Beta Labs MMA

UFC buying Strikeforce now noone was expecting that this weekend. I definitely didn’t but makes perfect sense for MMA and the business in MMA.

A little background, if you were an old school wrestling fan it would be like when the WWF brought WCW – both had their core audience but one was main stream the other less so.
WWF is UFC, bigger bolder and ultimately the primetime MMA broadcaster in the world, strikeforce is the smaller and more intimate organisation that actually made it onto live cable tv in the states. Internationally UFC made it onto cable and satellite networks for free yet in America it is PPV.

UFC were in talks with a number of very large cable channels in the states to be broadcast on a top channel, unfortunately for the fans it didn’t but fortunately for the hardcore fans it stated purest in its roots.

UFC has probably 25 in the top 30 fighters in its weight classes, strikeforce has one or two top fighters, albeit most were international fighters or UFC dropouts or cuts.

What the deal means – elitist MMA

I for one want the most elite mma fighters to fight, not like boxing where rankings and politics take presidence but where the best of the best fight.

UFC to its credit go after the best fighters, go after the top potential fighters and if they don’t make it they generally get humanly cut from the organisation.

A few things to remember –
Strikeforce will be run as a separate entity to the UFC – no change to Grand Prix etc
UFC brought WEC and merged the two organisations after promising they didn’t, Strikeforce fighters will have to up their game and get some good lawyers
Fedor constantly rejected UFC approaches, has lost two straight….not good for Fedor
Paul Daley number one contender in Strikeforce, got cut for punching Koscheck after the last round in his defeat at UFC 113. Daley may find it hard to convince Dana White to allow him another contract