Strikeforce Predictions

Fedor Emelianenko vs. Brett Rogers
Is there any possible way not to take Emelianenko in this fight? No, there isn’t. I’m tired of hearing “well, Rogers has a puncher’s chance” because so did every other fighter that Fedor stepped in the ring with. They all lost. There’s a reason for that, and it is, simply put, Fedor is the best fighter in the history of the sport. Rogers will not make history. He’ll be history. Fedor wins by first round submission.

Jake Shields vs. Jason “Mayhem” Miller

Shields and Miller will make a very interesting fight. Miller is the type of fighter that is extremely difficult to submit. He’s only been submitted once in 27 fights, and that was over seven years ago. That severely limits the jiu-jitsu wizardry of Shields. Shields’ only way to win will be by decision. On the other hand, Miller is a much more well-rounded fighter. He’s capable of a knockout or submission at anytime. While I believe Shields is the better fighter, Miller is a terrible match-up for him. In the fight of the night, Jason Miller pulls the upset with a unanimous decision win.

Gegard Mousasi vs. Rameau Thierry Sokoudjou

Over the past year-and-a-half, all Mousasi has done is defeat Denis Kang, Dong Sik Yoon, Melvin Manhoef, Ronaldo Souza, Mark Hunt, and Renato “Babalu” Sobral. And, Mousasi finished all of the fights by knockout or submission. That is definitely one of the more impressive runs the sport has seen. Now, he takes on an over-hyped and under talented Sokoudjou. His last big win came over two years ago against Ricardo Arona. Since then, Sokoudjou has been living off the two-fight legend he built in Pride FC (wins over Arona and Antonio Rogerio Nogueira). He’s done nothing to prove those wins weren’t a fluke, and he won’t do anything again here. Is Mousasi the best light heavyweight in the world? No, but he’ll get one step closer to the top. Mousasi wins by second round TKO.

Fabricio Werdum vs. Antonio “Bigfoot” Silva

Due to the seemingly unlikelihood of Alistair Overeem ever fighting in the United States again, Werdum vs. Silva is a fight to see who gets the next crack at Emelianenko (assuming he beats Rogers). Werdum is a talented jiu-jitsu fighter, but recently, he has had difficulty with powerful strikers. Both Junior Dos Santos and Andrei Arlovski were able to defeat Werdum. Mike Kyle even briefly looked good before his ineptitude on the ground was exposed. Like Werdum, Silva’s also a very good jiu-jitsu fighter, but Silva has a big size advantage, and that will give Werdum problems. Silva gets the spot in the next CBS main event with a second round TKO win.