I am live from Suite 42 at the Sears Centre here in Hoffman Estates, IL, for tonight's Strikeforce event on CBS. The prelims are about to get underway and I'll update throughout the night with my thoughts on all the fights. Torch Supervising Editor Wade Keller will report live play by play on tonight's main card on CBS, and I will add my thoughts as the night goes on. Stick with us here tonight on MMATorch.com for live coverage of Strikeforce's biggest event.
Fight One - Christian Uflacker def. Jonatas Novaes via unanimous decision: Novaes nearly got disqualified in a very Anderson Silva vs. Yushin Okami-esque kick to the face from his back in the third round when Uflacker was on top of him, much like he was for the majority of the fight. This was a slow start to the night, with a bit of a stalemate on the ground once Uflacker was able to get it there, and he did every round. About 12 of the 15 minutes of the bout were seemingly spent with Uflacker in Novaes' half guard, unable to pass, and it just wasn't a very exciting start to the night.
-The crowd is about a third full thus far, as people continue to trickle in after the first prelim bout.
Fight Two - Nate Moore def. Louis Taylor via TKO at 3:24 of the second round: Taylor found himself on the wrong end of a couple of low blows during this one before ultimately winding up face down in the mat with Moore throwing uncontested blows to the side of his head. It was a competitive bout until Moore got a takedown and got Taylor's back in the second round. He then managed to flatten him out completely, giving him no choice but to attempt to cover up as he could not get out of that position.
Fight Three - Shamar Bailey def. John Kolosci via unanimous decision: Bailey dominated the action in the first round with a relentless series of takedowns and a smothering top game. Kolosci didn't sustain any damage, really, but he had no answer for the takedowns. It was the same story in the second round, and Kolosci was visibly frustrated by the smothering from Bailey. Bailey was docked a point in the second round for a knee to the head, which gave Kolosci a chance in the third after not being able to do anything through the first two. But it was back to Bailey smothering with takedown attempts against the cage and putting Kolosci on the ground again. There's a reason these are prelims, that's for sure. The entirety of the third round was Bailey trying for the double leg and Kolosci stuck with his back on the cage. The crowd is hoping things pick up soon. Strikeforce is too, I'm sure, as they don't want a dead crowd to start the CBS event.
Fight Four - Jeff Curran def. Dustin Neace via TKO (injury) at 1:39 of the first round: There was some decent back and forth between the two here, and the crowd got into it for the first time tonight, cheering on the hometown Curran. After a number of kicks were exchanged, the two clinched against the cage and the bout came to a halt when Neace clutched at his side due to an injury. It was an abrupt halt but it looked like a freak injury.
Fight Five - Marloes Coenen def. Roxanne Modafferi via submission (armbar) at 1:05 of the first round: This was a hell of a debut for Marloes and this fight needs to be put on the CBS broadcast. If they want to sell a challenger for Cristiane "Cyborg" Santos in her next fight, they need Coenen's fight on the broadcast tonight in front of this TV audience. She rocked Roxy early with a huge right hand but overshot her when she followed her to the ground, which put Roxy in her guard. From there, she worked her legs up the back to try for a triangle, and then she exploded for the armbar when Roxy tried to adjust her position. Excellent fight for Marloes and people should be excited to see her against Cyborg when the two face off, as she will be the next challenger. Great shot in the arm to a lackluster undercard, and we're getting very close to the live television broadcast.
-Well, it's looking like the bout between Mark Miller and Deray Davis will be tonight's swing bout, as they've just got music blasting through the arena and they aren't getting anyone out to fight. That means we're through with tonight's prelims, so be sure to check in to the main card reports tonight with Wade Keller's main card play by play on all of the action, and my thoughts on all of the main card fights after each finishes.
