2010: The Year of the Powerbomb

Here are the main card results from Watchkalibrun.com. The gif is from Middle Easy the pic is from MMA Fighting.

Main Event

* Shane Del Rosario def. Lolohea Mahe via TKO (strikes) – Round 1, 3:48

* Sarah Kaufman def. Roxanne Modafferi via knockout (slam) – Round 3, 4:45. Sarah Kaufman retains Strikeforce 135lbs. Women’s title.

* Bobby Voelker def. Cory Devela via split decision (28-29, 29-28, 29-28).

* Mike Kyle def. Ron “Abongo” Humphrey via submission (rear-naked choke) – Round 2, 3:2.

* Caros Fodor def. Thomas Diagne via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27).

I could have gone 5-0 if I had the guts to go with my head over my heart in the championship bout. Alas my enjoyment of both fighters made that too difficult to deal with. That being said the bar has been set for female fight of the year with Kaufmans first title defense against Roxy Modaferri. It was a tug of war from the opening frame but as the fight wore on it was Kaufmans athleticism that won her the fight.

Most of the fight was spent jockeying for position in the clinch with Roxy threatening with trips and takedowns, one of which she got in the first round. In the second Sarah go to show of her combo punching in a few stand up skirmishes where she clearly had the upper hand. In the third both fighters spent time on their backs. When the challenger Modaferri was in top position she had a hard time advancing or landing strikes against the champion who did her best to not take damage and kept her at bay.

When the tables were turned Kaufman was wary of the threats inherent in the guard of Modaferri and while defending what looked to be the beginning of an submission (probably an armbar). Sarah Kaufman made good on her word to make a statement for being put on bigger cards by hoisting Modaferri off her back and slamming her unconscious. A finish so dramatic that I would venture it and the Zoila Frausto smashing of Rosi Sexton will both be up for knockout of the year.

The rest of the event was entertaining with only one decision in the Fodor vs Diagne fight at the beginning of the main card. An unexpectedly good night of fights from a sleeper of a card that was a gem for anybody who watched it.

Going to have to rattle this one off quick fast in a hurry. The event starts in less than 10 minutes so this will be main card only

THOMAS DIAGNE VS. CAROS FODOR – Going with the guy whose name is similar to one of the best fighters in the sport. Variable assessment/style match up breakdown be damned.

CORY DEVELA VS. BOBBY VOELKER – Voelker via Clobbering Time

ABONGO HUMPHREY VS. MIKE KYLE – Humphrey is in for a long hard night, he is a good fighter but Kyle is way bigger, more experienced and if he doesn’t gas takes this easy.

Strikeforce Female Welterweight Championship

CHAMP SARAH KAUFMAN VS. ROXANNE MODAFFERI – This is going to be an amazing fight. As a huge fan of both fighters I am seriously conflicted. My head says Kaufmans rock solid boxing fundamentals will keep the fight where she wants it and if it does go to the ground her purple belt bjj will keep her out of trouble. My heart has to go to Roxy’s indomitable fighting spirit and grit, she may not be on Sarah’s level in the striking department but she can hold her own.

This fight as I see it will come down to who is the better athlete and has the better cardio. With that said I CAN’T PICK AGAINST EITHER FIGHTER. I am hoping for a competitive display of mixed martial arts, that is all.

SHANE DEL ROSARIO VS. LOLOHEA MAHE – Size disadvantage aside Del Rosario takes this easy, especially if Mahe doesn’t knock his head off and is dragged into the second frame. Expect either a tko or sub from Shane.

Weigh in stare down. Photos by Ester Lin

The only semi-major event going on this weekend will be Strikeforce Challengers 9 that will feature Sarah Kaufman making her first title defense against Roxanne Modaferri (check out here new highlight vid from Fightlinker.

As a fan of both fighters it will be hard to watch and even harder to pick, but I will be glad for an event this weekend. Not to mention having the site back up is pretty nice too.

