Strikeforce: Carano vs. Cyborg Updates and Rumors (Roger, Diaz, Shields, Toughill + Ralek and Tito)
by MMASuPreMaCy on Jun 28, 2009 10:47 AM EDT
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If you thought the Shields vs. Lawler card was stacked for a Strikeforce card, their August follow-up at the HP Pavilion in San Jose may change your mind. It is being reported that Strikeforce is working on setting up Diaz vs. Riggs at 170 and also giving ADCC grappling extraordinaire, Roger Gracie, his debut bout with the organization. It is also reported that Ralek Gracie, who last competed in DREAM a year ago will also be joining Strikeforce. If this is true, it will appear that Strikeforce has the full support of the Cesar Gracie camp, as well as the other Gracie prospects coming up in MMA. Gracie Magazine reports:
Not having stepped in the ring since last May, when he submitted Yuki Kondo at Sengoku and brought his record to two wins in two appearances, in MMA, Roger Gracie will be one of the attractions August 15 at Strikeforce. The bout should be officially announced by the organizers next week. For the time being no opponent has been named for the black belt's debut on American soil.
Rumored August 15 Strikeforce Card:
STRIKEFORCE: AUGUST 15, 2009 ON SHOWTIME
venue: HP Pavilion in San Jose, CaliforniaShowtime Card:
-Gina Carano (7-0) vs. Cristiane "Cyborg" Santos (7-1)
-Josh Thomson (16-2) vs. Gilbert Melendez (15-2)
-Alistair Overeem (29-11) vs. Brett Rogers (11-0)
-Roger Gracie (2-0) vs. TBA
Rumored Bouts:
-Nick Diaz (20-7) vs. Joe Riggs (30-10)
-Jake Shields (23-4-1) vs. Matt Lindland (21-6)
Undercard:
-Erin Toughill (10-2-1) vs. TBA
-Billy Evangelista (9-1) vs. TBA
-Poppies Martinez (16-5) vs. TBA
Rumored Participant:
-Fabricio Werdum (11-4-1) vs. TBA (possibly Tim Sylvia?)
Nick Diaz vs. Joe Riggs, Jake Shields vs. Matt Lindland, Roger Gracie, and Fabricio Werdum are fighters that are currently rumored for this already stacked event.
More after the jump...
Roger Gracie is just coming off winning the 2009 World BJJ Championships, beating all of his 9 opponents by choke from the mount. Previous to this year's success, he had also won the BJJ world Championship the Mundials a record 8 times including 6 time in this weight class and twice at open weight. He is a great HW prospect, already 2-0 in MMA beating Ron Waterman and Yuki Kondo, both by submissions.
Ralek Gracie is 2-0 in MMA, after defeating both of his opponents by armbar, and is only 23 years old, which would be a great addition to their LHW class. He is the son of Rorion Gracie, who is one of the founders of the UFC, back in 1992. You would wonder what it would do to Strikeforce and the Gracie name if they can all grow with each other and become champions in one promotion.
Having Roger Gracie, Ralek Gracie, Jake shields, Nick Diaz, and Gilbert Melendez compete for belts in one promotion would be an incredible feat and resurrection for the Gracie name. It would also help the California based promotion grow with names that are synonymous with BJJ and MMA.
Also scheduled for the August Strikeforce event is Erin Toughill (10-2-1), who will most likely become the #1 challenger at the 145 lbs weight class with a win at the event. She would challenge the champion at that weight class, which will be crowed on the same day when Gina Carano takes on Cyborg Santos to crown the first ever women's title for the promotions. MMAJunkie reports:
"Erin brings a great deal of experience to the cage, and she's very strong," Afromowitz said. "She's been in the game for a while, and she's certainly earned the right to be recognized as one of the best fighters in the women's featherweight division.
"Erin is definitely a great addition to our organization, and we're excited to bring her into Strikeforce on the same night we award our first-ever women's title to either Gina Carano or Cristiane 'Cyborg' Santos."
Tito Ortiz Signing With Strikeforce (4 Fight Deal) For October Showdown With Babalu?
Tonight at UCFC (ultimate cage fighting championship) in pittsburgh.
he made a guest appearance in the ring, and spoke to the crowd for a few minutes.
