion and headlining a Wrestlemania event.
Also, by the time Brock Lesnar had four fights under his belt he had knocked out Randy Couture while Bobby is coming off a dominating victory over Bob Sapp. But Lesnar's fast track is something that is so incredibly rare in this sport that to hold Lashley to the same standard simply because they were both pro wrestlers with an amateur wrestling background is quite unfair.
What there is to learn from this is that Strikeforce is far from slinking away after doing a rating that some have implied was a disappointment to CBS in November. The promotion has, in recent days, signed KJ Noons, Dan Henderson, and now Bobby Lashley. All three of those are names that go at the top end of the roster in terms of either marketing (Lashley), competition (Noons) or both (Henderson).
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according to Meltzer it’s a non-exlusive deal and he’s still gonna wrestle for TNA
http://www.mmarocks.pl
https://twitter.com/mmarocks_pl
Correct...
Not only that, but Strikeforce shows may be advertised on TNA shows, etc. It will be interesting if the wrestling fan will watch strikeforce shows now because of Lashley.
by MMASuPreMaCy on Dec 11, 2009 4:54 AM EST up reply actions
On the other hand
In the US, TNA is only on Spike! TV… home of course to the UFC on network TV. Not sure how much pro wrestling/MMA crossover there is on Spike as-is, so I’m not sure that Lashley will draw many from that demographic.
The funny thing is that the last CBS show for Strikeforce was advertised during a TUF episode, but yeah, it will be interesting to see how the crossover works.
by MMASuPreMaCy on Dec 11, 2009 5:09 AM EST up reply actions
That wasn’t necessarily done nationally. I really don’t remember seeing any SF ads during TUF. It would be hard for Zuffa and spike to stop every local cable company from selling the sports they have to sell during TUF to SF, but I wouldn’t expect a lot to be done with this on air.
Especially now that Zuffa and Spike and TNA had Hulk Hogan do a promo on a UFC card.
Wrestling and MMA is being meshed nicely as I expected, along with NFL players..LOL. All we are missing are boxers, and we will be in the PRIME of North American MMA, like Japan was a few years ago.
by MMASuPreMaCy on Dec 11, 2009 8:25 AM EST up reply actions
What there is to learn from this is that Strikeforce is far from slinking away after doing a rating that some have implied was a disappointment to CBS in November. The promotion has, in recent days, signed KJ Noons, Dan Henderson, and now Bobby Lashley. All three of those are names that go at the top end of the roster in terms of either marketing (Lashley), competition (Noons) or both (Henderson).
1) Some said the CBS ratings was a disappointment? It actually did well, not GREAT, but not disappointing either. It brought new advertisers to CBS and did a good numbers for the demos they were trying to hit. Either way, you know it wasn’t a disappointment since they are doing a BIG CBS show on March/April next year.
2) No love for Manhoef as a recent pickup?
=)
The next one is going to be BIGGER, though the Fedor was was their biggest to date!
=)
by MMASuPreMaCy on Dec 11, 2009 5:05 AM EST up reply actions
Fix: The fedor vs Rogers show was their biggest to date.
by MMASuPreMaCy on Dec 11, 2009 5:07 AM EST up reply actions
This is very good , I hope Lashley can get a win over a top 10-15 opponent (Antonio Silva or Werdum) and get a shot at Fedor . It’s a big “if” , there’s no reason to assume he can do it from what we’ve seen , but it would be cool just for the marketing value of that fight . I think Fedor vs Lashley has tons of potential. If not that , than Fedor vs Henderson can be built if Hendo beats Mousasi impressively.
Other than that I’m having a hard time of thinking about opponets for Fedor other than Werdum , and the Werdum matchup isn’t the most exciting to say the least . I wouldn’t be surprised to hear it cancel.
Fedor will have opponents for him, no worries.
by MMASuPreMaCy on Dec 11, 2009 5:54 AM EST up reply actions
LOL@Lashley beating werdum or silva
The only thing Jon Jones does better than Matt Hamill is hear.
