Now that Strike Force has signed Fedor, what else do they need to do to become succesful and mainstream? Strike Force carved a nice little niche for themselves on the west coast and were doing quite well, but it's obvious they are looking to expand and become a viable competitor to the UFC. What do you guys think they need to do, and also not do, to make this happen? First thing I would do is to sign as many fighters with star potential as they can. They need to bring in and lock up Eddie Alvarez, King Mo, Mousasi (he's fighting for them in 2 weeks), KJ Noons, Joe Warren, Marius Zaromskis...hell, even bring in Jesse Taylor. Strike Force needs stars, and they need depth. They can't rely on just Fedor and Carano, and to a lesser extent Nick Diaz to keep them afloat. Second, they need to strip Overeem and Cung Le of their titles immediately and get them on fighters who actually fight. Le hasn't fought since winning the Middleweight Title in March of last year, and Overeeem hasn't defended his belt since winning it in November of 2007. They need to be stripped of their titles immediately. Third, they can't rush into anything. They can't dive head first into a CBS deal if a poor rating means they lose everything. They can't become a fulltime PPV organization if they don't have the depth to save them in 'Barnett' scenario. They've taken the next step, that doesn't mean they have to rush to take the next 5. Fourth, I would scour the succesful college wrestling programs and start recruiting anyone with potential who has an interest in being an MMA fighter. There isn't much for all but the elite amatuer wrestlers to do after college, and MMA is a natural progression for them that provides the opportunity to make some decent money. Fighters like Lesnar, Velasquez, Koshcheck and Warren are showing that an excellent wrestling background is a great base to build a succesful MMA career on. And finally, don't step on the UFC's toes. Strike Force and UFC have always maintained a decent relationship, and while I'm sure that's about to change, there's no need to get into a pissing contest with the UFC a la Affliction and EliteXC, as there's just no way in hell that they can win it. The odds are against Strike Force as it is, they don't need the UFC putting a stacked free card on Spike the same night they're making they're CBS debut. Try to keep things as respectful as they can with the UFC, and try to stay below their radar as much as they can. TFK
Lots of good ideas. I think the two main factors are to not rely solely on Fedor or a TV deal. They need to build a solid foundation and not try to hinge everything on a card by card basis.
I am so sick about hearing about how great Le is I'm about to puke. The guy beat Frank,...but Nick Diaz beat him a helluva lot easier than Le did. Overeem has good skills,..but is inconsistent. Both need to fight immediately against the #1 contender or be stripped.
They need to boast and brag about it. The BEST MMA fighter in the world turned down the UFC to come to strikeforce.
They have Fedor and they should use him to their advantage. But they better not put all of their eggs in one basket.
I think people miss the point. Having Fedor is fantastic, but he's got to have somebody to fight. Is anyone really jacked about seeing him fight Werdum, Rogers or Overeem. I'm not. The dude is the best heavyweight in the world. Unfortunately the majority of the other HW's I'd rank in the top 10 are in the UFC.
great post TFK, I think Bobby Lashley is an easy name to p/u. I don't think he is worth a shit, but they could sign him quick. A rematch with AA is an option. I know everyone is saying nooooo, but many guys on here were saying AA was getting the best of Fedor for that whole minute. Its a name, that's all I am saying. :mj: I love the idea of picking up as many young wrestling talents, as well as go overseas. There are many fighters to land in Europe, the UFC is so worried about the UK, there is a shitload of talent in Eastern Europe as well as Holland. I personally would love to see cross promotions with Dream as well. Vitor Belfort, Mousasi, Sacare, Kid Yamamoto, Aoki, Alvarez, the list is huge and the talent is DEEP.
We speak, Strikeforce delivers!artie: Souza is a stud.opcorn: Souza Joins STRIKEFORCE Ranks August 5, 2009 Dream Middleweight Grand Prix runner-up and submission wizard Ronaldo “Jacare†Souza (10-2) has signed a multi-fight agreement with world championship mixed martial arts (MMA) promotion STRIKEFORCE. Souza is expected to fulfill the first fight on his contract in the fall. “I am very excited that I will have the opportunity to fight in STRIKEFORCE amongst many of the world’s best middleweight fighters,†said the 29-year-old Souza, a native of Brazil, established his position as a top tier middleweight last year after placing second in the 2008 Dream Middleweight Grand Prix single elimination tournament in Japan. “STRIKEFORCE has an extremely deep roster of top middleweight fighters. I am looking forward to the challenge and to taking my career to the next level.†During the opening round of the Dream tournament held in the city of Saitama on April 29, 2008, Souza submitted Ian Murphy with a rear naked choke in the first round (3:37). Souza’s next opponent, Jason “Mayhem†Miller, proved to be a tougher battle, escaping several submission attempts by the Brazilian in Yokohama on June 15, 2008. Souza prevailed, however, earning a unanimous decision over the American star. In semifinal action on September 23, 2008, Souza made quick work of Zelg Galesic, submitting Galesic with an armbar in the first round (1:27) of action in Saitama. That same night, however, Souza was finally stopped by Gegard Mousasi, the number two ranked middleweight in the world, in the first round (2:15) of the tournament’s championship bout in Saitama. Souza, who took up Brazilian Jiu Jitsu at the age of 17, fought MMA legend Randy “The Natural†Couture to a draw in a grappling contest in 2006 and, shortly thereafter, began training at Xtreme Couture. He has since returned to training in his homeland. Souza’s nickname, “Jacare,†is Portuguese for the species of alligator that inhabit Manaus, the town in Brazil where he was born. The news of Souza signing with STRIKEFORCE comes two days after the San Jose, California based promotion inked an agreement with M-1 Global to co-promote Fedor Emelianenko, the world’s top ranked heavyweight and arguably the best pound for pound fighter in the world.
Strikeforce needs to stick to what they have been doing! I saw an interview with Coker claiming they were going PPV in 6 months. Not a good idea to jump straight into PPV. They don't have the roster to pull off anything but an average PPV event unless they put every one of their top draws on the card. Then what? Then they are affliction! I love StrikeForce, I hope they don't go out like Affliction. I have a bad feeling about the direction this is going.
Everybody trippin,saying Strikeforce going to be like Affliction because they signed Fedor :: They've been around awhile,so they know what there doing and I also like the fact that there spreading there wings a little.I don't think there ready for PPV yet but they are slowly getting talent now.
I've always liked Strikeforce and always thought hey did a great job running their business. It was just the comment by Coker about going PPV that had me a little worried. I just don't want them to rely on Fedor only, I want them to stay in business, it's the only live MMA shows I have here, I would never wish anything bad on Strikeforce. Like you just said, I don't think they are ready for PPV yet. I just want them to take it slow and ease into the PPV market. Don't just jump in because you signed Fedor.
