http://www.sherdog.com/news/articles/4- ... over-21715

Despite sharing its name with a 1980s World Wrestling Entertainment tag team, Strikeforce has emerged as the top threat to the UFC’s chokehold on the sport. With arguably the world’s best fighter, Fedor Emelianenko, in its employ, a broadcast deal with Showtime and CBS and the cash flow to keep the show above water, Strikeforce appears uniquely positioned to pull off a coup that would completely alter the future of the sport.

After watching one of its would-be standard bearers get knocked out by a UFC castaway at “Evolution” on Saturday in San Jose, Calif., it has become obvious that Strikeforce has made some strategic errors in its ongoing climb up the ladder. However, they’re mistakes that can be solved with some smarts and old-school cutthroat business tactics. While I don’t have an MBA and immediately fall asleep anytime I accidentally flip to a business news show, I’ve seen enough promotions collapse to know what it takes to survive and thrive in the game.

What follows is a four-part plan of attack for the good folks at Strikeforce, which looks to be in need of some direction after the demise of the Cung Le mystique. Just follow the strategy and watch the money stack; feel free to repay me in the form of gold rope chains and exotic animals. I always wanted a Komodo dragon to call my own.

Part One: Le, Shamrock Old News

The sight of Le simultaneously gassing and getting knocked out by Scott Smith was a reality check for the entire Strikeforce front office. Battling for market share with the UFC means making wise decisions, and none are more important than being judicious about who you make your star attraction. Picking a 37-year-old Sanshou convert who seems more concerned with combat choreography than actual fighting to headline shows was never a good idea.

Demonizing Strikeforce for bringing in someone who puts butts in seats may sound foolish, but there comes a time when you have to realize that someone like Le will never lead you to the Promised Land once legitimate competition starts lining up. The smart thing to do would have been to pit Le against someone like incumbent middleweight champion Jake Shields or save him for Dan Henderson’s impending debut with the organization. One way or another, Le’s star power would have been sacrificed to an elite middleweight around which Strikeforce could have built its promotion.

This is hardly a game-breaker for Strikeforce, but it’s a lesson it needed to learn now rather than later. With a roster highlighted by brilliant young talents such as Muhammed Lawal and Tyron Woodley, there’s really no need to make stars out of fighters on the wrong side of 35, especially when they act like they have better things to do than train. Strikeforce doesn’t suffer from the dearth of talent that has crippled most would-be challengers to the UFC’s crown, but if it doesn’t start using that talent wisely, it will waste an awful lot of money trying to convince fans that Le and Frank Shamrock are worth the price of a Showtime subscription.

Part Two: No More Mr. Nice Promotion

Business is a nasty game, and playing nice will get one nothing but broken promises and empty seats in the fight game. Now is the time for Strikeforce to aggressively acquire elite fighters instead of entering talent-exchange programs that perpetually leave it wondering when Dream will be nice enough to send a live body. Don’t get me wrong. I love watching Marius Zaromskis turn brains to mush as much as the next guy, but the lay fan has pretty much no familiarity with the Lithuanian headhunter.

Imagine the nightmare scenario in waiting if Zaromskis beats Nick Diaz next month for the Strikeforce welterweight crown and then suffers a long-term injury preparing for his next match in Dream. These aren’t the kinds of variables Strikeforce needs right now, and the only solution is to cut ties with Dream. We already saw Strikeforce snatch Dan Henderson from the UFC, and it’s high time it starts luring talent from Japan by using established relationships across the Pacific.

It will always be a battle to get elite Japanese fighters to leave the comforts of home, but martial artists like Zaromskis, Eddie Alvarez and Joachim Hansen will invariably follow the money. By making those fighters exclusive talent, it would allow Strikeforce to develop them properly without dealing with the inherent headaches of a talent-exchange program. It’s no secret the UFC got shafted by trading talent with Pride, and it’s only a matter of time before making friends with the competition becomes more trouble than it’s worth for Strikeforce.

