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Opinion & Analysis
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Roundtables
ROUNDTABLE (pt. 3 of 3): Which fighters would be most intriguing to see jump from UFC to Strikeforce? Penick, Hyden, Debar, Rowland, Leet
Cheick Kongo would be a great fighter to see in Strikeforce because he could possibly square off against Alistair Overeem. Here are two fighters that match up well stylistically speaking. And second, Clay Guida to fight Gilbert Melendez in a rematch for the Strikeforce Lightweight Title. Here is a great fighter in Guida who will probably have a difficult time ever seeing an opportunity at a Lightweight Title in the UFC.
FRANK HYDEN, MMATORCH COLUMNIST
Anderson Silva would be my first choice. I'd just like to see him crush everyone in a second organization. Jon Fitch would also be a good choice. I'd like to see what he could do in the Welterweight Division. Rampage going to Strikeforce would also be really cool. Silva vs. anyone in Strikeforce would be worth the money. Fitch I'd put up against Nick Diaz or Jake Shields. I'd put Rampage vs. King Mo.
GREG ROWLAND, MMATORCH AUDIO COHOST
I'd like to see one of AKA's Welterweights to move to Strikeforce. Josh Koscheck, Jon Fitch, and Mike Swick have created a logjam in the UFC 170 division that I want to see cleared up. I could see Fitch as the most likely to leave as he is the only one of the three who isn't a TUF guy, and I think he could beat Nick Diaz to win the Strikeforce title. Also, because I am a sucker for goofballs (see Wes Sims) and Strikeforce seems to be willing to feed them (see 'Mayhem' Miller) I'd like to see "Filthy" Tom Lawler get some airtime over in Strikeforce.
LARAMEY LEET
I would like to see Cheick Kongo go to Strikeforce. He has really hit a slump in his career and he needs to get back on the winning track. I think that at the moment he is really one-dimensional and he needs to work on his ground game and boxing skills. He is an amazing kick boxer, but that is all he brings to the table. Kongo lost two fights back-to-back by Frank Mir and Cain Velasquez. He will not get an easy fight in the UFC so he needs to depart. Kongo could really shake up the whole heavyweight division. You could match him against Brett Rogers or Antonia “Big Foot” Silva; there are plenty of match ups that would be good fights for him in Strikeforce. My next guy would have to be Nate Diaz. His early career in the UFC was okay, but in his last four fights he has lost three. With his competition bettering and his performance staying the same, he needs to join his brother in Strikeforce. Since the lightweight division is not strong at Strikeforce, Diaz could most definitely be close to the top. There are many more that could make the transition to Strikeforce to better their record.
JASON AMADI, MMATORCH COLUMNIST
Kenny Florian is a favorite of mine, but B.J. Penn is probably too much for him. Away from him, he’d definitely reign as the number two lightweight fighter in the world for a long time. I’d like to see him face Shinya Aoki, Josh Thomson, and Gilbert Melendez right away. I think Wanderlei Silva is past the point of being a top guy, and would be fun in StrikeForce’s Middleweight or Light-Heavyweight division. They don’t really have a lot of top guys in StrikeForce, but Wanderlei would be an exciting fighter, and they have so many of those, it would be fun. A fight with Wanderlei Silva and Melvin Manhoef would be insane; probably very bad for Wanderlei, but fun to watch nonetheless.
JAMIE PENICK, MMATORCH EDITOR-IN-CHIEF
I'd be very interested to see Jon Fitch or Thiago Alves in the Welterweight Division in Strikeforce, if only to see fights against two guys. Either of them against Nick Diaz or Jake Shields would make for a very exciting fight against top-flight 170 pounders, and that would be something I think a lot of fans would want to see.
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