Het Grote Strikeforce WGP HW Tournament 2011 Topic *spoilers*

**Fyodor** · 05-01-2011, 00:13

Dit plaatje komt van een ander forum, weet dus niet of het officieel is...
Niet bepaald de makkelijkste weg, maar in mijn ogen is hij sowieso de favoriet om het te winnen.

Edit: crap, iemand was me al voor...

**The Company** · 05-01-2011, 00:14

Lijkt me niet, Werdum misschien wel beste BJJ in HW divisie. Fedor hoef ik meer te zeggen? en Barnett is een goede worstelaar met blackbelt BJJ.
Die versla je niet zomaar.

Dit was comment op Petrosyan.

**cholitzu** · 05-01-2011, 00:32

STRIKEFORCE WORLD GRAND PRIX
–Heavyweight Tournament –

Quarterfinals Begin Saturday, Feb. 12, 2011;
Live on SHOWTIME® From IZOD Center, E. Rutherford, N.J.

STRIKEFORCE, M-1 GLOBAL in Association with Showtime Networks Inc. Sign New Multi-Fight Agreement To Co-Promote Events Headlined By Fedor

NEW YORK (Jan. 4, 2011) – World championship Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) promotions STRIKEFORCE and M-1 GLOBAL, in association with premium television network SHOWTIME have signed a new, multi-year agreement to co-promote events headlined by the MMA legend Fedor “The Last Emperor” Emelianenko (31-2, 1 NC).
In addition, STRIKEFORCE has assembled eight of the world’s top ranked heavyweights to compete in the STRIKEFORCE World Grand Prix – Heavyweight Tournament, a three-stage, single-elimination tournament that will take place over several events in 2011. The first two quarterfinal fights begin on Saturday, Feb. 12, live on SHOWTIME from the IZOD Centerin E. Rutherford, N.J. In the main event, the 34-year-old Emelianenko will face the towering Antonio “Big Foot” Silva (15-2) in a STRIKEFORCE and M-1 GLOBAL co-promoted event. Co-featured on Feb. 12, former world champion Andrei Arlovski (15-8) will face Sergei Kharitonov (16-4), the last man to defeat current STRIKEFORCE Heavyweight World Champion Alistair “The Demolition Man” Overeem.
The other two quarterfinal matchups are as follows: Overeem (34-11, 1 NC) will face the only man to tap out Fedor, the Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu specialist Fabricio Werdum (14-4-1), while the heavy-handed Brett “The Grim” Rogers (11-2) will meet a hungry Josh Barnett (29-5). The location and date for these quarterfinal tournament fights are to be announced.
“We are thrilled to have come to a long-term agreement with Fedor and M-1 GLOBAL,” said STRIKEFORCE CEO Scott Coker. “To have the greatest MMA fighter of all-time put his legacy on the line in a single-elimination tournament will truly captivate MMA fans worldwide. STRIKEFORCE is home to the best heavyweight division in the world; the athlete who runs the gauntlet in a tournament such as this would have to be considered the best heavyweight fighter in the world.”
“I’m very pleased to be working with SHOWTIME and STRIKEFORCE and Mr. Coker and Mr. Hershman personally. Thanks to their interest and efforts, we’ve created what will go down in history as MMA’s greatest heavyweight tournament of all time,” said Vadim Finkelchtein, co-founder of M-1 Global. “M-1, STRIKEFORCE and SHOWTIME have built a partnership committed to the future growth of MMA—a sport where organizations represent a working collaborative that enable the best fighters in the world to fight each other. This agreement benefits everyone, especially the fans who’ll see Fedor in action more often.
“With SHOWTIME’s significance in the U.S. and M-1’s development of the European and Asian MMA markets, the cooperation will also deliver a global roster of talented fighters to viewers,” Finkelchtein continued. “During the coming year, we’ll be showcasing spectacular Grand Prix events using the same M-1 Selection tournament format, a series of events generating enthusiastic spectator interest keeping fans glued to their screens.”
“I can’t think of a better way to start 2011 than with this major announcement,” said Ken Hershman, Executive Vice President and General Manager of SHOWTIME Sports®. “Fedor is universally known to sports fans throughout the world and it is an honor to continue our work with M-1 GLOBAL and STRIKEFORCE in presenting this legendary fighter to SHOWTIME subscribers.
“SHOWTIME has enjoyed great success with its two most recent boxing tournaments—the Super Six World Boxing Classic and The Bantamweight Tournament,” Hershman continued. “And now, with the breadth of talent in the STRIKEFORCE heavyweight division, we have the privilege of staging one of the biggest tournaments in the history of this growing sport. With the STRIKEFORCE World Grand Prix’s single-elimination format and the biggest names in the sport today, this tournament is something that no sports fan will want to miss.”
“I have been training very hard since my last fight and can’t wait to get back in the cage,” said the 6-foot, 235-pound Emelianenko, who hails from Stary Oskol, Russia and is promoted by M-1 GLOBAL. “STRIKEFORCE has assembled a roster filled with the best heavyweights in the world and, together with M-1 GLOBAL, we have the opportunity to fight the best in a great tournament format.”
Fedor’s unprecedented, record-setting run of 28 professional MMA bouts without a defeat has prompted many MMA enthusiasts to label Fedor as the greatest of all time. Since his career began 10 years ago, Fedor has faced and defeated many rival superstars and champions of this era including Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira, Mirko “Cro Cop” Filipovic, Andrei Arlovski and Mark “The Hammer” Coleman.
In what ranks among the most watched MMA fights in the United States, Fedor made his live primetime network television debut on Nov. 7, 2009 on CBS, when he defeated unbeaten rising star Brett Rogersin a STRIKEFORCE and M-1 GLOBAL co-promoted event. Despite a difficult first round in which he sustained a deep cut above his eye, Fedor turned the tide early in the second round with one vicious right-hand punch and finished Rogers shortly after.
Then, on June 26, 2010, Fedor suffered a stunning upset at the hands of Werdum, a Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu black belt, at HP Pavilion in San Jose, Calif., in one of the most watched MMA bouts on SHOWTIME. Werdum, who has defeated a host of top rivals including Overeem, Silva and Brandon “The Truth” Vera, trapped Fedor’s arm in a triangle armbar that forced Fedor to tap out at the 1:09 mark of the opening round.
Fedor has only one other official loss on his record, the result of a doctor stoppage due to a cut he sustained seconds into a matchup with Japan’s Tsuyoshi Kosaka on Dec. 22, 2000. Fedor avenged the TKO loss with his own first-round TKO of Kosaka at a PRIDE Fighting Championships event in Japan on April 3, 2005.

