Roundtables
ROUNDTABLE (pt. 1 of 2): Should Strikeforce have signed Josh Barnett? Lee, Hyden, Hobaugh, Leet and Hansen
Sep 16, 2010 - 4:49:30 PM ROUNDTABLE (pt. 1 of 2): Should Strikeforce have signed Josh Barnett? Lee, Hyden, Hobaugh, Leet and Hansen

DISCUSS ALL THIS IN OUR NEW MMATORCH FORUM

...OH, ONE MORE THING - PLEASE BOOKMARK US & VISIT DAILY!

Should Strikeforce have signed Josh Barnett? Who will they match him up with first and how do you think his time in the organization will play out?

ERIC LEE, MMATORCH CONTRIBUTOR

Signing Josh Barnett was a smart move for Strikeforce. To stay relevant in the MMA world they need the biggest names they can get. I think Barnett vs. Rogers would be an excellent fight for him and a great way to introduce him to the Strikeforce heavyweight division.

FRANK HYDEN, MMATORCH CONTRIBUTOR

Well, I can think he can help Strikeforce, but they do have to be worried about his past drug test failures. I could easily see him getting popped on a test days before a big fight. I don't think Barnett has a lot left in the tank, but he should give Strikeforce some good fights. I think his first fight is either Brett Rogers or Antonio Silva. Despite his past, I think Barnett's time in Strikeforce will be relatively uneventful. He'll probably leave after a handful of fights, on to his next stop.

ERIC HOBAUGH, MMATORCH SPECIALIST

NO WAY! This is a person that has tested positive for steroids multiple times. How many opportunities do we need to allow these cheaters to hurt our sport? I know he has a name and sells PPV's and puts asses in seats, but he is bad for the sport. I am not a Brock Lesnar fan because he is a bad sport. The same goes for Anderson Silva. Neither of these fighters has ever tested positive for a banned substance. I would rather see both of them remain at the top of their respective weight classes than to see Josh cheat his way to top. What’s terrible, is with the way the Strikeforce Heavyweight division is stacking up right now, he can come right in and have an immediate impact. They will give him Fedor Emelianenko as his first fight. This was an excellent fight when it was supposed to happen last August, and will be an easy sell this time. He was going to fight for the title against Fedor anyway. Even with the steroids and the loss of the title by Fedor, this is a sellable fight. That is why this guy stays around, until the first drug test at least.

LARAMEY LEET, MMATORCH CONTRIBUTOR

I think that Strikeforce really had to sign Barnett. They really have a weak heavyweight division overall, so another well known name is going to help put fans in the seats and want to make people watch. It is a risk signing the guy since he single handedly demolished Affliction. But, there are a couple of good match ups with Barnett, and I think that he will be put against Brett Rogers in his first fight. That way win or lose they make or break a star. The only reason they would put him against Arlovski is to just diminish Arlovski's name completely. I could see Antonio Silva vs Barnett and that would be an interesting match-up, but I really see them putting him against Brett Rogers

RICH HANSEN, MMATORCH COLUMNIST

Strikeforce is (cliche alert!!!) in between a rock and a hard place (I know, I'm a lazy writer, bite me.). They insist on thinking of themselves as a direct competitor to the UFC, but their roster is nowhere near UFC caliber. As a result they have to take risks, some more desperate than others, some less meaningful than others. The Dream partnership, for instance, earned the promotion a grand total of 0 dollars, and 42 new fans (and those are only people who credit Strikeforce for making Shinya Aoki cry). So that was a decision with very little impact.

The Barnett decision is a risk, but it also comes with very high reward potential. Strikeforce's top seven HWs can hang with the UFC's top seven HWs now (which will be covered in greater detail in a future roundtable). Barnett is also more than capable of defeating every HW in MMA. Not saying he will, just saying he can. But we all know the downside here. He's tested positive (allegedly, Jim Rome) three times, and he is tarnished as a result. The disaster scenario is simple. SF books him versus Fedor (or whomever else), and he fails the test. Or, he gets booked versus Fedor and they demand Olympic style drug testing from Barnett like they did for a proposed Overeem fight. If Barnett declines, his past record guarantees that he is not allowed the benefit of the doubt.

Two great things can come of this signing, though. 1.) He can stay clean and be successful. 2.) Going back to the Olympic testing thing with Fedor - Say Barnett accepts, and Fedor undergoes the same regimen, and both guys are clean all the way through. This immediately sets a new precedent which should then be implemented by all fighters in all the major companies. And that could be a VERY positive accomplishment for the entire sport.