Why You Should Watch The Strikeforce Grand Prix

The hangover from UFC Rio is heavy. People are still sort of walking around shielding their eyes from the MMA sun while drinking copious amounts of water and coffee. However if you don’t shake it off now you are going to miss the coolest, most exclusive underground party of the season. The Striekfroce Grand Prix is the Velvet Underground of MMA. It is going to get you mad respect from the kids in the know, will isolate you and keep you weird to the cool kids but will be 100% worth it at the end of the day. This weekend there is a killer cd release party in Ohio and if you miss it you miss out.

Roger Gracie vs King Mo Lawal

MMA is not without wrestlers and it is not without strikers. However there are very few fighters that stake their reputation on just their jujitsu anymore. Roger Gracie (pictured) is one of the few and man does he have some good jujitsu. There is no doubt that he is facing stiffest test to date when he takes on the uber athletic King Mo Lawal. Both men are trying to make waves at 205 pounds and make their case for a UFC contract or a Strikeforce title shot (King Mo recently lost the title). This fight comes down to where King Mo thinks he can win. Conventional wisdom would tell us that he wants no part of the ground game and should have an advantage on the feet but his best work is done from top position. There is a real possibility that this is a chess game of distance and position until one of them is able to make their move but for the technically minded this should be a plate full. For those who are not this fight should provide flashes of action and suspense if not a career changing performance from one of them. Regardless the winner will be well on his way to being a breakout star this year.

Ronaldo Souza (Middleweight Champion) vs Luke Rockhold

Relatively little name recognition and being overshadowed by the heavyweights have put a damper on this fight but there are three things you need to know.

1) Luke Rockhold has never been in a fight longer than 4 minutes and 7 seconds.

2) Ronaldo Souza is a submission ace, fighting some of the top talent outside the UFC.

3) Rockhold is 7-1 and Souza is 14-2.

Expect these two to bring it and expect to remember one, if not both of them when the night is over.

Daniel Cormier vs Antonio Silva

Daniel Cormier is an x-factor in t his tournament if there ever was one. He steps in to replace the former Strikeforce Heavyweight Champion and competes against one of the tournament favorites in Antonio Silva (pictured). Cormier has a whole lot going for him. He trains with Cain Velasquez, he has an every improving stand-up game, he is unbeaten (read: there isn’t a lot of success tape out there on him), and oh yeah… he is an Olympic wrestler. One might expect someone of his wrestling pedigree to dominate on the ground but Cormier has mostly kept his grappling in reserve, using it to avoid takedowns. It is likely that he would return to his wrestling game at the first sign of real trouble and in that regard he brings a lot of unknowns to a fight like this. Silva’s size, power, boxing, and grappling skills have made him a hot pick to win the tournament and they are enough to give just about anyone trouble. However, Cormier might be set to play spoiler. If anything, this tournament might have gotten more interesting with the substitution.

Josh Barnett vs Sergei Kharitonov

Barnett and Kharitonov (pictured) might have had the easiest bouts in the first round but there is no reason to believe the luck will continue for either man. Kharitonov is the operational definition of dark horse. Josh Barnett is the operational definition of favorite, alegit dangerous HW - one of the most well rounded in the business. Don’t believe the hype that he is going to run over Kharitonov, who’s heavy hands will put any man in trouble, period. This is Barnett’s fight to lose though and the onus is on him to put the fight where he wants it. Keep an eye on the juice testers before and after the fight for this. Barnett doesn’t have the cleanest record and remains one of the biggest threats to the tournament. I for one hope he fights clean, win or lose because I am starting to gain faith in this tournament is one of the most critical affairs in the sport today.

No matter how you cut it there is no bad way for the finals to shake out (unless of course there is a major injury or a substance abuse issue). If everyone fights clean and we get clean winners… we all win. It may be tempting to get caught up in all the UFC moves and announcements, forgetting this event but don’t let that happen to you. Strikeforce might not be around forever so enjoy it while its here.