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If Strikeforce is able to renew a deal with Showtime and extend its run on the premium-cable station beyond February, no shortage of storylines is emerging for its female fighters.
Two big ones came out today during a Strikeforce media call.
For one, Strikeforce women's featherweight champion Cristiane "Cyborg" Santos is considering a move down to 135 pounds – a division that could soon see champ Miesha Tate take on fast-rising Olympian Ronda Rousey.
Santos (10-1 MMA, 4-0 SF), of course, has been on the sidelines for 18 months after extended and sometimes-exhausting contract negotiations. But she returns next week at "Strikeforce: Melendez vs. Masivdal," where she meets Japanese veteran Hiroko Yamanaka (12-1 MMA, 0-0 SF) in the night's Showtime-televised headliner. But if victorious, Santos, who's ruled Strikeforce with iron fists, said she'd consider a move down to 135 pounds, where opportunities are plentiful.
"It's going to be difficult, but I'm going to try to make the move if there's more work for me there," she said through a translator. "I want to try to do both [weight classes] if possible because there are more opportunities at 135."
Consider that a warning shot for Strikeforce's current female bantamweights. Santos has won her past 10 fights, including four straight in Strikeforce with devastating knockouts. But the organization has struggled to find worthy challenges, and recently, the 135-pound division has been getting all the limelight.
That's due largely to two reasons. For one, there's the attention current champ Tate (a recent "Female Fighter of the Year" winner at the 2011 World MMA Awards) has gotten since taking the title from Marloes Coenen. And two, there's the ultra-quick rise of Rousey, who's blown through seven amateur and pro opponents in an average time of 35 seconds per fight. All of the judoka's wins have come via armbar.
Rousey has made no secret of her desire to fight Tate, though former champ Sarah Kaufman had been expected to get first dibs. But even if it means Rousey cutting in line, Strikeforce CEO Scott Coker said he has no problem giving Rousey (4-0 MMA, 2-0 SF) a title fight so quickly with Tate (12-2 MMA, 5-1 SF).
"If you look at an MMA fighter, you can't just look at how many MMA fights they've had; how many matches in judo, how many competitive martial-arts matches, has she had?" Coker said. "When you look at a jiu-jitsu fighter, you might only have five, six or seven fights but a thousand jiu-jitsu matches.
"You have to look at the total package."
Part of that total package also is her marketability, and Rousey has it in spades. Obviously, good looks have helped garner her some attention, but she's also looked good in competition against solid competition. Coker specifically points to a recent Strikeforce Challengers 20 win over Julia Budd, who appeared to have her arm broken by a Rousey armbar in a mere 39 seconds.
That's why Coker has no problem booking Tate vs. Rousey.
"With her Olympic experience and all those matches in judo, it makes her very credible very quickly," Coker said. "I'd have no problem putting that that fight together because of all the past experience she has in the Olympics and judo.
"Ronda's the real deal."
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