Part Three: Learn, Evolve, Adapt, Steal

Regardless of what UFC President Dana White says, the UFC does make mistakes, and it’s dealing with a significant one right now. Rapid expansion has led to a bloated roster that features many fighters fans no longer care to follow. Strikeforce’s roster remains relatively streamlined, but as it starts promoting more shows, being careful about how many fighters come onboard will prove critical.

While Strikeforce has a built-in minor league system in its Challengers Series, it has yet to produce a quality prospect outside of Woodley. A perplexing fact since fellow upstart promotion Bellator Fighting Championships managed to lock up top-shelf prospects like Ben Askren and Jacob McClintock despite an unwieldy tournament-based format that has left its current champions on the sidelines since June.

Hoarding talent like the UFC invariably creates problems, but signing as many exciting young fighters as possible remains a smart investment in the future for a company that often seems far too focused on the present. Stealing the competition’s game plan and steering clear of its mistakes is the only way Strikeforce will stay alive, and it desperately needs to start showing the savvy to do so.

Part Four: Hit Them Where It Hurts

Having two high-profile broadcast deals is a boon for any promotion, but there’s a reason why the UFC puts on at least a dozen pay-per-views a year. Simply put, PPV is the easiest way to generate Master P money and strike some fear in the UFC by putting a dent in its sales.

Building an addiction by giving fans free shows is a smart move, and the time is nearing when PPV will be the next logical step for a promotion that has grown at an incredible rate in barely three years time. It’s a move that will come with significant risks, but a loaded Strikeforce card can sell out the same venues as the UFC, and scheduling it the same month as a weak UFC show would force fans to choose between value and name brand.

It’s hard to imagine an injury-ravaged card like UFC 102 outselling a Strikeforce offering anchored by Emelianenko, Henderson, Gegard Mousasi and the rest of its big-ticket talent. If Strikeforce is serious about making a game-changing move, PPV is the only way to make it happen. The resources are there, but it remains to be seen if Strikeforce has the guts to take on the UFC on its home turf.

Got to agree with all four points.

Points 1 is very true - Do not have Frank Shamrock fight again, and I don't think Le has a legit future anymore either. He looked too out of shape in the fight with Smith and that would only get worse after he goes back to making his movie for a while again.

Point 2 is critical and the biggest issue against the promotion in my eyes - Overeem fighting overseas all the time and not defending the belt, Mousasi is also allowed to fight overseas and so might not defend all that often (and gets non-title fights anyway?!), Zaromskis is still under contract with Dream when many people (myself included) tip him to be the new Welterweight champ... Not good to have so many champions doing their thing elsewhere and so not defending their belt all that often (and less likely to play a part in point 4). I'd also be amazed if Fedor and Hendo don't have something in their contracts allowing them to do Japanese shows also - at least the option to do so later on.

Point 3 is for the future, but it's definately a common sense long-term issue.

Although #4 is certainly a great arguement for the future, I'm not sure it's really do-able until they have a few more names or until they implement #2 - right now to have more than two or maybe three PPVs scheduled in any 12 months, they would have to recycle the same big name fighters for alternating shows. Give them another year and some more signings and it could happen though.


IMHO they should also get rid of Frank's keys to success stuff - it's often wrong/bizarrely-chosen and it doesn't help any casual fans if they don't see the fight end that way. Don't think it helps knowledgeable fans at all, but then I suspect that's not the point of it. Don't hand-hold (read: patronise) people and instead emphasize the unpredictability of the sport. And they should also dump Jimmy Lennon Jr!!!!!! Get Ian Freeman, or even Michael Buffer... Anyone but Jimmy! (I realise Jimmy is popular and I may well be in the minority here )

Good article. I was at one point disagreeing but then I thought what if foreigners would left Japan? Nothing, Japan has plenty of domestic stars to keep their fans happy and as well to keep themselves in business. I believe that Strikeforce needs non-asian stars and talent from Dream if they want to survive. They could co-promote events in Japan without their stars fighting for other organizations. Make something like Dynamite but without promotion-vs-promotion thing, instead make different promotions bouts on one card, even belt fights at such event.
But then it's not always about money, more often it's about egos. I hope that both Strikeforce and Dream leaders will start thinking about money and it will bring pleasure to us.

