Strikeforce Forecast - Overeem v. Fedor

With Alistair Overeem's dismantling of Brett Rogers at Strikeforce - St. Louis this past weekend, the stars are aligning for an Overeem versus Fedor megafight. If Fedor can get past Fabricio Werdum the title fight should set up perfectly.

Strikeforce HW Champ Alistair Overeem (33-11, 3-0 SF) was a fixture in Pride, before switching to Dream and K-1 kickboxing. He has benefitted from the move to heavyweight after having difficult weight cuts to 205. The move has seen him increase his weight lifting, and the ripped Alistair has speed and big time power in his knees, kicks and punches.

Overeem first fought in Strikeforce with a decision win over Vitor Belfort to earn a title shot against Paul Buentello. Overeem crushed Buentello with a vicious array of knees to the body in the second frame. Overeem's other career wins have come over Igor Vovchanchyn, Mark Hunt, Roman Zentsov and a split with Sergei Kharitonov. The devastating striker also has K-1 wins over legends Badr Hari and Peter Aerts.

(Alistair Overeem Pictured)

There is no denying that Fedor Emelianenko (33-1, 1-0 SF) has beaten some of the best mixed martial artists the world has ever seen. Fedor's transition game from striking to takedowns to submissions is remarkable. He is a master out of the scramble and nailing the big punch.

Fedor holds two decision wins over Pride HW Champ Antonio Nogueria, decision wins over Mirko Cro Cop Filipovic, Renato "Babalu" Sobral, K1 legend Semmy Schilt and Ricardo Arona. Fedor has KO victories over UFC HW Champ Andrei Arlovski, Brett Rogers, Heath Herring, Gary Goodridge, and Tsuyoshi Kohsaka. He has submission victories over UFC HW Champ Tim Sylvia, UFC HW Champ Mark Coleman 2X, Mark Hunt, Matt Lindland, Naoya Ogawa, UFC HW Champ Kevin Randleman and Kazuyuki Fujita.

(Fedor KO'ing Arlovski in Affliction)

Video of the Day - Sonnen v. Curnut

Here is Chael Sonnen fighting Greg Curnut from FCC Rumble at Rosemont from 12/13/03 which took place in Portland, Oregon.

It appears that a title fight between Chael Sonnen and Anderson Silva will take place at UFC 117.

WEC 48 Preview

WEC 48 will be the promotions first ppv event, with the ppv being handled by Zuffa's team. Familiar voices Joe Rogan and Mike Goldberg will be commentating, and the WEC fighters paychecks will be adjusted accordingly.

In the main event, hard hitting 145 pound champion Jose Aldo (16-1) will be fighting former champ Urijah Faber. Aldo won the featherweight strap by TKO'ing Mike Thomas Brown in the third round. Aldo has the universal number 1 featherweight in the world, mixing his hard hitting striking with a BJJ blackbelt.

(Aldo throwing a trademark flying knee)

Urijah Faber (23-3) held the WEC belt for 2 years before losing to the aforementioned Mike Thomas Brown. Faber mixes a high energy style with good boxing and excellent wrestling. Faber owns WEC wins over Rafeal Assuncao, Jens Pulver, Jeff Curran, Dominick Cruz and Bibiano Fernandes.

(Urijah Faber pictured)

In other action, rising star Benson Henderson will fight Tapout show veteran Donald "Cowboy" Cerrone for the WEC 155 pound title. The two were involved in one of the best fights in 2009 with excellent stand-up and ground work. Expect Henderson to look for the takedown early and often, with Cerrone trying to connect with his refined Muay Thai game.

PPV CARD

Jose Aldo vs. Urijah Faber (FW title)
Champ Benson Henderson vs. Donald Cerrone (LW title)
Mike Brown vs. Manny Gamburyan
Anthony Njokuani vs. Shane Roller
Antonio Banuelos vs. Scott Jorgensen

SPIKE TV PRELIMS

Leonard Garcia vs. Chan Sung Jung
Alex Karalexis vs. Anthony Pettis

UNDERCARD

Demetrious Johnson vs. Brad Pickett
Chad Mendes vs. Anthony Morrison
Takeya Mizugaki vs. Rani Yahya
Tyler Toner vs. Brandon Visher

NCAA Wrestling Championships 2010

The Iowa Hawkeyes captured their third straight NCAA wrestling title, winning big over 2nd place Cornell. Three Iowa wrestlers captured titles. Jayson Ness of Minnesota won the greatest honor in college wrestling, receiving the Dan Hodge Trophy as the wrestler of the year.