- said he will fight again in october
- has a 4 fight deal with strikeforce
- is gonna fight babalu, and actually referred to him as "baba who?"
- said he wants to fight fedor, and if he will meet him at a 210lb catch weight, he will, and i quote, "put a crushin on that russian."
The FanPosts are solely the subjective opinions of Bloody Elbow readers and do not necessarily reflect the views of Bloody Elbow editors or staff.
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Hahaha…
I think people will want to see that fight just to see how Shields will do against another formidable opponent outside of the UFC. Do people remember? Lindland was supposed to be the Savior of the MW class and defeat Anderson Silva. =)
by MMASuPreMaCy on Jun 27, 2009 7:21 PM EDT up reply actions
One positive for Lindland is...
that I can’t imagine Shields knocking him the hell out ala Vitor Belfort. Shields is a damn fine submission fighter, but I can’t get on board with him being a top 2 or 3 WW until he exhibits some better striking.
by Cannon Jacques on Jun 27, 2009 8:33 PM EDT up reply actions
that is an awful matchup
werdum won’t be able to take him down or hang with him on his feet.
remember how much “fun” werdum vs arlovski was?
this one will make that look like hagler-hearns.
Follow me on Twitter @KidNate
I believe he started training with Chute Boxe after the AA fight and KOed Gonzaga after, correct?
=)
by MMASuPreMaCy on Jun 27, 2009 11:54 PM EDT up reply actions
I actually think it will be a good matchup. Call me crazy but I like it a lot more than Sylvia vs Buentello.
by MMASuPreMaCy on Jun 28, 2009 12:03 AM EDT up reply actions
I disagree. I think Werdum has improved leaps and bounds since then. I definitely think Werdum can get it to the ground and win this.
"I see him beating Anderson Silva. I see him picking him apart. Him at a 131 years old...(trails off)." - Tito on Belfort at Affliction:DOR
by Rundownloser on Jun 28, 2009 2:36 AM EDT up reply actions
Werdum has gained alot of fat since hes AA match, which he’s probably gonna use to take Sylvia down and submit him
just like how he did against Dos Santos?
And just like how Sylvia used against Mercer?
..Unless your name is Roy, How is getting fatter a good thing again?
by Anton Tabuena on Jun 29, 2009 6:51 AM EDT up reply actions
Where did you hear that one from?
Although, it makes absolutely PERFECT sense for me.
Werdum winning here makes him a good candidate against Overeem/Rogers.
by MMASuPreMaCy on Jun 27, 2009 11:55 PM EDT up reply actions
lol
You must not see me constantly defending Tim in all these posts. Tim is a good friend of mine, we were talking about it today on the way to jet ski.
Thats Good To Hear
A win for either Werdum or Sylvia on this card will do a lot of good for their career.
Although, you would have to wonder what will happen to Timmy if he lost again.
Thanks for the info. Much appreciated.
by MMASuPreMaCy on Jun 28, 2009 12:02 AM EDT up reply actions
he knows...
It’s not what will happen if he loses, it’s what won’t happen…he won’t be getting signed by anybody.
Be a man, not a child-Phil Anselmo
Nope, I am assuming he is still getting paid an okay amount since he is fighting Werdum and not some scrub.
by MMASuPreMaCy on Jun 28, 2009 12:55 AM EDT up reply actions
What the hell happened to Tim that made him show up to the Mercer fight at 310lb?
Keep firing Assholes!
Out out, you demons of stupidity!
Jens Pulver stated (I think on Sherdog or else I heard it from someone on sherdog radio) that Tim just did NOT take this fight seriously at all. Pulver even said that when it was supposed to be a boxing match, Sylvia was thinking that the fight would be just like a sparring match.
by chrisbboy82 on Jun 29, 2009 12:44 PM EDT up reply actions
I remember seeing Erin Toughil fight Laila Ali on a boxing card in Germany or something once, what a frickin war.
Was wondering what Roger Gracie was up to, surprised the UFC has not tried to pick him up.
Not to mention an American Gladiator, like Gina.