(And smash faces)
by ufc4 on Dec 11, 2009 8:16 AM EST via mobile up reply actions
Even if Lashley makes some significant strides those are two pretty bad matchups.
I dislike Matt Hughes. Shogun beat him like a dirty horse.
by MonkeyCHops on Dec 11, 2009 10:54 AM EST up reply actions
You want the best scenario, moneymaking wise. Over the next 3-4 fights give Lashley slightly better and better fighters. Start with a Waterman and end with Travis Wulf, Ricco Rodriguez, or Pedro Rizzo (if he can’t beat them at that point of his career, there’s really no more progression possible for him). DO the same Satoshi Ishii. If both go undefeated pair them up next NYE. Winner gets Fedor.
Whichever one wins you can cash in. Either a big Fedor-Lashley fight in the US or an even bigger Ishii-Fedor fight in Japan. And both we’ll be viewed as kind of legitimate challengers since they both have a top win (of course it was over the other guy we’ve bult up but who cares?)
I knew I was forgetting someone. Manhoef was a great pick up.
Well…Dana White for one said it was a disappointment. And I’ve heard that CBS wasn’t exactly thrilled with finishing last.
Editor - BloodyElbow.com - SBNation's mixed martial arts headquarters.
MMA Editor - SBNation.com
by Brent Brookhouse on Dec 11, 2009 9:48 AM EST up reply actions
The last thing is the problem.
For SF to be successful on CBS (and as a major league org) they need to get more money from CBS. Is it worth it for them to hit the young man demo but lose overall viewers? Especially when you look at what it costs for them to air and promote reruns.
That’s the gamble… They need a breakthrough on the river. Something needs to happen where either CBS has more buy in, An Investor is seduced onboard, or they get enough momentum that even if CBS programming ends they can transition onto ppv successfully.
Here’s the problem:
They lost 2 million viewers and came in last place. Demo gains were great… but what happens if UFC counter programs with a live show? The demo gains will crater and Then what?
Good for both of them
Strikeforce is really stepping up in the world. Hendo has his long and storied track record, Noons instantly brings in heat with Diaz so there’s a fight booked and I’m sure Strikeforce can find Lashley solid, but winnable fights. Mike Kyle comes to mind, and he could eventually step up to the middle tier such as Bigfoot Silva or Mo Lawal if he ever decides to move up a class.
http://mixedmartialartsblogger.wordpress.com/
by Cory Braiterman on Dec 11, 2009 5:03 AM EST reply actions
Strikeforce has put pressure on the UFC to step its game up
and I like that. They put out a good product at a decent price (Showtime and Free CBS).
Hopefully Zuffa comes to their senses and realizes that if they put WEC on PPV it is gonna hurt them more than help.
Fans are interested in more free fights and where I dont think most mma fans have a problem shelling out money to watch a Penn/Sanchez fight the days where most fans will still order a PPV with a Couture/Coleman main event are quickly fading.
I understand that the UFC has had a lot of injuries and things will get better but they need to quit relying on the PPV model so much. No more than 1 PPV a month and keep the WEC on TV.
Its going to be tough for the WEC.
http://mmapayout.com/2009/12/versus-loses-9-million-homes/
by MMASuPreMaCy on Dec 11, 2009 5:55 AM EST up reply actions
It's sucks that the WEC gets the least attention
of the big brand mma organizations. Anyone who watches the WEC knows that they constantly put on great fights and I cant even remember a WEC event that I watched and didnt enjoy.
Maybe the Comcast buying NBC Universal will hep but I still have my doubts.
Obviously at a minimum CBS has committed to more shows.
Dan Henderson got a signing bonus. And Lashley is getting paid some real coin.
If UFC 107 produces less than 300k buys, and Strikeforce could gobble up some more talent and get CBS to televise once a month or at least every other month then this could be an opening.