Good news from MMA Junkie,

Strikeforce CEO Scott Coker today told MMAjunkie.com (www.mmajunkie.com) that Strikeforce Challengers 9 could feature recently crowned Strikeforce women’s welterweight champion Sarah Kaufman (11-0 MMA, 3-0 SF) against fellow 135-pounder Roxanne Modafferi (15-5 MMA, 0-1 SF).

And before anyone freaks out over being 0-1 in the organization, lets put it in perspective.

Modafferi, meanwhile, would fight for Strikeforce for the second time. Serving as a late replacement for Erin Toughill, the Japanese-based American moved up a weight class and ultimately suffered a first-round submission loss to notable Marloes Coenen.

Since that loss, Modafferi scored a submission win over Molly Helsel at a King of the Cage event, and on May 21, she edged female standout Tara LaRosa (18-1 at the time) via split decision in a heavily praised “Moosin: God of Martial Arts” pay-per-view bout. Modafferi has now won eight of her past nine fights.

It will suck for me personally being a fan of both fighters, but this fight has to happen. Roxy has been performing like a woman possesed and is a more than worthy challenger for Kaufmans title. But with a little over a month to prepare and this being Roxy’s 3rd fight of the year. I can’t help but wonder if this fight isn’t coming off a bit rushed.

Good news for female fighters, from MMA Junkie

Strikeforce women’s welterweight champion Sarah Kaufman is expected to make a return in late July – in a likely non-title fight – while a 135-pound women’s tournament determines a No. 1 contender for the undefeated title-holder.

That’s according to Scott Coker, who shared the plans with MMAjunkie.com (www.mmajunkie.com) over the weekend.

Kaufman topped Takayo Hashi in February for Strikeforce’s first-ever women’s 135-pound title, and the 24-year-old Canadian now owns a perfect 11-0 record.

“We’re going to throw that tournament at 135 (pounds), probably (on) July 24 or maybe 31,” Coker said. “We will probably have her fighting on that card, and then we want her to fight the winner of that tournament.”

Nice to see actions being taken from the bad news of last week. I am still new to this blogging thing, but I do believe if your going to shame an org for doing wrong by its fighters you should be just as vocal when they try to rectify or clarify their motives and actions. So props to Strikeforce for getting female mma moving forward again.

Strikeforce is also setting up a title bout with their other female champion with Champ Cristiane “Cyborg” Santos vs Jan “Cuddles” Finney. While the challenger in Finney may not have the most impressive of records (8-7). It has more to do with the sparse and miss-match laden nature of booking female fights, Finneys got the Sokoudjou/Brett Rodgers treatment with some of her earliest fights against the elites of female mma like Shayna Baszler, Meisha Tate and Erin Toughill. Hopefully with more exposure and fighters coming into the sport such fights will soon be a thing of the past.

Thanks to Sherdog for the pic.

Saddening news from Strikeforce, courtesy of MMAfighting.com,

Jake Shields is not the only Strikeforce titleholder without a contract with the promotion. 135-pound women’s champion Sarah Kaufman is in the same boat.

It’s been two-and-a-half months since Kaufman (11-0) defeated Takayo Hashi for the belt in the main event of Strikeforce Challengers 6 and she still has not been re-signed by the promotion.

“We’ve talked a few times here and there and I think they’re just trying to figure out what their plans are in terms of the 135-pound division since it is a deep division,” Kaufman told MMAFighting.com Tuesday. “They feel I just fought Miesha Tate, Shayna Baszler not that long ago as well, and I just fought the No. 2 girl (Hashi), they’re just trying to figure out what they’re going to do with the division, as they want to have a tournament. I personally don’t want to wait till after the tournament is complete because that’s at least another probably eight months before that’s done.”

Strikeforce’s shoddy handling of female mma is getting ridiculous, with the Megumi Fujii fight coming up along with the 115 pound tourney for the 3rd season maybe Bellator is the promotion that will give female fighters the stage, prestige and most importantly the stability they deserve.

Props to mma photog extraordinaire Esther Lin