UFC Buys Strikeforce: Top 6 Possible Implications Going Forward

MMA news broke this weekend, and it was a doozy.

Zuffa LLC, the parent company of the Ultimate Fighting Championship, bought rival North American organization, StrikeForce.

The Strkeforce brand will remain and there will not be any huge immediate changes.

That is because Dana White emphasized that with Strikeforce it will remain "business as usual."

Strikeforce president Scott Coker will remain on board, and all current Strikeforce contracts will remain intact.

It seems that Strikeforce will not be absorbed in the way that Pride was, but maybe that just makes it more fun to speculate on the long-term implications.

These are the top 6 potential implications going forward...

6. Fighter's Union?

The purchase of Strikeforce is a major step towards singular leadership over the sport and an essential monopoly.

If this happens, you can expect major support for a fighter's union to materialize.

Other major sports have this (player's unions), and it might be a matter of time before we see a Fighter's Union in mixed martial arts.

5. Bellator Rises Up

MMA superpowers seem to often come in "twos."

For a long time it was "Pride vs UFC"—and then the UFC bought Pride. 

Strikeforce was starting to emerge as the No. 2 promotion and a major player in MMA, but then the UFC bought them.

With StrikeForce, now under the Zuffa banner, maybe it will give Bellator their chance to rise up.

Fighters enjoy Bellator's tournament format, and it already is a growing a brand.

Could Bellator rise up and become the next major player in mixed martial arts?

4. Exchange of Fighters/Talent

What fans are most excited about, of course, is the possibility of top Strikeforce stars being matched up against UFC talent.

Sadly, that will not happen right away.

Dana White said there will be no "co-promotions" and no "superfights."

After all the current Strikeforce fighters' contracts are up, however, the door will be wide open...

Now there can be more fights, more fighters, and even more exciting matchups.

3. Strikeforce Becomes Zuffa's American Stronghold

Strikeforce could become the main Zuffa foothold in America, while the UFC continues it's incredible global expansion.

The UFC holds major events in England, Germany, Australia, Canada, United Arab Emirates, and soon Brazil and more countries.

That is a lot of time that Dana White and the top UFC brass spend abroad.

Maybe Scott Coker and Co. will be responsible for holding down the fort at home. 

2. Strikeforce Becomes the Official UFC "Minor Leagues"

Maybe Strikeforce becomes the official minor leagues for the UFC.  

Maybe fighters can no longer can come straight into the UFC from outside the Zuffa banner.

If you are a champion in a different organization, you do not get the luxury of saying "Man, I could beat that UFC champion if only they would make the fight happen."

No my friend, you must prove yourself in the organization first, then you get a crack at the UFC.

Now that the UFC has seven weight divisions, Pay-Per-View events might be reserved exclusively for title fights, top contender bouts, and marquee matchups with star power.

1. UFC Becomes Ubiquitous

The UFC is already growing so much that you can see it branded all over the place.

Now that they own Strikeforce, they can also make use of all their media connections which include, but are not limited to: the Russian M-1 Global company, Showtime, and CBS.

Anything that has to do with Strikeforce, will now indelibly be branded with the UFC on top of it.

The UFC already has toys, video games, and gyms branded after them; do not expect it to stop there.