Ufc/Strikeforce

[rrc]

My son and I are relatively new fans to ultimate fighting.

Can someone provide a quick background on the differences between the 2 organizations?

Were most of Fedor's wins against inferior competition?

Do strikeforce fighters aspire to fight in the UFC?

Was Pride before both organizations?

We'd love any background anyone could provide.

Thanks.

 

[kickserv]

There are lots of guys on here that will give you their two cents....here is mine:


"Were most of Fedor's wins against inferior competition?"

Some guys on here will say no, I will say hell yes. He did not fight the best. But back in 2004-2006 he was a bad ass. But from that point on he fought shit competition, and even had some fights that my grandma could win. In his last two fights he fought decent guys and lost. Some say he is the best ever, I think he was over-rated. But regardless he was (I say was because I think he's done) a damn good fighter and deserves most of the praise he gets. If he was in the UFC from 2008 onward he would have got exposed much earlier.


Do Strikeforce fighters aspire to fight in the UFC?

Most do, but some do not. I'd say 80% would love to fight in the UFC. Also, there are plenty of SF fighters that have fought in the UFC. The UFC is the top organization so like any athlete they want to fight the best. Of course you have dickheads like Gilbert Melendez and Nick Diaz that say they are #1 in their division but have no interest in fighting the best. "Big Fish, Small Pond".


Was Pride before both organizations?

Pride was before StrikeForce but UFC came way before Pride. Japanese MMA is pretty much dead. The only organization in Japan that seems to be ok is Sengoku (WVR). DREAM (sort of took over for Pride) is pretty much dead, they aren't even paying fighters now. Pride was bought out by the UFC (Zuffa) in 2007.


Difference between SF and UFC

The biggest difference is depth, SF has some good guys at the top, but their depth sucks. The other huge difference is the product. SF has been around for quite some time but they still make some of the dumbest decisions.

Take a look at rankings and you'll see UFC dominates but some other organizations have some top ten guys.

http://www.bloodyelbow.com/rankings

Look at Featherweight you'll see some outside of UFC.


Hope that helps.

 

[rrc]

Great info kick...thanks for taking the time to respond.

 

[kickserv]

No problem rrc

 

[gardenweasel]

pride had different rules...was more international....and more violent.....

their stars in the early to mid 2000`s were much more prolific(i.e. better) than the ufc`s stars......particularly in the higher weight classes...

and yes...during that time,fedor was absolutely recognized as the best pfp fighter in the world by most fans.....

like it or not,that`s just plain fact...

 

[WhatsHisNuts]

RRC: I was into the UFC when it first started, then lost interest somewhere after UFC 3. I got back into it a few years ago and I'm completely addicted. If you want a fun way to get into the sport, start renting the older UFC events, starting around UFC 70. You will get to see some of the guys that are stars today, fighting their way to the top. Watch them in order and you will follow the story lines that develop. Just watching people fight doesn't do it for me, so being able to piece together a fighter's history and understanding how he came to be is pretty cool and worthwhile.

 

[ukgaz]

Couple of things I will add.

UFC is clearly the top dog. StrikeForce was founded by kick boxing promoter Scott Coker who after a chance meeting with MMA legend Frank Sharmrock, had the basis for their first show.

Shamrock, one of the UFC's greatest champions, came out of retirement and bested famed coach, Cesar Gracie in just 20 seconds. Gracie never had a chance but Shamrock was just perfection in the build up to the show and selling the fight in his home city of San Jose. Also on that card was local San Shou superstar Cung Le.

At this point the promotion was mainly a regional show but was able to grow with Shamrock, Le and female superstar Gina Carano pulling in the crowds and TV ratings.

But as Shamrock and Le begun to fade StrikeForce knew they had to become National to survive. To be come National they had to incur the wrath of one Mr Dana White and the UFC.

After looking like they may struggle (especially with who controlled the ship - Coker or CBS or Showtime and the power struggle with M1) they now appear on path to make a nice sized profit this year.

I'm not sure if all the Strikeforce fighters aspire to be in the UFC. With success of the promotion comes bigger pay packets for the fighters - granted the UFC has PPV cuts for the big stars but a lot of sponsorship companies are banned by the UFC so the Strikeforce fighter can earn in that area. Plus eventually SF is going to want to try the PPV game as well. Plus take the UFC lightweight division. They have 60 fighters. Dana has said they want that down to 28 so there are lot of guys are going to get cut in 2011.

