- Admin
- #1
For casual MMA fans, the Strikeforce heavyweight Grand Prix just took a major hit with the ouster of Alistair Overeem. Now the biggest name in the tournament is gone and the card loses a lot of steam without Overeem, a fan favorite.
Couldn't this have been avoided? Did Overeem overplay his hand or did Zuffa make a mistake? Yahoo! Sports' lead MMA writer Kevin Iole checked in to give his take on this video blog.
"The Reem" told Zuffa he wouldn't be ready for Strikeforce 36 in early September, but October was good. That would mean the other three participants would have to adjust their schedules for Overeem. Keep in mind, both Antonio Silva and Sergei Kharitonov haven't fought since February.
The bigger issue? The October schedule is already jammed. Oct. 1 is out with UFC on Versus 6 in New Orleans, UFC 136 on Oct. 8 and Oct. 29 has UFC 137.
Don't forget Showtime is already booked for Oct. 15 with Bernard Hopkins facing Chad Dawson. So the only open weekend is Oct. 22. Does Showtime have the staff to effectively set up and promote major fight cards on back-to-back weekends?