Having a show every 4 or 6 months is useless. There’s like 6 or 7 UFC’s in between, weekly programing on spike and Zuffa will counter the next CBS event with a Live program. What will CBS do once the demo gains are cut in half? They are already losing 2 million viewers in that timeslot. Look at the target demo ratings and it wont be pretty. If CBS had a monthly show that would mitigate this problem.
Zuffa never went head to head with pride in acquiring talent until Crocop and that was more of a death blow after they were finished.
Pride never intentionally set a premium on a fighter Zuffa wanted and vice versa… Conversely Strikeforce is signing these guys at a premium and their pay scale is catching up rapidly so they need a major breakthrough within a year.
2010 will be very interesting. I stated the key indicators to watch out for a few weeks ago (if they sign Dan and Lashley), Now here are the key indicators in the next stage:
- UFC 107 ppv buys (if less than 300k there’s a window of opportunity for a “pepsi” to emerge)
- Showtime ratings for the December (cung le) Card (if it breaks 500k total it’s fantastic, if it does over 400k total momentum is on their side… if it stays between 325 and 375 nothing has changed)
- Promotion of the next CBS show. (if CBS invests in more promotion than the last card then they have bought in and aren’t just usng this as a placeholder for something better)
- CBS show with Live UFC counter program (if CBS maintains its demo gains then that means the market has just doubled so that’s not probable… Likely CBS will lose at least half its demo gains so what to look out for here is how they react to the losses)
- And the key indicators will be if they retained: Gegard and Shields (both have 1 fight left and both will be on the same ppv card, and assuming both dont lose)… Gegard will be the key indicator here as he’ll probably win and shields will probably lose (as jake will most likely fight Hendo).
If Gegard is retained and more importantly CBS is still on board then the next stage will be upgrading the payscale again.
More than likely the hail marry pass will come in the summer or fall with a strikeforce ppv.headlined with: Fedor vs Barnett (or Overeem) and Hendo vs Gegard and that will be the last indicator.
If they do 200k buys they live on… if not they shrink.
God I hope Gegard jumps ship to the UFC
with putting a whooping on Hendo as a parting gift (not likely that they’ll set that match up right way though..)
Kuwabara Kuwabara
by J. B. Maddox on Dec 11, 2009 8:23 AM EST up reply actions
Gegard only has one fight left?
The only thing Jon Jones does better than Matt Hamill is hear.
(And smash faces)
by ufc4 on Dec 11, 2009 8:29 AM EST via mobile up reply actions
He still has some DREAM fights left I believe, 1 or 2 more in Strikeforce.
by MMASuPreMaCy on Dec 11, 2009 8:38 AM EST up reply actions
And after that 15 or 20 with the UFC.
The only thing Jon Jones does better than Matt Hamill is hear.
(And smash faces)
by ufc4 on Dec 11, 2009 9:19 AM EST via mobile up reply actions
We can only hope.
We = everyone except Supremacy.
by MMAWrestling on Dec 11, 2009 11:03 AM EST up reply actions
Ok, I was wrong. Add bwaha as the other person who wants him to stay with Strikeforce.
by MMAWrestling on Dec 11, 2009 11:09 AM EST up reply actions
107 is at risk of doing below 300k buys?
Just want a clarification
We're just a million little gods causin' rain storms, turning every good thing to rust.
by Anthony Pace on Dec 11, 2009 4:25 PM EST up reply actions
From my comment below:
Also, some of your indicators are bull, of course UFC 107 will do better than 300K and of course Strikeforce is not going to break 500K viewers for this upcoming card. I know you want to pull the trigger already, but it is still too early.
by MMASuPreMaCy on Dec 11, 2009 5:39 PM EST up reply actions
I don’t know that Strikeforce has the roster to put on a solid CBS-worthy card every month. These signings will certainly help, but I still have my doubts. Honestly though, I am not all that familiar with their roster beyond the biggest names.
