We should begin with the debacle that is M-1 Global and the partnership with Strikeforce. M-1 is unhappy with the current deal, going so far as to say that Strikeforce has not honored their contract with them. According to a report from Head Kick Legend citing sources inside M-1, Fighters.com top-ranked heavyweight āThe Last Emperorā Fedor Emelianenko (31-1) will only fight inside a Strikeforce cage again if they sign a new contract. M-1 is looking for a partner and to have Strikeforce cards featuring Fedor to be fully co-promoted cards.
This seems like more of some strong arm tactics from the Russians. They seem to be trying to force the hand of Scott Coker and Strikeforce by saying they are shopping Fedor around. The loss of Fedor to the organization would be a huge blow. He was one of the top head-liners for the CBS/Showtime cards. Without him they are forced to rely on third-ranked middleweight āHendoā Dan Henderson (27-7) to pull in the numbers. It is true that Dan is more popular now than he has ever been here in the states but can he pull off getting the numbers needed for a CBS card? I doubt it.
This leaves Strikeforce with a major problem. āConvictionā Gina Carano (7-1)has not been seen since her devastating loss in the title fight. She is now filming a movie and there has been no word when we will see her back inside the cage.
Without fighters that can pull in the big numbers Strikeforce might just split apart at the seams. After all, now only do you need good gate numbers but when you have a deal with CBS/Showtime you have to give them high enough numbers to bring you back again. So who do they use? Herschel Walker (1-0) is available and it is obvious he is quite the draw but do you want to go all in with a man as old as he is and hope he does well again?
All of this plus the fact that they canāt seem to get their heavyweight champion āDemolition Manā Alistair Overeem (30-11) to actually come back and defend his title is a kick right square in the pants for an organization that has shown flashes of promise.
Strikeforce has a lot on itās plate and with a big announcement coming sometime today we should be better suited to see just where this organization stands. Could it be that M-1 is like kryptonite to any organization they work with? Only time will tell