Strikeforce

**rollermanskunk** · 05-01-2011, 00:35

Dus Ali moet eerst nrs 2 en 3 verslaan voordat die in de finale zit? Lijkt me stug dat die hiermee akkoord gaat.

**Fyodor** · 05-01-2011, 01:05

Originally Posted by rollermanskunk

Dus Ali moet eerst nrs 2 en 3 verslaan voordat die in de finale zit? Lijkt me stug dat die hiermee akkoord gaat.

Tuurlijk niet, Alistair wil al tijden graag tegen Fedor en Werdum idem dito. Alistair zoals hij nu in vorm is, is voor niemand bang zoals hij zelf zegt... en dat geloof ik graag.

**Petrosyan188** · 05-01-2011, 02:25

Originally Posted by dirk5

Belfort zou tegen Okami vechten voor #1 contender. Belfort wil niet in Duitsland vechten, Okami moet tegen Marquadt en Belfort mag voor de titel, ja dit is heel duidelijk en transparant voor de fans?

bullshit belfort was vooraf de match silva vs sonnen de next in line alleen na die geweldige match wou iedereen een rematch etc. en heeft dana hem tegenover okami maar gezet of anders moesten we allemaal nog langer wachten voordat we belfort zagen, toen bleek de hele affaire sonnen gedoe en was gewoon belfort z'n beurt, niks te maken dat belfort niet wou vechten in duitsland ofzo... dus waar je dat vandaan haalt is mij een raadsel. het was trouwens toch gewoon in eerste instantie, winnaar silva vs sonnen tegen belfort en ondertussen w.silva vs okami en winnaar krijgt dan weer een titleshot. toen kwam die geweldige match en dachten ze aan een rematch en w.silva geblesseerd dus kunnen ze ondertussen belfort vs okami doen en dat was de gedachte achter alles maar toen kwam dus de ondertussen befaamde sonnen affaire die trouwens geen einde lijkt te hebben

