2-12-2011 Strikeforce 8 man hw grand prix!

[Bornagaincollector]

I would have rather seen him a fight a better fighter,but i guess this will have to do.I just want to see him fight Overreem or Barnett.These others fights just dont make sense and doesnt bring them the money they need.

 

[Bornagaincollector]

Re: Fedor v/s Silva on Jan 29th!

According to facebook,it has been changed to 2-12-2011 in the 1st rd of Strikeforce hw grand prix!

Thoughts?

Here are the 8 guys and the fights!

Feb. 12, live on SHOWTIME from the IZOD Center in 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 (33-11, 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

 

[Ty Hope]

Those matches are SICK!!

 

[Super Mario]

I'm not understanding why Overeem is in the tournament.

Shouldn't the tournament be to see who fights Overeem for the title? What if Overeem loses? Wouldn't that lessen the credibility of the title?


Why are Rogers and Arlovski in the tournament? There aren't any better candidates in the world than that?



Yeah, it'll be fun, but there are a few gripes.

 

[Super Mario]

 

[Ty Hope]

I'm not understanding why Overeem is in the tournament.

Shouldn't the tournament be to see who fights Overeem for the title? What if Overeem loses? Wouldn't that lessen the credibility of the title?


Why are Rogers and Arlovski in the tournament? There aren't any better candidates in the world than that?



Yeah, it'll be fun, but there are a few gripes.

I actually like the fact that Overeem is in the tournament. Shows he is a fighting champ, willing to defend against 7 others.

Sure, Arlovski and Rodgers aren't the best out there, but is there anyone else? There are a few dream matches we may finally get to see with this tournament.

 

[seanho2309]

New Jersey isn't that far away. I might have to try to make this.

 

[bassprokvd]

i bought showtime just for strikeforce and this tourney.
this is going to be awesome.

 

[Bornagaincollector]

Today, Strikeforce CEO Scott Coker clarified many of the questions that needed to be addressed.


First up, Alistair Overeem's title will not be on the line in the tournament. And while there were some suggestions that every fight in the tournament would be contested as five-round affairs, instead, that will only happen in the grand prix finals, when a newly created Strikeforce heavyweight grand prix title will be on the line.

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"All quarterfinal and semifinal matches will be scheduled for three, five-minute rounds," Coker said. "The tournament final will be five, five-minute rounds for the Strikeforce world grand prix championship."


The grand prix champion would then get first crack at Overeem. Of course, if the Dutchman cleans house in the eight-man bracket, he's imply add another belt to his already impressive trophy case.


Strikeforce's heavyweight grand prix, featuring such luminaries as Strikeforce heavyweight champion Alistair Overeem, former UFC champions Andrei Arlovski and Josh Barnett, PRIDE great Fedor Emelianenko and others, kicks off on Feb. 12 at "Strikeforce and M-1 Global: Fedor vs. Silva," which takes place at the IZOD Center in East Rutherford, N.J.


With the heavyweight grand prix set up as an eight-man, multi-night, single-elimination tournament, draws could prove problematic along the way. In order to address that, Coker said a fourth judge will be on hand in each fight to determine which fighter will advance from the tie (similar to the "must win" format used by World Victory Road's Sengoku promotion).


"If any fight results in a draw, an independent fourth judge will determine who advances or who wins based on the fighter's overall performance in the fight," Coker said. "We will have a fourth judge on hand scoring the fight independently of the three that we normally have."


The final question mark in terms of tournament format involved potential injuries to the eight competitors. If a winner suffers a serious issue, who continues on in the bracket?


"If a fighter qualifies to advance in the tournament but for any reason can not advance, we're forming a five-person tournament-review committee who will select a fighter to advance in his place," Coker said. "This fighter will be chosen from a pool of fighters that will include the previous opponent and the winners of reserve matches."


Coker said the tournament-review committee will be headed by Strikeforce rules director Cory Schafer.


While the final regulations for the tournament represent a small shift from the ruleset originally expected to oversee the ambitious grand prix, Coker said the ultimate goal was simplicity and not any specific concerns related to overseeing athletic commissions.


"In this tournament, everybody has to climb the same mountain," Coker said. "To make it simple, just like they do in Japan, … the tournament champion will stand on his own. We'll have our heavyweight champion and a tournament champion."


Coker said the dates for the semifinals and finals of the tournament have yet to be decided, but he estimates the second round of the bracket is likely for late June or early July.


Further details are expected to be announced shortly. Showtime executive Ken Hershman said the premium cable channel is making a Showtime broadcast a priority for all three rounds of the grand prix, he believes a pay-per-view slot for on of the rounds may be "inevitable."

 

[Super Mario]

There are things I like about this tournament, and things I dislike very much as well.

I like that they're HAVING a Grand Prix Tournament! Love it! I wish the UFC would do it and crown a GP Champion. I love that the title ISN'T on the line in the tournament. I love that they've having a 4th independent judge in case of a draw.

I HATE the brackets. I hate that Overeem's in the tournament to begin with. If the winner gets a title shot, and Overeem were to win, we're left with an anti-climactic feeling because there is nothing for the victor to look forward to. And if Uber loses, the champion looks very weak, and the following title shot seems like a farce because ****, the guy just lost.


It's cool that they're having a tournament, but in my opinion, it's been mishandled overall from the start.

 

[Ty Hope]

I LOVE the brackets!

Overeem personally asked for Werdum and Werdum has a win over him. Great match up. AA vs Sergei has absolute strikers WAR written all over it. Fedor vs Bigfoot is a matchup that was rumored to happen anyway. Josh vs Rodgers is a classic striker vs wrestler matchup. Overall, I like the possibilities.

As for Overeem in the tourny, A: he wants to be in it, B: it shows he's a fighting champion.

Overall, there is not much I don't like about the tourny. Extremely pumped for it!

 

[Bornagaincollector]

My problem with it is this.Lets says werdum was to be overeem in there fight and go on to win the gp.He would then have to fight Overeem again in the future for the title.Thats justs seems wrong to me.

 

[Ty Hope]

I hear what your saying, but if you think of the whole tournament as its own entity and one of the prizes of winning it all being a title shot, then it makes sense.

Either way, there are some great matches in the brackets and I have a feeling we may see some big upsets along the way as well.

 

[Bornagaincollector]

What are your picks for this grand prix?

I'm going Fedor/Barnett in the Finals with Fedor winning!

 

[JimmyD]

Im going with Overeem over Barnett in the finals.....