UFC vs. Strikeforce: Weighing the Heavyweights

Announced Monday, Strikeforce’s commitment to Josh Barnett puts an end to his stretch of semi-obscurity following a positive test for banned substances in August 2009; it does not conclude the debate over which heavyweight division is superior, Strikeforce or the UFC’s. May, in fact, just make things worse.

The pro-UFC contingent will state (correctly) that a chunk of Strikeforce’s roster is made up of fighters who had mixed results in the Octagon: Andrei Arlovski (a former champion), Fabricio Werdum, and Mike Kyle. Alistair Overeem, while fit enough to enter a bodybuilding contest, hasn’t yet proven his skills against a significant heavyweight. Fedor Emelianenko is a question mark.

The UFC has a monopoly on boxer-wrestlers like Cain Velasquez and Shane Carwin, as well as barely-disputed Brock Lesnar; struggling Mirko Filipovic handled Barnett on multiple occasions. (The oddball spectacle has been well-represented in both promotions by James Toney and Herschel Walker: call it a tie.)

The issue is really one of fading stars from the past decade in comparison to talent groomed to be competitive in a ruthless environment: Pride stars like Emelianenko and Barnett alternated tough bouts with nonsense, where UFC athletes are expected to perform at a high level on a constant basis. In a head-on collision, I would expect Velasquez, Carwin, and Lesnar to give Barnett, Werdum, and Emelianenko a very hard time, if for no other reason than being used to constant resistance.

We know Barnett/Emelianenko is most interesting possibility of the signing, but it’s likely we’ll be made to suffer through Barnett vs. some bid of insipid “building” of the new hire in order to get audiences familiar with him. This rarely ever works -- fighters on a course for one another usually wind up losing prematurely -- and no one ever stops to think that a good pregame show and some press would have the same effect.

Ultimately, it’s not really about the volume of contenders but about the promotion’s ability to sift through the filler and put on competitive matches. Lesnar and Velasquez are fighting in a month; Lesnar just fought Carwin. Things are moving there. Hopefully the same will prove true of Barnett, Werdum, and the rest. Talent needs to fight talent.