Shamrocks keys to success are complete bollocks. As you said, he's often wide of the mark on picking them. Furthermore, knowledgable fans simply say "Huh? How'd you figure that, Frank?", and any newcomers wouldn't understand what he was talking about, and just get confused.

Also, Michael Buffer >> Jimmy Lennon Jr

First of all, Cung Le and Braces Shamrock won't fight someone like Shields, because Shields will absolutely embarrass both of them. But I agree that Braces Shamrock needs to fuck off forever; he's a horrible commentator, his "Keys to Victory" are absolute crap and he's a tool.

Also, I'm amused at the idea that the UFC is in a bad position for having so many fighters, yet StrikeForce is in a good position for having only a few names. StrikeForce has some good fighters, but their roster depth is non-existent. They recycle the same guys for a big show every three months, and that's not good for long-term business. Besides, every time someone watches one of StrikeForce's big shows with the names, he/she thinks the exact same thing that all of us do: that guy needs to go to the UFC.

The biggest problem involving StrikeForce's talent is that, not only do their belts mean absolutely nothing in the grand scheme, but they don't have even one solid, stacked and deep division. The author of the article bitches and moans about the UFC having too many fighters, and some that "no one cares to follow" anymore, but the ticket sales and PPV figures state otherwise. Fact is, UFC has 5 stacked divisions with plenty of possible challengers, and dominant champions. StrikeForce scrambles to put together title matches, and the titles don't mean anything.

Moreover, StrikeForce is a flash in the pan, just like Affliction, EliteXC and BodogFight. Everybody was absolutely convinced the UFC was in danger and had some real competition with all of these promotions, including StrikeForce. What happened? All three companies failed ten times over, and contributed little to nothing in furthering the sport of Mixed Martial Arts as a whole. When StrikeForce also fails, you can bet the UFC will acquire their video library and contracts too.

I'm also highly amused by the PPV point, and it demonstrates that the author knows very little. Does the author really believe that the most-stacked StrikeForce PPV will generate even half the revenue and buy rate that even the worse UFC PPV line-up generates? I know the author wants StrikeForce to succeed, but exercise some common sense. The UFC has the talent, name recognition and place in the sport to not be threatened by any promotion, and it is proved time and time again by poorly-planned, short-term flash-in-the-pan promotions like StrikeForce and Affliction.

Frankly, the author is just an anti-UFC guy, who forgets that promotions like StrikeForce, Affliction, etc. wouldn't exist if the UFC hadn't established the sport in America. I enjoy watching smaller promotions like StrikeForce, but 85% of the MMA online community becomes absolutely retarded whenever a promotion other than the UFC starts producing some decent shows.

Oh, and by the way, Comcast just acquired NBC. Guess who Comcast has a very good relationship with? Zuffa. Don't be surprised if we see NBC broadcast a prime time UFC event sooner or later. Of course, if NBC hosts a UFC broadcast against CBS' StrikeForce broadcast, which broadcast do you think will slaughter the other in ratings, revenue and advertising?

Great thread

You have some good points LARMORE. I dont think anyone here doubts that Zuffa/UFC is unthreathend on the top when it comes to promoting MMA in the US, you would have to be blind and deaf to say the contrary. But I am not sure that I agree to compare Strikeforce with Affliction just like that. Strikeforce has actually been promoting events for like 15 years and are still functioning. Its not a promotion that can be compared with the UFC in importance regarding titles etc, there i totally agree. Still I do think that the titles have some importance. Not all fighters can be in the same promotion, and Strikeforce and DREAM copromoting events and fights makes it quite more interesting then some of the former promotions that failed.

I am not at all against UFC, I love both UFC and WEC, but I would like to imagine that Strikeforce management have learned from the misstakes made by Affliction and EliteXC etc. If not for anything else, its a great promotion for less famous or known fighters to get the opportunity to showcase themselves so that they can be picked up by, thats right, UFC...

I wish Strikeforce all the best of luck in 2010!