Snakebit, Cursed, and Needing Hype for Saturday, Strikeforce Moves Ahead

(Note: Josh will be appearing on Fight Network Radio this Friday at 4 PM to talk Strikeforce. Tune into Sirius 98 or HardcoreSportsRadio.com for the free live stream.)

Despite multiple injuries and missed connections for drug tests, preparation for the star-crossed Strikeforce card this Saturday is still rolling on with the biggest women's MMA fight in history on top—even though the buzz has been less than spectacular leading up.

When it was announced several months back that Gina Carano and Cris "Cyborg" Santos would finally hook up at August's Strikeforce event, there was reason to be genuinely excited.

But amidst one of the busiest news months in the sport's history with UFC 101, the Affliction shutdown and business deal with the UFC, the race to sign Fedor, WEC and the Tito Ortiz re-signing, Carano vs. Cyborg has taken a back seat.

It hasn't helped that the event itself has been snakebitten by bad luck since it was announced the Showtime-televised card would feature five title fights. Then, all booking hell broke loose:

- Lightweight Champion Josh Thomson was due to fight Gilbert Melendez in a rematch initially set for April, but delayed due to Thomson breaking his ankle. But Thomson still hasn't been medically cleared to fight and Mitsuhiro Ishida will now face Melendez for the interim Lightweight gold instead.

- Heavyweight Champion Alistair Overeem was set to defend his title for the first time against Fabricio Werdum. But Overeem had to pull out due to a hand injury suffered in a bar fight and now Werdum will go on the untelevised undercard in a non-title situation. Tough break.

- Joe Riggs was scheduled to face Nick Diaz for the vacant Welterweight title, but was hospitalized after a bad reaction to some medication he was taking. Former Affliction talent (and similarly unlucky fighter) Jay Hieron was snatched up to take Riggs' place and everything seemed right with the world.
But the bizarre and still developing situation with Diaz dodging drug tests and claiming backroom deals with former directors finally came to an end Monday with the California State Athletic Commission refusing to license him. Former TUF notable Jesse "Limo Kick" Taylor will take Diaz' place, but unfortunately for Hieron, the belt will not be on the line.

Taylor has been on fire for the past few months, so this will be a big spot for him back on the big stage.

And now, we wait with bated breath to see what else can happen before this Saturday. Will Carano and Cyborg both make weight? Will anyone else get hurt? Will an earthquake hit that will cause the postponement of the event? At this point, anything could happen and we wouldn't be shocked.

Unfortunately, this bad luck has happening to a promotion in Strikeforce that needs to survive for a lot of reasons, the least of which is to provide another place for fighters to earn money.

Granted, the Fedor signing was big and an impressive move for CEO Scott Coker and company, but even that resulted in questioning of whether they can stock the heavyweight cupboard full of contenders. August has been an up-and-down month when it should have been all positive press.

Hopefully, the next few days will have the fight community and the mainstream buzzing a bit about what's going to take place. The reformatted undercard should be good, especially the Light Heavyweight title bout between Renato Sobral and Gegard Mousasi. Hieron/Taylor will be fun as will Melendez/Ishida.

Putting all of the issues with the undercard off to the side, this is going to be a turning point for the women's MMA business in that its two main draws are finally going to face off and main event a show in an industry that is almost completely male dominated.

If there was ever a time to put on a 48-hour media blitz, this is it and possibly Strikeforce's best opportunity ever to get the attention of ESPN in some form or fashion.

Carano vs. Cyborg this Saturday: are you excited yet?

Josh Nason—josh [at] ropesringandcage [dot com]—has published MMA, wrestling and boxing blog Ropes, Ring and Cage.com since 2007. He has been a contributor to Fight Magazine since January 2009, Bleacher Report since 2008, and a regular guest on Fight Network Radio.