=)
You can already see that fight selling.
by MMASuPreMaCy on Jun 27, 2009 7:50 PM EDT up reply actions
The only fight on that card that I would love to see is Rogers vs. Overeem aside from that there really isn’t anything that screams must see show for me yet.
Really?
Thats interesting because I think the card looks really good.
by MMASuPreMaCy on Jun 27, 2009 8:55 PM EDT up reply actions
Agreed
Diaz vs anyone
Shields vs anyone
Werdum (is he back?)
Cyborg tearing off Ginas shirt mid fight
I can’t wait :-)
You forgot Gil vs Punk, Gina vs Cyborg, Roger Gracie, etc.
=)
by MMASuPreMaCy on Jun 29, 2009 4:17 PM EDT up reply actions
Personally I think this is a great card, especially considering it’s a Strikeforce show. It’s easy for Affliction to put on shows with their willingness to write huge checks.
Exactly, it makes it that much more better if you think they didn’t just throw money around for these great cards.
by MMASuPreMaCy on Jun 27, 2009 11:36 PM EDT up reply actions
Diaz vs Riggs honestly looks like a step down for Diaz
While Riggs vs Diaz could be a fun fight, I just think that at this time Diaz should be fighting tougher competition, but this just shows how shallow the pool is for Strikeforce (they are making the best of what they have though). For Strikeforce, this looks like a stacked card and it is free.
Riggs is a good fighter dude
Not to mention that he’s at Diaz’ optimal weight class (170)
Supporting all Las Vegas MMA. Xtreme Couture FTMFW.
'09 is the year of the FW's.
by ElliotMatheny on Jun 28, 2009 7:24 PM EDT up reply actions
I am not saying that Riggs is a bad fighter
But seeing Diaz’s previous performances, it looks like Diaz should be fighting tougher competition.
by chrisbboy82 on Jun 29, 2009 12:45 PM EDT up reply actions
I am honestly...
Looking forward to this card more then i am looking forward to affilictions third event….
by bigislandboi808 on Jun 27, 2009 9:40 PM EDT reply actions
I’m looking forward to both.
=)
Lots of good MMA this summer from Strikeforce, Affliction, DREAM, Sengoku, WEC, and the UFC.
by MMASuPreMaCy on Jun 27, 2009 10:45 PM EDT up reply actions
WORLD JUST ENDED
you said something nice about the UFC. Better go check and see if hells is freezing over.
Not really. It’s happened before and it will happen again.
by MMASuPreMaCy on Jun 29, 2009 4:17 PM EDT up reply actions
More News!!!??
Tito said that he signed a 4 fight deal with Strikeforce and will fight Babalu on October. He also challenged Fedor in a 210 catch weight match.
Tonight at UCFC (ultimate cage fighting championship) in pittsburgh.
he made a guest appearance in the ring, and spoke to the crowd for a few minutes.
- said he will fight again in october
- has a 4 fight deal with strikeforce
- is gonna fight babalu, and actually referred to him as “baba who?”
- said he wants to fight fedor, and if he will meet him at a 210lb catch weight, he will, and i quote, “put a crushin on that russian.”
210 isn’t a catchweight, at least not in the way we are used to, it’s only 5 pounds over the LHW limit. Tito knows it’s a weight he can easily make and that would be a hard cut for Fedor, if he really wanted to challenge him he would call for a match at 220.
Due to Cheick Kongo's atrocious takedown defense....
Walla walla walla, I’m an idiot
Tito and Fedor walk around at close to the same weight, there is no need to make Fedor cut weight really.
If they walk at the same weight,
It’s a PERFECT reason to make him cut to LHW.. Sure he’s the champ at HW but I’d like to see him take on the people at LHW.
Yeah I know it won’t happen.. But if it did, wouldn’t wamma be happy to crown another “undisputed” champ? Hahaha.
by Anton Tabuena on Jun 28, 2009 7:43 AM EDT up reply actions
Of course there's a reason
Tito knows Fedor isn’t used to cutting so it gives him the advantage.
Due to Cheick Kongo's atrocious takedown defense....
Walla walla walla, I’m an idiot
Five Ounces of Pain is saying that Tito said he was close to a deal.
According to them, he has not signed any deal yet.
