Though not much has been heard from Strikeforce beyond their big upcoming shows this month which include the women’s 135 lbs GP in their Challengers 10 event from Phoenix and big card from Strikeforce Houston featuring King Mo vs Feijao Cavalcante and Tim Kennedy vs Jacare Souza for the vacant Middleweight belt, they have plans to make a huge impact in the MMA landscape in the Fall.
– Planned Early October Strikeforce Event in San Jose, CA on October 9
Strikeforce is planning an October show (October 9th at the HP Pavilion in San Jose, CA) which is rumored to possibly hold the first round of their MW Tournament. Highly touted Strikeforce prospect, Luke Rockhold (7-1), is looking to make his long awaited return to the cage in his hometown and could be a dark-horse.
This show could also host a rumored bout between Dan Henderson and Babalu Sobral, which would most likely be a co-main event. Strikeforce is also in talks with CBS to broadcast an event around the fall, and is hopeful that they can rebound nicely from their April CBS event which was marred by uninspiring ratings and the brawl at the end of the telecast. Both October and November have been discussed as possible months to host the event. Scott Coker talks to the Las Vegas Sun about the possible LHW bouts:
“Dan Henderson and I had a conversation after LA and he wants to move up to 205,” Coker said. “That led us to think the next fight for Dan will be either Babalu or Gegard Mousasi.
“Calvacante just had an impressive win over Antwain Britt so he deserves the shot. I think the winner of Dan and Babalu or Dan and Gegard could face the winner of that title fight.”
As a main event, Strikeforce is in dialogue with Fedor’s management (M-1) and is also in talks with Strikeforce HW champ Alistair Overeem, but a matchup involving both fighters is not yet certain. What we do know is that Fabricio Werdum will not be able to compete until early 2011, so that leaves match-ups with the rising HW out of the picture for the rest of the year. Herschel Walker and fighters such as Mayhem Miller, Matt Lindland, Nick Diaz, and other MW tourney hopefuls are expected for the show.
– Strikeforce MMA DVD Estimated Release Set for October 12
Strikeforce fans who have been patiently wondering when Strikeforce would be releasing their events or non-televised bouts to their fans will soon get their opportunity. Amazon.com and BestBuy is now accepting pre-orders for and upcoming 2 disc DVD release titled “Strikeforce MMA”, at the moment starring Alistair Overeem and Jake Shields and will contain 6 hours of content produced by Showtime Entertainment. The listing price is $20.99 and will be releasing on October 12, which is just a few days after their October event is rumored to take place.
Here is what Strikeforce said about the release:
It will be particular fights from 2010 and some added never before seen footage that our hard-core fans will enjoy.
– EA Sports MMA Release Set for October 19
The release of the EA Sports MMA video game is something that both EA and Strikeforce have been anticipating for quite some time. The excitement and synergy between both groups was apparent during E3, and both have high hopes for their video game release, hoping that it could be as influential and monumental as UFC Undisputed 2009 was for the UFC and THQ. The game is set for release on October 19th on both the XBOX 360 and Playstation 3 platforms. Pre-orders of the game, which gives fans exclusive content like Herschel Walker, can now be placed at GameStop, Amazon.com, Walmart, and Best Buy.
EA Sports has slowly announced fighters in their video game roster for months, leading up to their release date which is now only a couple months away and around the time of a planned CBS event, which should create buzz for the title release. Here is their latest announcement regarding complete roster reveal dates leading up to the release date:
Complete roster reveal by weight class starts 8/9 with heavyweights at easports.com/mma…..new update each Monday in August.
MMAPayout Perspective:
October will be a huge month for Strikeforce’s future, pulling all their big guns and hoping to make a permanent mark in the MMA landscape. The release of DVD set, a video game, and working for their return to CBS prime-time programming is all crucial in terms of their relevance in the MMA landscape, increasing brand awareness, and creating stars in their roster.
Strikeforce signing a deal with Collective Licensing International (CLI), which is now the manager of the Strikeforce brand and provides the rights to license and produce merchandising like footwear, apparel, accessories, and equipment will also be a key component to their growth. It will be interesting to see how that partnership benefits Strikeforce in the upcoming year and beyond, along with their other partners.
I think that if Strikeforce doesn’t start showing consistency AND logic in their match ups and “rankings” they will NEVER be regarded as a sports organisation but simply an entertainment company hence they will not achieve what we all think they want to achieve. If you get my drift mate?
Thanks for the update Jose. 4th Quarter ’10 really does have a make or break feel for Strikeforce. My feeling is that MMA has plateaued (and by the sounds of it I’m the only person who feels that way), and if Strikeforce and their partners are not willing to accept status quo than things could get pretty interesting from a business standpoint for the fledgling organization.
Another note, noticeably absent from your post is any news or rumor on Fedor, Overreem and Werdum. Perhaps the biggest story in MMA so far this year and not much info with respect to the future of each fighting before end of the year. Coker better start working on his PR and figure a way to get his brand out there on a weekly basis, even if it means spreading rumors.
larsenator:
As an MMA fight promotion, I think we can all agree there are improvements that can be made in all aspects, most obvious is the match-making. The other aspect is building their brand, which will be a big key this Fall.
mmaguru:
I did not mention it, but Fedor is supposed to fight before the end of the year, and whether it will be Overeem, Silva, or Werdum is still up in the air. They are discussing all these match-ups and a potential CBS broadcast in the Fall as we speak.
there match making seems perfect for me,they just make the best fights and the hell with belts i like that appproach,belts are meaningless unless they are are for tournnies
I assume one of the things that will help CBS decide if they want to do another show is how much money EA Sports is willing to pony up to turn it into one big commercial for their game. I have to think it will happen.
jv:
Yeah, all signs point to it happening, very similar to the way Showtime/CBS, EA, and Strikeforce were able to pull off the E3/Strikeforce LA festivities. It would be a big missed opportunity if it doesn’t happen.
Jose, nice post. Mmaguru, you took the words out of my mouth. How can Strikeforce really say they are bringing out all their big guns, if Fedor isn’t on the fight card? What is Fedor’s future in Strikeforce? More questions then answers.
Bill Hardiek:
Thanks, really appreciate it. Regarding Fedor, the intention is to have Fedor fight on the CBS show, no doubt, but they are trying to overcome all of the variables right now. They hope to have an answer within the next 2 weeks.