Strikeforce May 15 Results & Recap: Strikeforce St. Louis Fight Results - May 15, 2010
Strikeforce put on their second major event in as many months when they traveled to St. Louis on May 15, 2010 for a Showtime televised event called Strikeforce: Heavy Artillery. The fight card for the Strikeforce May 15 event consisted of a Heavyweight title fight between champion Alistair Overeem and Brett Rogers and the Strikeforce: Heavy Artillery results and recaps of the televised fights are listed below. Fans can also find historic Strikeforce results online here at ProFighting-fans.com.
Strikeforce: Heavy Artillery took place this past Saturday night at the Scottrade Center in St .Louis, Missouri. The event featured Brazilian jiu-jitsu sensation Ronaldo “Jacaré” Souza, former UFC Champion Andrei Arlovski, and the return of Strikeforce Heavyweight Champion Alistair Overeem. In the span oftwo hours, we saw another Gracie triumph,Arlovskioutboxed by Silva, andthe demolition of Brett Rogers by the fists of Alistair Overeem in route to his first Strikeforce Heavyweight Title defense.
10 fighters entered the cage hoping to fulfill their dreams and propel themselves to the top of Strikeforce. Some succeeded, some failed. Here is where those10mixed martial artists stand following Strikeforce: Heavy Artillery.
Strikeforce: Heavy Artillery Main Card
Antwain Britt vs. Rafael Calvacante
Loser: Antwain Britt –This was Britt’s big opportunity to launch himself from obscurity into a light heavyweight title fight against “King Mo”Lawal. Britt is by no means a top light heavyweight fighter, but due to Strikeforce’s anemic 205-pound division, and Britt’s highlight reel of knockouts, he was propelled to the top of Strikeforce’s light heavyweight division. However a low gas tank and a tendency to drop his hands faster than a gunslinger left Britt on the receiving end of a viscous first round knockout Saturday night. After starting off like a bulldozer, frequent clinching from Calvacante wore down the former 300-pound fighter and left him his arms heavy. At 32 years of age, I don’t expect Britt to get much better as a fighter. Sadly for him, Saturday night was probably the only opportunity he’ll ever get at a title fight, and a poor game plan, bad boxing technique, and inadequate conditioning ruined his chance to seize it.
Winner: Rafael Calvacante – Calvacante delivered the Knockout of the Night when he put Britt to sleep standing up. There were many “experts” counting Calvacante out of this fight after his humiliating loss to Mike Pyle, but Calvacante came prepared with a sold game plan and power in each hand that only the best light heavyweights posses. While this win by no means makes Calvacante a top light heavyweight, it does move him into position to take on Strikeforce Light Heavyweight Champion “King Mo.” If he can defeat “King Mo”, then one can start talking about adding Calvacante into their top 10 rankings, but such talk sounds more like a pipedream than a reality when one considers the wrestling/ground and pound combination of “King Mo” Lawal.
Roger Gracie vs. Kevin Randleman
Loser: Kevin Randleman – It’s hard to watch Randleman fight these days, without his youthful athleticism Randleman is a shell of his former self. The Randleman that knocked out Cro Cop and suplexed Fedor would have smashed Roger Gracie Saturday night. But the year is 2010, not 2004, and we’re in American, not Japan. While reports surfaced that “The Monster” was overcoming a recent staph infection – look at Big Nog’s fight versus Frank Mir to see how debilitating staph can be on a fighter –infected or not, Randleman has become more Pokémonthan mythical beast.
The only substantial blow landed by Randleman was a combination to the body early in the second round. But otherwise, Randleman refused to engage, and instead decided to sit on his powerful hands in the hope that one clean shot would reveal itself. It never did, and because of such a faulty game plan, Randleman was put to sleep the jiu-jitsu way, via rear-naked choke. Randleman’s days in the top organizations are numbered, and with each disappointing performance, a fight with Ken Shamrock draws ever closer.
Winner: Roger Gracie – Gracie looked good Saturday night, but when I fight my mother I look pretty good too. It was a solid fight for Gracie in only his third MMA appearance, but I’ll hold off on the bandwagon. Gracie’s jiu-jitsu, as expected, was top tier, but his striking was average. Had he been in the cage with Antwain Britt or Rafael Calvacante Saturday night, it may have been Gracie who caught some early Z’s. His knees from the clinch were delicious, especially the one that sent Randleman crashing to the canvas in the second round and began the clinic in Gracie Jiu Jitsu, but his hands are too slow to trade with any legitimate light heavyweight.
