Penick's Take
PENICK: Breaking down potential semifinal match-ups for the Strikeforce Heavyweight World Grand Prix
Jun 15, 2011 - 10:15:24 PM PENICK: Breaking down potential semifinal match-ups for the Strikeforce Heavyweight World Grand Prix

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By: Jamie Penick, MMATorch Editor-in-Chief

The Strikeforce Heavyweight World Grand Prix quarterfinals finally continue on Saturday night, more than four months after they began, with Alistair Overeem taking on Fabricio Werdum and Josh Barnett facing Brett Rogers. The winners will then go on to face off against Antonio "Bigfoot" Silva and Sergei Kharitonov, who defeated Fedor Emelianenko and Andrei Arlovski, respectively, with the kickoff of the tournament in February.

The fighters on Saturday each present different problems for the two men that have already moved on in the field, and depending on how Saturday's fights play out they're in for very different match ups this fall. Here's how they match up against their prospective opponents:

Antonio "Bigfoot" Silva vs.:

Alistair Overeem: The Strikeforce Heavyweight Champion and 2010 K-1 World Grand Prix kickboxing champion possesses some of the best striking skills in the division. The strides he's made in that area, and the size he's built up over the last several years, have him poised to break out as one of the top fighters in the division. He's now just trying to get his resume up to speed with his perceived level in the division. A win over Werdum puts him up against what could be an even bigger challenge in Silva. "Bigfoot" represents by far the largest man Overeem will have faced, and his size, wrestling and ground and pound game could make for one of the biggest tests of Overeem's career. It's the striking and power of Overeem on his feet against the wrestling and top game of Silva. Of the two fights available for Silva, this is probably the more dangerous, despite the fact that he's already lost to Werdum.

Fabricio Werdum: Even though Overeem probably represents a more dangerous opponent, Silva would still need to find a way to do what he was unable to in November of 2009 if he gets a rematch with Werdum. The longtime veteran, should he defeat Overeem, will have won four straight fights in Strikeforce since his loss to Junior Dos Santos led to his UFC release in 2009. The first matchup between these two saw Werdum pick up a decision in a fairly even fight, and I'd expect a rematch to be similar. However, Werdum would be at a high in terms of confidence if he follows up his win over Fedor with a second win over Overeem. This is a fight that would again take place everywhere, with both likely to score takedowns, land combinations, and get the other into precarious positions. No matter who wins the fight on Saturday, Silva's got himself one hell of a semifinal fight.

Sergei Kharitonov vs.:

Josh Barnett: Despite the perceptions Brett Rogers gained for himself in the fight with Overeem last year, he remains a very tough opponent for Barnett upon his return to action in the U.S. However, if he gets past Rogers, he is an extremely difficult opponent for Kharitonov. His wrestling and boxing will matchup well against Kharitonov's boxing game, but Kharitonov's sambo background as well helps him somewhat in the grappling department. That's where Barnett will be favored, however, and in the event this fight comes together, Kharitonov will need to out strike Barnett before he gets taken to the ground. It makes for a rough, possibly grinding affair, but a good heavyweight match up nonetheless.

Brett Rogers: This has to be the fight Kharitonov is looking for, because Rogers' striking game plays right into what he wants to do when he steps in there. This fight would see both heavyweight sluggers looking to swing for the knockout blow, and may well be the more entertaining of the two possible fights. If Rogers pulls off the upset over Barnett, I wouldn't expect this fight to last very long when it happens later this year.


Regardless of who wins these final two quarterfinal fights on Saturday night on Showtime, the semifinal match ups should provide for some very good heavyweight fights that will hopefully lead to a very good finals matchup early next year. The intrigue and draw of this tournament has been hurt by the delay between these two sets of quarterfinals, but there are still a lot of good fights to be had, and any of these possible match ups will be welcome this fall.