Merger of a Lifetime

Big Dump Daddy here.


Well who didn't see this coming? Seriously. Dana White and the men at Zuffa are not about competition at all. Pride, WEC and now Strikeforce. The kings of MMA are soaking up companies that dare to compete with the all powerful  UFC brand. Please don't take it that I am dissing on UFC, I am not. I think the company is the end all be all and pioneer of the sport we have all loved from the start or have learned to love over the last few years.

Scott Coker is no Dana White. However I felt he was doing an excellent job promoting Strikeforce and its brand of exciting fighters. You could bet that anytime a Strikeforce event was on there was excitement. Rarely did a fight go the distance and fighters laid it all on the line to win. Maybe the matchmaking was set up so that this would happen. Maybe the talent was lopsided and it was hard for them to get a card that would take it to the final bell. Whatever the case I can say that I was never..repeat never..disappointed with a Strikeforce card. Sometime I had to do a little digging to get a background of fighters but it was well worth the few seconds. Can we expect the same type energy and sense of urgency of the fighters now?

Dana White says he will not schedule UFC cards on nights of Strikeforce events. Also the deal with Showtime has been extended until 2014. Will there be changes? Yes. Will they be for the better? That is debateable. Unifying the rules will be a plus. I think there needs to be a blanket set of regulations across the board. However Zuffa and the UFC has an impressive roster and it is gonna be a struggle for an up an comer to get a chance for a shot at one of the "big" promotions. In my opinion this is going to really limit exposure and options for young guys to break into the industry.

This is a definate game changer no matter how you look at it. Scott Coker's days are numbered and it will be a matter of time before our pals at Bellator are announcing something similar to this. There are hundreds of local promotions though all over the country that are more than willing to give a guy a change. I want to just give a quick shout out to one of Kentucky's finest.  Absolute Action MMA is a Northern Kentucky based promotion coming up on a year of doing business in the bluegrass. We at bluegrassmma.com missed out on the last show but followed the play by play on Twitter. Some matches were quick, others went longer but overall from the reactions and feedback it was a top notch show for the local fans. You can check out them out at http://www.aamma.net/ and on Twitter at @aamma.

Stay tuned for predictions and more commentary on the Strikeforce/UFC merger right here.