**dirk5** · 05-01-2011, 09:31

Originally Posted by Petrosyan188

bullshit belfort was vooraf de match silva vs sonnen de next in line alleen na die geweldige match wou iedereen een rematch etc. en heeft dana hem tegenover okami maar gezet of anders moesten we allemaal nog langer wachten voordat we belfort zagen, toen bleek de hele affaire sonnen gedoe en was gewoon belfort z'n beurt, niks te maken dat belfort niet wou vechten in duitsland ofzo... dus waar je dat vandaan haalt is mij een raadsel. het was trouwens toch gewoon in eerste instantie, winnaar silva vs sonnen tegen belfort en ondertussen w.silva vs okami en winnaar krijgt dan weer een titleshot. toen kwam die geweldige match en dachten ze aan een rematch en w.silva geblesseerd dus kunnen ze ondertussen belfort vs okami doen en dat was de gedachte achter alles maar toen kwam dus de ondertussen befaamde sonnen affaire die trouwens geen einde lijkt te hebben

Och gut menneke toch.... hoe vaak moet ik je de les nog lezen?

Source: Sherdog.com

UFC Middleweight, Vitor Belfort has made it known he does not want to be apart of the upcoming UFC 122 card set to take place in Germany on November 13, instead he prefers to have his next fight be in the United States.

Speaking via Sherdog.com, Belfort said:

“I talked to Lorenzo (Fertitta) this week and will return in November. I just asked him to not be (on the November card in Germany). I’m tired of traveling. I would like to return to fighting here in America. According to my conversation with Lorenzo, my opponent will not be Sonnen, but another guy that will be decided soon.”

“With the help of Shawn Tompkins, Ray Sefo and all the partners here, I hope to reach my best shape soon. I am eager to return to my training routine as well as very happy here.”

With this news that Sonnen will not be fighting Belfort, its all but guaranteed that Sonnen could be getting his rematch with Anderson Silva for the UFC Middleweight championship.

**123trisweat** · 05-01-2011, 09:51

zou graag Gerard Mousasi in de mix zien.

**smike** · 05-01-2011, 10:05

Toen ikdit nieuws las, spoot ik bijna me broek vol!
Deed me denken aan die ouwe pride tijd.

Dit zijn toch wel 8 grootheden en in mijn ogen is strikeforce de organisatie, ufc is commerciele crap mdet saaie gevechten. Strikeforce met dream gewoon de nieuwe PRIDE. WAR STRIKEFORCE

**Splinta** · 05-01-2011, 10:20

Kan iemand confirmen dat AO dit al geaccepteert heeft?? Of is dit nog in de making?
Ben idd ook benieuwd als AO hiermee akkoord gaat! Nu heeft ie zn kans om beide in 1 jaar te pakken.
Als ie dit voorbij laat gaan..... oehhhh....

**TOON** · 05-01-2011, 10:48

beetje terughoudendheid uit zelfbescherming

maar wtf zeg, wat zou dit te gek zijn!!

**Fyodor** · 05-01-2011, 11:05

Originally Posted by Splinta

Kan iemand confirmen dat AO dit al geaccepteert heeft?? Of is dit nog in de making?
Ben idd ook benieuwd als AO hiermee akkoord gaat! Nu heeft ie zn kans om beide in 1 jaar te pakken.
Als ie dit voorbij laat gaan..... oehhhh....

Weet niet of het definitief is, maar Alistair heeft Coker dus gevraagd om eerst tegen Werdum te mogen...!

Alistair Overeem Asks To Fight Fabricio Werdum In Heavyweight Tournament

Shortly after his 19 second win over Todd Duffee at the Dynamite!! 2010 event in Japan, Alistair Overeem meets with Strikeforce CEO Scott Coker who wants to speak to him about some interesting news.
Although not shown in the video but written up as part of the description, Overeem is asked about fighting in the Strikeforce World Grand Prix tournament and “expresses” an interest in facing Fabricio Werdum next.
Overeem was on hand when Werdum submitted Fedor Emelianenko last summer and wanted to face the Brazilian as soon as possible. Both men have met before back in 2006 at a Pride event that saw Werdum submit Overeem in the second round.
So the Dutch heavyweights desire to face Werdum next likely stems from him wanting to avenge the loss as well as facing the next logical threat to his title. Source

Alleen jammer dat Barnett nog niet officieel een license heeft: Barnettâ€™s Relicensing Still a Question Mark

Zou hem toch graag in het tournament willen zien, benieuwd of hij nog potten kan breken.