At the post-fight press conference Gracie said, "I'm pretty sure I'll be fighting soon. I don't really know exactly when but hopefully the second part of the year. I'll be fighting more often now." If this is true, than maybe Gracie is starting to take MMA serious. If he can utilize the focus and dedication that brought him to the top of the jiu-jitsu world, then a run at the Strikeforce Light Heavyweight Title is not out of the question. During the fight, Strikeforce commentator Mauro Ranallo said that Gracie trains 80% jiu-jitsu and 20% striking. If Gracie doesn’t want to be the one sleeping next time around, he’ll need to do 80% striking and 20% No-Gi Jiu-Jitsu. But that’s only if he’s serious.
Ronaldo Souza vs. Joey Villaseñor
Loser: Joey Villaseñor – Villaseñor handled himself well Saturday night against a top ten middleweight and jiu-jitsu expert. While the fight wasn’t as close as the commentators would’ve liked us to believe, Villaseñor managed to make a fight of what many expected to be a highlight clip for Souza. Villaseñor could not stop Souza’s takedowns, which ultimately led to his ruin, but he did an excellent job at nullifying Souza’s jiu-jitsu and forced the submission expert to settle for a meager ground and pound. Villaseñor landed a couple of good shots on the feet, bloodying Souza’s nose, but it was not nearly enough to get the win. Had Villaseñor been able to stop Souza’s double-legs, we may have been witness to one of the bigger upsets of 2010; but he didn’t, and Villaseñor lost, albeit impressively.
Winner: Ronaldo Souza – Souza didn’t do much to improve his stock with this fight, but having fought only four minutes in the last year, a tough fifteen minute war of attrition may have been best for his future. Souza displayed excellent wrestling, getting takedown after takedown, but surprisingly, he had no answer for Villaseñor’s submission defense. The closest Souza came to finishing the fight was when he had full mount mid-way through the first and was raining down blows to the vulnerable Villaseñor. From then on, Souza was unable to put the MMA journeyman in trouble, and was forced to settle for a unanimous decision. Souza’s boxing looked improved, throwing tight punches with impact, but as the fight wore on, his boxing began to unravel and it was his wrestling that saved him from an upset defeat.
With this win now behind him, the best fight for Souza in Strikeforce would have been against Jake Shields, but with Shields seemingly jumping ship to the UFC, Souza will have to settle for an easier path to becoming the face of Strikeforce’s middleweight division. In the process he may finally get that rematch he’s been waiting for with “Mayhem” Miller ever since Miller illegally kicked his head open a year ago in Japan, and that rematch may just be for the Strikeforce Middleweight Championship.
Strikeforce: Heavy Artillery Co-Main Event: Andrei Arlovski vs. Antonio Silva
Loser: Andrei Arlovski – This was suppose to be Arlovski’s comeback fight, his chance to redeem himself after two consecutive knockout losses. But instead, the Belarusian Pitbull was left licking his wounds after suffering a unanimous decision loss to Antonio Silva Saturday night. Losing three fights in a row is traumatic enough, but even worse, Arlovski was beat at what he does best, box. Surprisingly it was Arlovski who was getting tagged on the feet, as Silva beat him to the punch and countered everything the Belarusian Pitbull threw at him. Just as surprising was the fact that Arlovski, considered to have a glass chin, was able to withstand the powerful shots coming his way. In an ironic twist, just when Arlovski could take a punch, he couldn’t deliver one.
There were reports that, following his 20-second defeat to Brett Rogers, Arlovski engaged in a game of Russian Roulette. While this fight didn’t end in humiliating fashion for the Belarusian like his fight with Rogers did, it was even more demoralizing for the sole fact that Arlovski, the supposed boxer trained by Freddy Roach, was out boxed by Silva, a fighter who got beat on the feat six months prior by jiu-jitsu champion Fabricio Werdum. Where Arlovski goes from here, I’m sure not even he knows right now. I hope for his sake, and his family’s, he stays away from Roulette table, because as Christopher Walken demonstrated in the classic film “The Deer Hunter”, glass chin or not, the human face can’t take a bullet.
Winner: Antonio Silva – There were many who thought Silva might win the fight, but none of the many thought he would outbox the “boxer.” Some thought Silva might get one punch through and knock Arlovksi out, but none predicted he’d be getting off first and countering the man who looked poised to box Fedor into defeat at Affliction: Day of Reckoning. With this impressive win, Silva has managed to get people talking about a possible showdown with “The Last Emperor” himself, Fedor Emelianenko. While I don’t think Silva is ready for a fight with Fedor, a convincing win over Brett Rogers may put him in line to fight the winner of Fedor/Overeem when/if that fight happens. The marked improvement shown by Silva in his standup from when he fought Werdum is amazing. It reminds me of the improvement shown by fellow heavyweight Cain Velasquez from his fight with Ben Rothwell to his fight with Big Nog; although I think Cain’s improvement was far more significant. Even still, there was much hype surrounding Silva when he first burst onto the MMA scene, but disappointing performances against Eric Pele, Ricco Rodriguez, and Fabricio Werdum squashed most of it. With his performance Saturday night, Silva has once again got the hype train rolling, only the future will tell if it derails.
