Tonight we'll feature an event in the lone star state put on by Scott Coker and company. Which means the production will be horrible and the fights should be entertaining. Although the Strikeforce belts don't seem to mean that much, we do have a couple of title fights and a certain ex-pro wrestler is back for more. In we go.
King Mo Lawal vs Feijao Cavalcante - Depsite the fact that King Mo may not like me, I do like him. This is an odd fight to me though. What I mean is that King Mo doesn't have much to gain from it and a whole lot to lose. Feijao could threaten with a submission or two but I do believe that King Mo's wrestling, which is some of the very best in MMA, will be too much. I'd like to see Lawal in some trouble at some point though. We don't know how he'll react to a big shot or a locked in submission. We could see both tonight. Or we could see Lawal do exactly what he did to Gegard Mousasi. That's what I"m expecting to see. King Mo via unanimous decision.
Tim Kennedy vs Jacare Souza - I don't know what to think in this fight. Jacare is nothing to play with on the mat but Kennedy can hold his own. Trevor Prangley might have his shortcomings but I was very impressed with Kennedy in that fight. He can wrestle and he'll need that against a strong jiu-jitsu guy like Souza. The problem is that Jacare is also a very good wrestler and I can't see him having any problems getting this fight to floor if that's where he wants to take it. To me the only hope that Kennedy has is if he can survive long enough to wear down Jacare, who has some seriously shaky cardio. This is for the Middleweight title so it's a 5 round fight. If it goes the distance I think Kennedy can take it but that's not what I think will happen. Jacare via submission in Round 2.
KJ Noons vs Jorge Gurgel - When you first think of this fight it sounds like a great matchup. Then after giving it some thought, you realize that it's probably a big mismatch. Gurgel has been killed in the media for not using his strengths, mainly his jiu-jitsu, in his fights. He's gotten himself involved in way too many standup brawls and lost a lot of fights for his trouble. Noons is a great boxer and not the kind of guy you want to get into a war like that with. He's worlds apart on his feet. The fact is that even if Gurgel was to go back to what he's best at, I still don't think it would help him in this fight. KJ Noons via unanimous decision.
Bobby Lashley vs Chad Griggs - If this were contested in pro wrestling we would call it a squash match. Make no mistake that's exactly what this is. I understand wanting to protect an investment and all that but it's getting to the point where people are really starting to question the legitimacy of Lashley's venture into MMA. After this they better give him a decent opponent or it won't matter what they do, no one will care anymore. Lashley via TKO in Round 1.
Daniel Cormier vs Jason Riley - Cormier is a beast taking yet another fight. He's fought 3 opponents in 22 days. Much like the Lashley-Griggs fight that will come on after it, this is a squash match. They're trying to bring Cormier along and this is the right fight to do it. It really helps to show how hard it is to bring guys along when you have a roster like Strikeforce does. The UFC would be much better suited for Cormier. Not sure how far he would go though. He's good in this one. Cormier via unanimous decision.
Quick prelim picks after the break.
Strikeforce typically loads up the prelim fights with local guys and they don't even tape them so I can't say I know much about some of these guys. Galvao-Patino will be live streamed over at Sherdog. Magalhaes lost to Ryan Bader at the TUF 8 Finale. Don't know the others but I'll take a shot at, at least picking the winners.
Andre Galvao vs Jorge Patino - Galvao
Rocky Long vs Vinicius Magalhaes - Magalhaes
Kier Gooch vs Adam Schindler - Gooch
Jose Santibanez vs Reynaldo Trujillo - Trujillo
Humberto DeLeon vs Chad Robichaux - DeLeon
Chad Cook vs Arteneus Young - Cook