**Slome** · 05-01-2011, 12:27

Strikeforce Heavyweight Champion Alistair Overeem gets cozy with company CEO Scott Coker backstage after "The Demolition Man's" 19 second knockout victory over Todd Duffee at Dynamite!! 2010

**Slome** · 05-01-2011, 12:30

Ray Sefo vs. Valentijn Overeem targeted for supporting cast of Strikeforce tourney

A matchup between heavyweights Ray Sefo (2-0 MMA, 1-0 SF) and Valentijn Overeem (28-25 MMA, 0-0 SF) is targeted for the supporting cast of Strikeforce's recently announced eight-man heavyweight tournament.

Sources close to negotiations today told that contracts have not been signed, but verbal agreements are in place. An announcement on the fight is expected soon.

**Guile** · 05-01-2011, 12:38

Denk dat SF Overeem - Fedor wel voor de finale bewaart. En het begint in februari al, Super!

**Slome** · 05-01-2011, 12:41

**Kemal** · 05-01-2011, 14:29

Scott Coker Discusses Heavyweight Tourney, Re-Signing Emelianenko

Strikeforce CEO Scott Coker faced his share of criticism in 2010 for the perceived difficulty in putting his heavyweight fighters in the cage together. That criticism came to a screeching halt on Tuesday, when MMA Fighting broke the news that an eight-man tournament had been finalized that would feature some of the promotion's biggest names.

The tournament, which begins on Feb. 12, is expected to run over several months and is expected to culminate with the winner as the Strikeforce heavyweight champion (more on that later).

Just hours after his big announcement, Coker spoke with MMA Fighting about the tournament, bringing Fedor Emelianenko back into the fold, the possibility of Strikeforce on pay-per-view and more.

Mike Chiappetta: A tournament like this is ambitious and quite challenging. Why did you decide to do it?
Scott Coker: When we were in the process of collecting all these heavyweights, and signing these top 10 guys, the only fighter we really had to extend was Fedor, which as you know took a long time. I went to Showtime with this plan about 3 months ago. I saw what they did with the Super Six tournament in boxing. I thought it was a great format and definitely made some more stars in the boxing world. They definitely created more hype and more stars in that sport. I thought it'd be a good way for USA fans to get to know some of these top heavyweights that we have fighting, like [Sergei] Kharitonov, like having Josh [Barnett] back in America. It's a great way to unveil it and roll it out.
And I came from a background in K-1 where we did tournaments all the time. Take it back even further than that; If you grew up in a martial arts school, whether it was judo, jiu-jitsu, karate, taekwondo, the first time you ever compete is in a tournament. We thought it made sense on a lot of levels. Now we get to see it roll out, and we're going to see some amazing fights over the next months.

Is this a stand-alone tournament, where the winner is called the Grand Prix champion, or is the winner the Strikeforce heavyweight champion?
Right now, Alistair Overeem is the Strikeforce heavyweight champion. That's something we can answer tomorrow, because what we're trying to do is clear it with the commissions to allow the fighters to fight more than three rounds outside of the title. The rules of MMA now say a five-round fight has to be a championship fight, and so we're working on that. Hopefully we'll have an answer soon on that.

So you'd like all the tournament fights to be five-round fights?
We'd like to, yes.

You've been criticized a bit for infrequent heavyweight fights. Was it tough to bite your tongue knowing the news you were about to unveil?
To me the fans are always going to think what they want. I've always known we have the best heavyweight division in mixed martial arts. I had this in my back pocket. I don't really gauge what's going out in the viral world, the virtual world. I just know that this is a special moment in time. All these heavyweight fighters are here and in their youth, young enough to compete at high levels. We're going to let them all fight each other, and this is the best way to do it.

Why include your champion in the tournament, instead of having a fight with him as the final. Would it be him sitting too long, or is there another reason?
We originally thought he could fight the tournament winner, or fight a superfight. But when I talked to [Overeem's management] Golden Glory, they said he wanted to fight in the tournament. And then when I talked to Alistair and Bas Boon, his manager, over the weekend when I was in Japan, Alistair came to me and said, 'I want to fight Fabricio Werdum. You have to give me that fight.' And I said, 'Let's do it.' It's something he wanted to do. He wanted to avenge that loss from three or four years ago, so it's good for everybody.

Matching him and Werdum together is a great first-round fight, but was there any thought to the belief it might be a fight better saved for later in the tourney?
With a tournament, you never know who's going to win, and we have to put it together now. Let all these bad boys fight each other, and let the better man win.

Will Overeem's belt be on the line in the early rounds? If Werdum beats Overeem, will he be considered the champion? Or will the belt be vacated for this tournament? How will that work?
It goes back to the commission and what they're going to allow us to do. That's something I can't answer right now but hope to have an answer very soon.