But if you are stupid, you will be beaten with a stick - Proverbs 10:13
To me it just seems kind of suspect where this revenue stream seems to be coming from when SF is not on PPV. There seems to be alot more going into the company as far as expenses than coming out, there are only 2 explanations for that…
1. They are pulling an Affliction going all in and hoping that they are able to hit the jackpot and set up all of their success in one big ppv show.
2. Well i’m still working on this one because all the reasons that I’ve come up with basically make no sense.
#1.
I think pre-flop they were pot committed (buying elite xc, agreeing to showtimes terms) and then on the flop (Fedor) they sunk in most of their remaining chips and then after the turn (CBS show) they had nothing else to lose so they went all in hoping for the right card to come up on the River.
And that river card has to be: PPV success or Network TV success (bigger money deal) or Outside Funding.
What was disappointing about the first show was nothing really changed… they still have the same monetary terms as the first CBS show otherwise they would have announced a new more robust deal by now. Signing Hendo and Lashley is the money earmarked for Tito which never happened.
Its coming out now that strikeforce was speaking with Fedor since June before Affliction officially went under.
If they didnt use that money on them they would have used it on other free agents as they were already pot committed.
The problem is we’re not getting the fights we want to see. Strikeforce cant even match their own fighters up – forget about co-promotion.
Who wants to see Cung Le vs Scott Smith? People want to see Cung vs Lawler or Shields or Lindland.
Who wants to see Fedor vs Werdum? People want to see Fedor vs Overeem.
Who wants to see Hendo vs Shields? People want to see Hendo vs Gegard.
If you’re not making the best fights possible with your best fighters then what’s the point.
by mmalogic on Dec 11, 2009 7:10 AM EST up reply actions 1 recs
Why would you waste all of your fights with big ratings potential right away when you can build interest with smaller fights.
For example, Hendo after smashing Sheilds Vs. Gegard after another devastating win.
Fedor Vs. Overeem – The general public needs to see Overeem smash someone so as the make the fight with Fedor seem legitimate if not even ideal.
Maybe if SF were on a "trilogy"model it would be different, but in the interest of building a deeper organization balancing exciting fights with “big fights” is key.
by Beyondadrenalin on Dec 11, 2009 8:28 AM EST up reply actions
Hendo has already been promoted… same with Gegard. Building up to what exactly? Gegard has 1 fight left why fuck around?
They’ll be lucky enough to get Overeem over here for 1 fight with Fedor, you think he’s coming here for something else? They already have some footage on him… and they can probably get his k-1 footage as well.
The stage is already set and we’re getting high school plays.
Hendo vs Shields is exciting?
Fedor vs Werdum is exciting?
Remember Dan was known as “decision Dan” and Jake shields is tough to finish in 3 rounds so this could very well be a turtle fuck. Why take that chance?
Shields fight will be 5 rds right?
The only thing Jon Jones does better than Matt Hamill is hear.
(And smash faces)
by ufc4 on Dec 11, 2009 9:21 AM EST via mobile up reply actions
LOL
The biggest joke of all is that Strikeforce “missed out” on signing Tito since the UFC paid him BIG bucks to come back. Let me know what Tito’s pull was on that last PPV event. =)
Oh, and though some people hate it, its called building up fights and letting your divisions fill out. Also, some of your indicators are bull, of course UFC 107 will do better than 300K and of course Strikeforce is not going to break 500K viewers for this upcoming card. I know you want to pull the trigger already, but it is still too early.
by MMASuPreMaCy on Dec 11, 2009 8:34 AM EST up reply actions
So you’re saying SF didn’t want him? Yeah right. Just because people didn’t want to pay $50 to see him fight on a lackluster card doesn’t mean they wouldn’t have tuned in to a FREE show on CBS to watch him. Guarantee he’d have done a bigger number than Fedor did.
The only thing Jon Jones does better than Matt Hamill is hear.
(And smash faces)
by ufc4 on Dec 11, 2009 9:24 AM EST via mobile up reply actions
What do you think tito would pull on CBS (free card)? right… For Strikeforce Tito would have been worth alot more than Dan Henderson.
