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By: Jamie Penick, MMATorch Editor-in-Chief
Strikeforce may not be making their pay-per-view debut this July after all.
According to a report from MMAJunkie.com, Strikeforce is targeting July 30 for an event that would air on Showtime.
The front-runner for the night's headlining fight remains the bout between Dan Henderson and Fedor Emelianenko, which the report states is in advanced negotiations.
Though the date is not firmly set, and has not yet been confirmed by Strikeforce, it could take place from the Sears Center in Hoffman Estates, Ill., the site of Emelianenko's Strikeforce debut against Brett Rogers on CBS.
Emelianenko looks to rebound from two straight losses suffered after nearly a decade without a defeat. After his shocking submission loss to Fabricio Werdum, he followed that with a TKO loss to Antonio "Bigfoot" Silva in February.
Henderson, on the other hand, comes in off consecutive knockout wins after losing a decision to Jake Shields in his Strikeforce debut. A knockout of Renato "Babalu" Sobral in December earned him a shot at Rafael "Feijao" Cavalcante, whom he subsequently knocked out in March.
Penick's Analysis: With this fight being targeted as the main event, it makes more sense to have it on Showtime than pay-per-view. Emelianenko hasn't been a draw on pay-per-view in the past, and after two losses he wouldn't suddenly become one now. But this is still a great fight, and for a Showtime card it's worth putting on in the main event slot. There was a large contingent of Russian fans in attendance for his fight with Rogers at the Sears Center, so that would make for a good location for this fight if he's on the card again, too.
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Jamie Penick, editor-in-chief
(mmatorcheditor@gmail.com)
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