Great Fights in the Cage and in the Boardroom – Strikeforce, WEC and the UFC Set to Battle It Out for Viewers
Dan Henderson's debut on Strikeforce may have competition for viewers
Strikeforce is set to present an event on CBS from the Bridgestone Arena in Nashville which has three showcase fights where titles are on the line; Jake Shields meets Dan Henderson for the middleweight title, Gegard Mousasi takes on Muhammed “King Mo” Lawal for the light heavyweight title and Gilbert Melendez squares off with Shinya Aoki for the lightweight title.
Dana White, never one to let a chance for some competition pass him by, has countered with Ultimate Fight Night 22 on Spike TV the same night.
Good for the fans, tough on the MMA writers.
While White is yet to confirm matches for the UFC show, UFC matchmakers were hoping to present a Kimbo Slice vs. James Toney fight as the centerpiece of the event but contract talks went nowhere. Vanderbilt University is the likely site for the event.
Strikeforce president Scott Coker threw his own counterpunch when he said CBS and Showtime are now talking about moving the April 17 show to April 24 and going head-to-head the World Extreme Cagefighting pay-per-view show.
“Moving to April 24th will be discussed,” said Coker. “That was the first date CBS wanted the show.”
Coker said this is only the first in a series of dates the rival promotions will clash because both companies are running more dates and there a a limited number of Saturday nights available.
“There will come a day when there will be a free show, with Fedor Emelianenko and or Dan Henderson, going against one of their pay-per-views,” Coker said. “That is going to be interesting.”
Going against a WEC pay-per-view which includes the explosive Jose Aldo Jr. vs. Urijah Faber featherweight title fight and it will be a huge test of the success of a WEC card billed at $44.95. A failure on this first attempt by WEC to establish itself on pay-per-view might be the result of taking on a free television show, and that would be a major disaster for the nascent hopes of junior ZUFFA partner.
Expect more jockeying for position as the spring and summer loom on the horizon.
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