Go check the ratings for Bobby Lashley’s TNA performances and without him… right.
Strikeforce just paid a hefty sum for a guy who couldnt do shit to Jason Guida. (Jason Guida couldnt even make it in the tuf house… lol)
Jason Guida couldn’t even make weight in the TUF house, now that’s bad.
The only thing Jon Jones does better than Matt Hamill is hear.
(And smash faces)
by ufc4 on Dec 11, 2009 9:44 AM EST via mobile up reply actions
Actually, a good amount of people did. The funny thing was not signing Tito gave Strikeforce Fedor, Lashley, and Hendo.
by MMASuPreMaCy on Dec 11, 2009 4:10 PM EST up reply actions
IMO Tito is in a really interested spot in terms of his PPV drawing abilities.
Basically he is not the huge draw that he once was. But as a co-headliner I don’t think there is anyone who can match that kind of drawing power to put a card over the top.
Randy and Chuck may be or may soon be in the same position.
I dislike Matt Hughes. Shogun beat him like a dirty horse.
by MonkeyCHops on Dec 11, 2009 11:00 AM EST up reply actions
Can’t wait to see the UFC’s check-raise.
The look on Coker’s face when he realizes that he was betting into the nuts with his pocket queens(Millen/Vadim) is going to be priceless.
I dislike Matt Hughes. Shogun beat him like a dirty horse.
by MonkeyCHops on Dec 11, 2009 11:09 AM EST up reply actions 1 recs
Lashley vs Walker. shudder
by Monday Morning Martial Artist on Dec 11, 2009 6:44 AM EST reply actions
WTF
It looks like Lashley knocked Sapp’s brain through his skull in that picture.
by HappyLittleTreez on Dec 11, 2009 8:55 AM EST reply actions
Strikeforce seems to be signing everybody lately.
Dana must really not be worried about them though, he doesn’t even seem like he is competing for most of these fighters.
"A champion is someone who gets up when he can't." - Jack Dempsey
It’s all business. He’s letting Strikeforce sign big pay check with little immediate pay off. For example, no one really knows if Hendo or Lashley are going to boost viewership significantly. I think they will, but not to the point of “winning” this little UFC vs. Strikeforce war.
Come 2010, Dana is going to start dropping bombs, watch. He already made a great move by making Chuck and Tito coaches for TUF. Now theres no title being held up, and two names that aren’t as great of draws alone are coaching. Put Chuck vs. Tito III on free television during a strikeforce CBS card and stack the hell out of it, and hype the hell out of the next PPV at the same time. I love competition.
"You guys are jerking eachother off with some pseudo deep bullshit." - Kid Nate
by Kaleb Kelchner on Dec 11, 2009 11:24 AM EST up reply actions
And before you guys think I’m nuts for saying Chuck isn’t a draw, that was more of a prediction of where he stands in the viewers eyes after his layoff. But, I do think he’ll be a bigger draw than Tito was in the Griffin rematch.
Point I’m trying to make is, the UFC is making the best out of having Tito back, and Chuck wanting to fight. Putting them together was the best move.
"You guys are jerking eachother off with some pseudo deep bullshit." - Kid Nate
by Kaleb Kelchner on Dec 11, 2009 11:27 AM EST up reply actions
Actually, Dana was interested in signing Fedor, Mousasi, and Lashley. He didn’t just LET Strikeforce have them.
by MMASuPreMaCy on Dec 11, 2009 4:16 PM EST up reply actions
Here’s the perfect card for the next CBS show if they need help.
Fedor vs Overeem
Cung Le vs Melvin Manhoef
Mousasi vs Henderson
Lashley vs Silva
Carano vs TBA
Gina will probably be on the following CBS show, June or July’ish.
by MMASuPreMaCy on Dec 11, 2009 4:17 PM EST up reply actions
Yeah!
Lashley’s built like a brick shit house. He’s going to be a force to be wrecking with!
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