Strikeforce: Heavy Artillery Main Event: Alistair Overeem vs. Brett Rogers
Loser: Brett Rogers – After much talk about how much he learned from his fight with Fedor six months ago, Rogers proved he learned little. Once again Rogers was hesitant to let his hands go, and for the second time in a row, Rogers was defeated by his opponent before he even entered the cage. Rogers is a classic case of a fighter being thrown into the deep end before he’s fully learned how to swim. It is a problem with organizations like Strikeforce who don’t have enough talent to bring their fighters along and are forced to pit them against the best before their fully groomed. While “King Mo” was able to keep on swimming, Rogers has sunk and is in danger of sinking his entire career. Whether he can get back to the surface is entirely up to him and how he chooses to take these two consecutive KO losses.
Hopefully Rogers puts things in perspective and realizes that not only was he was in there with two of the best heavyweights in the world, but until recently he hadn’t been training MMA full time. A fight with Antonio Silva may be just the cure for Rogers as Silva is a worthy opponent, but one who doesn’t pose the killer touch of a Fedor or Overeem.
Winner: Alistair Overeem – Overeem proved he’s a top ten heavyweight Saturday night when he made quick work of Rogers in his first title defense in over two years. While Rogers didn’t put up much of a fight on the ground, Overeem did a good job controlling him and opening him up for some brutal ground and pound. We really didn’t get to see much of Overeem, thanks in part to his heavy hands, and Roger’s insistence on turtling up against the cage as Overeem loaded up those hammers. From what we did see, we know he is a worthy adversary for Fedor, a heavyweight colossus who may just may have the weapons to dethrone “The Last Emperor.”
If Overeem can toss Rogers aside with seeming ease, I can only imagine what he might do to a small heavyweight like Fedor. Even still, Overeem left many openings for Rogers that the inexperienced, and somewhat scared, fighter was unable to capitalize on. Fedor is as experienced as they come, and when he steps into the cage, fear doesn’t appear to cross his mind, let alone any emotion. If Fedor can get past Werdum, Fedor and Overeem should headline the next CBS show in the fall (I don’t see CBS not giving Strikeforce one more shot, especially with Fedor on board). If that happens, the biggest heavyweight fight of 2010 may not be in the UFC, but Strikeforce.
Biggest Loser of the Night: Andrei Arlovski
Biggest Winner of the Night: Alistair Overeem
By Jeffrey Concerto
ProFighting-fans.com MMA Staff Writer
Fight Card Results for Main Strikeforce May 15 Fights:
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Showtime Televised Strikeforce Fight Card Results:
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Alistair Overeem (c) defeats Brett Rogers by TKO (Strikes) - Round 1 @ 3:30 - Overeem retains the Strikeforce Heavyweight Championship belt
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Antonio "Bigfoot" Silva defeats Andrei Arlovski by Unanimous Decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
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"Jacare" Souza defeats Joey Villasenor by Unanimous Decision (30-27, 29-28, 29-28)
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Roger Gracie defeats Kevin Randleman via Submission (Rear Naked Choke) - Round 2 @ 4:10
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Rafael "Feijao" Cavalcante defeats Antwain Britt by TKO (Strikes) - Round 1 @ 3:45
Results for Preliminary Strikeforce Heavy Artillery Fights:
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Jesse Finney defeats Justin DeMoney via Submission (Guillotine Choke) - Round 1 @ 3:22
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Lyle Beerbohm defeats Vitor "Shaolin" Ribeiro by Split Decision (30-27, 28-29, 30-27)
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Darryl Cobb defeats Booker DeRousse by Split Decision (28-29, 29-28, 29-28)
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Mike Chandler defeats Sal Woods via Submission (Rear Naked Choke) - Round 1 @ 0:59
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Fransisco "Kiko" France defeats Lee Brousseau via Submission (Rear-naked choke) - Round 1 @ 1:27
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Tom Aaron defeats Erik Steenberg via Submission (Guillotine Choke) - Round 1 @ 0:56
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Matt Ricehouse defeats Greg Wilson via Submission (Rear Naked Choke) - Round 3 @ 0:45