Many of these elite athletes will try to continue a path of amateur wrestling, but some will come to mixed martial arts. Strength, conditioning, quickness, mental toughness and the ability to cut weight are all traits of high level wrestlers. The biggest skill that transfers to MMA is the ability to take someone down and defend the take down.

125 champ Matt McDonough is a freshman, so expect continued success from him. Multiple NCAA champ Brent Metcalf will continue to pursue his wrestling career in the international scene. Max Askren, Ben Askren's brother, won his first title defeating a previously undefeated Kirk Smith of Boise State. Jake Varner took his second NCAA 197 pound crown and is looking at international competition.

125- Matt McDonough (Iowa) def Andrew Long (ISU) 3-1
133- Jayson Ness (Minn) def Daniel Dennis (Iowa) 6-4
141- Kyle Dake (Cornell) def Montell Marion (Iowa) 7-3
149- Brent Metcalf (Iowa) def Lance Palmer (OSU) 3-2
157- JP O'Connor (Harv) def Chase Pami (Cal Poly) 6-4
165- Andrew Howe (Wis) def Dan Vallimont (PSU) 9-3
174- Jay Borschel (Iowa) def Mack Lewnes (Cornell) 6-2
184- Max Askren (Miss) def Kirk Smith (Boise) 10-3
197- Jake Varner (ISU) def Craig Brester (Nebraska) 5-2
285- David Zabriskie (ISU) def Jared Rosholt (Ok St) 3-2

FINAL TEAM STANDINGS

1. Iowa - 134.5
2. Cornell - 90
3. Iowa State - 75
4. Wisconsin - 70.5
5. Oklahoma - 69
6. Oklahoma State - 65
7. Minnesota - 63
8. Ohio State - 62
9. Penn State - 49
10. Missouri - 48

Strikeforce on CBS Preview

Strikeforce will bring its second card to CBS this Saturday, April 17, 2010. CBS has been pushing the Strikeforce card since the NCAA tournament with spots featuring Dan Henderson, Jake Shields, Gilbert Melendez and Shinya Aoki. The fights will take place in Nashville, Tennessee at the Bridgestone Arena.

Here is a look at the match-ups:

MAIN CARD

Jake Shields vs. Dan Henderson- This fight could be a quick one for Jake Shields if he doesn't have his takedown game working. Dan Henderson is an olympic level wrestler with a nasty right hand. Look for Henderson to sprawl and brawl, throwing his trademark overhand right.

Henderson (25-7) is a legend of the game, coming off his UFC run where he had three consecutive victories over Rousimar Paulhares, Rich Franklin and Michael Bisping. Prior to that, Henderson competed in Rings and Pride, scoring big wins over Vitor Belfort, Wanderlei Silva, Renzo Gracie and Akhiro Gono.

(Dan Henderson pictured)

Jake Shields (24-4, 1-0 SF) is the current Strikeforce 185 champ and is the former Elite XC 170 pound champ. The BJJ blackbelt has victories over Mayhem Miller, Paul Daley, Carlos Condit and Yushin Okami.

Gegard Mousasi vs. Muhammed "King Mo" Lawal- This fight is for the Strikeforce 205 pound title. Mousasi took the belt from Babalu Sobral, then subsequently crushed Sokoudjou in his first defense. King Mo, a NCAA champion wrestler, has gone 6-0 in his young career with 5 KO's.

Expect Mousasi (28-2) to utilize his precision kickboxing game and slick submissions to finish this fight before the final round. While Lawal has the clear advantage wrestling, his striking is unrefined. In addition, Lawal's submission game really hasn't been tested.

Gilbert Melendez vs. Shinya Aoki- This bout is for the Strikeforce lightweight title. Gilbert Melendez (17-2)was able to get the belt from Josh Thomson after dominating the takedowns and boxing game. Comparing Aoki's submission game to Thomson's is just something you cannot do.