How many shows has Roger now been rumored as being a part of without actually doing so?
by Derek Suboticki on Jun 28, 2009 6:43 PM EDT reply actions
You mean other than only Sengoku, where he had to pull out for being injured?
He participated in Bodog, Sengoku, and now Strikeforce.
by MMASuPreMaCy on Jun 29, 2009 6:08 AM EDT up reply actions
Orgs ain’t the same thing as shows – I’ve seen ‘Roger Gracie v TBA’ only to never hear about TBA more times than I care to remember.
by Derek Suboticki on Jun 29, 2009 1:09 PM EDT up reply actions
You mean twice on Sengoku, where there was a fallout which caused Roger to go to Strikeforce, due to Sengoku saying that Roger wasn’t really injured? Thats one incident Subo.
=)
by MMASuPreMaCy on Jun 29, 2009 2:50 PM EDT up reply actions
From Jake Rossen:
Though Renzo Gracie has made some sporadic appearances in fight promotions over the years, no promotion has had the ambition — or the funds — to groom anyone in the family’s next-generation lineage. In the states, the name seemed to go into hibernation on billboards with Royce Gracie’s exit from the UFC in 1995.
Strikeforce’s corrective measure: signing multiple-time world champion Roger Gracie for its Aug. 15 Showtime event. Roger’s credentials extend far, far beyond his inherited name tag: There are many observers who believe he might be the most talented and dangerous man on the mat in the world right now.
It’s a specialty the heavyweight class sorely needs right now. With the cancer of age and fight wear spreading over Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira’s body, there are few big men remaining who have the technical ability so prevalent in the lower weights. Roger is dynamic: If he can learn to strike — or at least duck — he could be a whole new wrinkle in the division.
Nog had one bad fight and was in the hospital for 5 of the 10 days before the fight with Staph.
God, I hate Jake Rossen.
by Derek Suboticki on Jun 29, 2009 5:23 PM EDT up reply actions
Bustamanted just said Nog is not the same fighters anymore and looks terrible.
http://www.fightersonlymagazine.co.uk/news/viewarticle.php?id=2666&offset=2
by MMASuPreMaCy on Jun 29, 2009 5:39 PM EDT up reply actions
(edit) Not the same fighter and looks “terrible”.
by MMASuPreMaCy on Jun 29, 2009 5:40 PM EDT up reply actions
I’m not writing Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira after he gets finished for the first time in his career in his early thirtie’s.
by Derek Suboticki on Jun 29, 2009 6:35 PM EDT up reply actions
Age doesn’t mean antyhing, its how long you have been fighting for a living. If you start fighting at 15-16, you will be done by your early 30’s. See Wandy as well for an example.
Those Vale Tudo and PRIDE fights were brutal and really took a lot out of them.
by MMASuPreMaCy on Jun 29, 2009 6:40 PM EDT up reply actions
I don’t think Wandy is done, either.
by Derek Suboticki on Jun 29, 2009 6:45 PM EDT up reply actions
I know you don’t, but there is no question they aren’t the fighters they once were. Their glory years were in PRIDE.
by MMASuPreMaCy on Jun 29, 2009 7:07 PM EDT up reply actions
That guy is biased as shit
Nog took off from his camp and started with Black House after PRIDE, and this guy magically thinks that Nog leaving his camp and going to another is the difference. No shit.
He also says ‘people think Heath Herring won that fight.’ WHO????
by Derek Suboticki on Jun 29, 2009 6:37 PM EDT up reply actions
Obviously, but he was his ex coach and Bustamante is very well respected.
by MMASuPreMaCy on Jun 29, 2009 6:38 PM EDT up reply actions
How can they put lindland vs Shields? Matt just got KTFO and Shields is coming off a huge victory over Lawler. It doesn’t make any sense.
Sure it does. Shields has been wanting to fight Lindland since last year in Affliction, and if Shields wants to fight in the UFC at 170, a loss at 185 would cause less damage to a bigger stronger former #2 MW than it would if he lost to a WW outside of the UFC.
by MMASuPreMaCy on Jun 30, 2009 1:06 PM EDT up reply actions
Strikeforce is trying to hang Shields with a loss before he skips town.
by Derek Suboticki on Jun 30, 2009 2:29 PM EDT up reply actions
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