You spoke of Werdum-Overeem, but how did you decide the other pairings?
The pairings were done on some timing. Fabricio is coming off surgery of his arm, so he was not available until March anyway. And those two wanted to fight each other. Fedor wanted to fight Jan. 29, or even Jan. 7. He's ready to go. He's itching to get back in there. We felt Bigfoot [Antonio Silva] was the perfect opponent for the first round. You never know what'll happen in MMA when you have two buys guys. As far as Kharitonov, he's coming off a win in Japan. And [Andrei] Arlovski is ready to go. These guys are ready, so let's put them in a cage and let them go.

The Showtime press release included a bracket, which would have the Fedor-Silva winner meeting the Overeem-Werdum winner in the semis. Is that correct, or will the semifinal pairings be decided after the first four matches are over?
That is correct. When we looked at it, we want to put the best fights on and have the most exciting matchup on every event. If Fedor wins, he fights the winner of Werdum vs. Alistair, so we know we're going to get one of those two fights. The sooner we could make that fight the better. Think of it the other way, if Josh Barnett wins two fights, we might get to see Fedor-Barnett. In this tournament, we could see Fedor fighting any one of those 3. There are lots of great possibilities.

Any way you cut it, you're going to see some exciting fights. Let's put them in the toughest situation and let them prevail. In the old days, it was all in one night. These are single fights over a period of eight months.

So you hope to complete the tournament in eight months?
Yes. We'll be done before the end of the year.

Fedor & M-1 have renegotiated after each of your first two fights with him. Does this new deal with him cover the entire scope of the tournament?
Yes, it covers the tournament and even further. No more renegotiation. The beauty of the deal, and I can't get into the details of the contract, but it's multi-fight and multi-year. Fedor will be doing co-promotion with Strikeforce, M-1 and Showtime for many years to come.

So you can't say how many fights this adds to his deal?
I can't talk about the details of the contract.

Do you think you have him locked up for the rest of his career, or is that too far-reaching?
I think it's very possible.

Did that added wrinkle of putting him in this tournament and having his commitment add a big degree of difficulty into the negotiations?
You know what's admirable about these guys, including Fedor? They wanted to be in the tournament. They came to us and said we want to be in it. I said, 'OK, fantastic.' And we made it happen.

Believe me, he was trying to talk us into letting him fight on the Jan. 29 card. I said, 'Fedor, I think you'll be OK two weeks later.'"

Does that mean you've seen him recently?
No, but we've been talking to the M-1 folks, and we're all one, big, happy family now.

Is there any concern about Josh Barnett getting a license?
Not at all. We've talked to four athletic commissions that will license him with a clean test. We feel confident that won't be an issue. Keep in mind Josh Barnett went to Sacramento six weeks ago, took a test and was clean. He hasn't fought for a year-and-a-half in America. He still has issues in California, so his fight won't be in California, but Josh has moved on, and we're moving on, too. He's been out of the fight business in America for 18 months. I think he's served his time.

What happens if a fighter advances but gets injured and would have to be out a few months? Are there alternates?
The No. 1 alternate will come from a fight you see on Feb. 12 at the Izod Center, Shane Del Rosario fighting Lavar Johnson. Those two will fight, and the winner will be the No. 1 reserve spot. We will have probably two more. I think Daniel Cormier will probably be one of them, and then we'll probably have another pair fight off. But Del Rosario or Johnson will be the No. 1 reserve and go in only if a fighter gets injured to the point he's going to be out for an extended period of time.

Was there any thought to including one or two of those younger fighters like Cormier or Lavar Johnson in the tournament?
I think the guys who are in the tournament deserve to be there. It's something at this point in time, we were successful in putting it together, and those other guys will have their time. It's just not this time.

What are the chances we'll see Rogers-Barnett & Werdum-Overeem at your March show in Columbus, Ohio?
In Columbus, we're going to do a regular show, not part of the heavyweight tournament. In April, we'll come back with the other two quarterfinals. We're looking for venues right now so we don't have the location.

You've talked before about doing pay-per-view. Is there any possibility the semifinals and/or finals will mark Strikeforce's entry into pay-per-view?
The quarterfinal fights will air on Showtime, and then we will re-evaluate from there. After the quarterfinals are over, then we'll determine whether this is going to be on Showtime or built into a pay-per-view event. There is a possibility we can jump into the pay-per-view business at that time.