Dan Henderson, King Mo & A Strikeforce Tournament
By Kevin Nelson
The Strikeforce light heavyweight and heavyweight divisions run deep and it was not so long ago that the light heavyweight division was considered weak. A lot of the depth comes from a talent exchange Scott Coker orchestrated with the Dream Promotion that resulted in seeing fighters King Mo, Gegard Mousasi join the Strikeforce light heavyweight division.
Also the collapse of Affliction resulted in Strikeforce getting much more talent. Here we look at the rankings of the light heavyweight division and some changes we would like to see.
Rank Notable Wins
Champ: Dan Henderson (27-8) W.Silva, Bisping, Belfort, Franklin, Babalu, Nogeuira,
1. Gegard Mousasi (30-3-2) Babalu, Sokoudjou, Jacare, Kang, Lombard. Manhoef,
2. Ovince St. Preux (10-4) Day, Humphrey, Radach, Britt,
3. Mike Kyle (18-8-1) Ant. Silva, Werdum, Feijao, Buentello, Sim, Irvin
4. Rafael Feijao (10-3) King Mo, Britt, Rosa, Henderson
5. Renato Sobral ( 36-9) Henderson, Mousasi,Sokoudjou,Sonnen,Rua, Liddell
6. King Mo (7-1) Feijao, Mousasi, Whitehead, Kerr, Wiuff
7. Roger Gracie (4-0) Randleman, Kondo, Waterman, Prangley
8. Trevor Prangley(23-7-1) Gracie, Jardine, Kennedy,E.Newton,Sonnen,Lutter
9. Keith Jardine (17-9-2) Mousasi,Prangley,Liddell,Griffin,Hamel,W.Silva,Bader
10. Antwain Britt (11-5) Stpreux,Fejao,Lighty,Hale
Note: The rankings are based on quality of opposition, and win streak. The high ranking for Gracie is due to his win over Prangley, which was impressive to say the least. Mo remains high in the rankings despite having not fought in over a year due to him winning the title and beating such a notable fighter in Mousasi.
Britt remains in the top ten as the gatekeeper due to his opposition. Lorenz Larkin would have been included but his quality of opposition is limited despite the fact he is undefeated. I expect him to join the rankings soon enough.
Here is an idea: It would feature fighters in the light heavyweight division fighting in a tournament under the Dream rules of allowing foot stomps. This would be a fundraiser for Japan. Strikeforce make it happen!
Now the tournament would include only one of my top ten ranked fighters (Roger Gracie) and a slew of other top young fighters. My thinking is if you have a tournament featuring the top ten, you will have no contenders for the title following. Here you would have a tournament winner which creates more interest in the division and most importantly we the fans win here are my fighters I would have.
Yoel Romero Polacio (3-0): The former Olympic Silver Medal winner in freestyle wrestling is 34 and not getting any younger but his wrestling pedigree is unmatched.
Satoshi Ishii (4-1): The 2008 judo gold winner in Beijing is just 24 and has a bright future and already under contract in Strikeforce. Who better to put in a tournament in Japan than Ishii?
Marcos Rogerio De Lima (8-0): The Brazilian has a kickboxing background and has defeated Paolo Filho by decision. He is considered one of the fastest rising stars in the sport, incredibly not signed by any big promotion.
Glover Teixeira (11-2): One of the best fighters in the world had signed with Maximum fighting championship but visa problems have prevented him from making his debut.
Rhadi Ferguson (3-0): Ferguson competed in the 2004 Olympic Games in Sydney. If the last name sounds familiar, he is the cousin of Kimbo Slice, otherwise known as Kevin Ferguson, also signed by Strikeforce.
Roger Gracie (4-0): His resume in jiu-jitsu is unquestionable in that he is one of the best practitioners in the world and out of all the Gracie’s has the best stand-up. He is young and with a famous last name has the potential to be a real contender. Gracie in Japan no brainer.
Mark Coleman (16-10): One of the most popular fighters and UFC hall of famer Coleman can still wrestle. With age being a factor and also past his prime, Coleman is still a threat in a tournament with prospects and contenders. He can still take anyone down just ask Stephen Bonnar.
Robert Drysdale (2-0): the 2007 adcc submission wrestling champion works at extreme Couture. He is one of the best practitioners of BJJ.
Steve Bosse (10-1): What started out as a novelty act as Bosse was a former hockey player turned MMA fighter has quickly become one of the best light heavyweights in Canada. With an ever improving ground game Bosse could be a sleeper.
Lorenz Larkin (10-0): Quickly impressed in his destruction of Scott Lighty at Strikeforce Challengers. Larkin looks to be a promising fighter.