Aoki (23-4) is by far one of the slickest submission artists in the game. He has pulled off some crazy subs, including a standing armlock, 2 gogoplatas, hammerlock arm breaker and flying triangle. While Aoki won't have his trademark rainbow pants, he will be prepared for his American debut.

(Aoki almost tapping JZ Calvancante)

SWING BOUT

Jason "Mayhem" Miller vs. Tim Stout

UNDER CARD

Zach Underwood vs. Hunter Worsham
Josh Schockman vs. Cale Yarbrough
Dustin Ortiz vs. Justin Pennington
Andrew Uhrich vs. Dustin West
Chris Hawk vs. Ovince St. Preux
Thomas Campbell vs. Cody Floyd

UFC 112 Preview

UFC 112 will be the UFC's first venture into the middle east, with Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emerites (UAE) hosting the event. The festivities will play out at the Concert Arena at the Ferrari World theme park on Yas Island. This will be the first UFC event at an outdoor arena.

The evening will feature two title fights for the first time since UFC 100. Unlike UFC 100, the current title holders, Anderson Silva and BJ Penn are heavy favorites coming in. Currently, Anderson Silva and BJ Penn are -1100 and -850 favorites on Bodog.

Current line-up:

Anderson Silva vs. Demian Maia- This 185 pound five round tussle is a classic grappler against striker match-up. Anderson Silva has cemented his legend in the MMA world with ridiculous knockouts during his 10-0 UFC run. Maia comes from a BJJ background, having won the 2007 Abu Dhabi Combat Championship in the 87 KG bracket.

Anderson Silva is undoubtably the top striker currently in mixed martial arts. Silva busted into the UFC steamrolling Chris Leban in 49 seconds. He then destroyed Rich Franklin with knees to take the title which he has yet to relinquish. His path of destruction has seen him roll through Travis Lutter, Dan Henderson, Nate Marquardt, James Irvin and Forrest Griffin.

(Anderson Silva pictured)

Demian Maia, a second degree black belt in BJJ, bust onto the UFC scene with 3 consecutive submission of the night performances. He owns victories over Jason MacDonald, Dan Miller, Nate Quarry and Chael Sonnen. It will be critical for Maia to find a way to takedown Anderson Silva to look for a submission.

(Demian Maia Pictured)

B.J. Penn vs. Frankie Edgar- In this lightweight tilt, champion BJ Penn will look to defend his title for the fourth straight time. Penn, who is also a world jiu-jitsu champ, has flashed an ever improving boxing and wrestling game during his recent victories over Kenny Florian, Diego Sanchez, Sean Sherk and Joe Stevenson. Look for BJ to pepper Edgar from the outside and counter punching to loosen up Edgar before getting top position, looking for a submission.

(BJ Penn pictured)

Frankie Edgar, a former collegiate wrestler, has displayed a well-rounded blend of kickboxing and wrestling game during his 6-1 stretch in the UFC. In his last three bouts, Edgar has shown no chinks in his armor, winning over Matt Veach, Sean Sherk and Hermes Franca. Look for Edgar to test the waters with his boxing before trying to get the fight to the floor to utilize ground and pound.

Matt Hughes vs. Renzo Gracie- This fight will pit two MMA legends against eachother. Hughes is a sure-fire UFC hall of famer with exceptional wrestling. He previously defeated Renzo's cousin, Royce Gracie, at UFC 60. Renzo will look to use his black belt submission skills in this bout. Expect either a Hughes decision or Renzo submission in this bout.

Rafael dos Anjos vs. Terry Etim
Kendall Grove vs. Mark Munoz

UNDER CARD

Phil Davis vs. Alexander Gustafsson
John Gunderson vs. Paul Taylor
Nick Osipczak vs. Rick Story
Brad Blackburn vs. DaMarques Johnson
Paul Kelly vs. Matt Veach
Mostapha Al Turk vs. Jon Madsen

(Ferrari World Theme Park)

Video of the Day - Hieron v. Blackburn

Here is Brad Blackburn fighting Jay Hieron at IFL: which took place on 6/1/07. Blackburn will fight TUF 9 runner-up DaMarques Johnson at UFC 112 in Abu Dhabi.