So the differences are going to be there for SF. They have had to take big risks with Fedor's management. If they wanted to grow they had to. The UFC can sell shows just on there name. Strikeforce can not. They have had to sell events using Shamrock, Le, Carano and Fedor

 

[THE_THONG]

i got into ufc when i started seeing the previews for the early ufc events with royce gracie and frank shamrock

i was like holy shit, they're going to fight for real

i was always into martial arts flicks like enter the dragon, blood sport

bruce lee and van dammage :SIB :0074

i could never order ufc on cable, i had to wait until they showed up six months later at the local blockbuster on vhs

i liked the carnage and the fighters from brazil had cool accents, the r's sound like an h sound in portugese :facepalm: :mj07:

i faded away from it after ufc got booted off time warner cable and it seemingly was destined to be an underground sport OUTSIDE the u.s.a

so this was when i got into boxing around the time marco antonio barrera was scheduled to fight naseem hamed. morales, casamayor, freitas, corrales were all on the rise

i remember maxboxing had this video of an ugly ass filipino midget training out of this gym called the wildcard, he was to take on barrera in texas

it's like who the fuck is this guy?!!:142smilie pac almost beat the metal plate out of marco's head :mj07:

i like both boxing and ufc, but not equally. i like boxing more because i look at it at its highest form as an artform, with ufc

it looks more like graffiti, it's still cool but i'm into impressionist paintings, other dudes like the street art
:shrug:

the guys in ufc are doing a lot of "point fighting", there needs to be a resurgence of PURE STRIKING
:mj07:

 

[ukgaz]

I remember that Hamed/ MAB fight. Wow was it 2001? I bet on Hamed. I think he just gave up before that fight. he wanted money. he got money and his motivation was gone. But that kid (I say kid he is 3 years older than me) was a joy to watch

 

[ukgaz]

As for Pride there first show was built around pro wrestling superstar Nobuhiko Takada, who was a (probably the) key figure in Japan's biggest money making feud in Japanese pro-wrestling history. Just one problem - he could not fight to save his life

Enter his student Kazushi Sakuraba. A small undersized fighter who seemed to find the key to unlocking the BJJ puzzle and with it the start the golden years of Pride as he battled the Gracies and in the process became a monster draw at the box office. Wandy and Fedor would soon follow and the rest was history

MMA history is fun and has so many great stories. Even if Kick disagrees:toast:

 

[kickserv]

Poor rrc just asked some simple questions and we are back to VHS tapes and Fedor nuthugging:facepalm: :mj07:

 

[gardenweasel]

i just don`t get all the hate....ufc/pride/strikeforce/bellator/dream.....who cares?....

man,it`s all gravy...why argue about it?...we all have our preferences...our opinions.....

i love it all...

very anxious about seeing regular shows on(wait for it)......... ...mtv 2 ?....:mj07:

i love it....bring it on...

 

[kickserv]

rrc is very confused now:facepalm:

 

[ukgaz]

Yeah MTV2.. Hope they do a good job. Bellator was one of the highlights of 2010. Shame Jimmy Smith won't be with them this season

 

[THE_THONG]

Poor rrc just asked some simple questions and we are back to VHS tapes and Fedor nuthugging:facepalm: :mj07:

:mj07:

mma = mixed bag of nuts

 

[THE_THONG]

rrc, needs to go back

and see the evolution of mma

from stone age days of ufc(hair pulling, joe-son-do getting his nuts crushed by keith hackney kenpo) :mj07:

fred ettish(archetye dork karate guy being humiliated)
marcos rua
early pride with rickson
ground and pound with mark kerr and mark colemen
igor vovchanchin
sakuraba vs gracie clan feud

rrc, there is a documentary, "THE SMASHING MACHINE"

where mark kerr goes to brazil and fights vale tudo in brazil

 

[rrc]

You guys are the best.

A dad and his 17 yr old son doing some bonding on Mad Jacks.

Priceless....

 

[kickserv]

Note: Your 17 year old son could beat some of the guys Fedor foughtkurby

 

[BUCSnotYUCKS]

i just don`t get all the hate....ufc/pride/strikeforce/bellator/dream.....who cares?....

man,it`s all gravy...why argue about it?...we all have our preferences...our opinions.....

i love it all...

very anxious about seeing regular shows on(wait for it)......... ...mtv 2 ?....:mj07:

i love it....bring it on...

i dont get it either. ppl act like the ufc is their family or friend? it's just an organization. they act like any fighter who doesn't fight in the ufc sucks or is afraid to fight in the ufc. newsflash, fighters are afraid to FIGHT.

why not just embrace other fighters, organizations, etc....instead of bashing them? i dont get why people bash other fighters/promotions for reasons not valid...

 

[kickserv]

I love the Sengoku girls..........