Strikeforce and WEC Provide a Must-See MMA Weekend

Even the most loyal of UFC fans should be itching for the remote control this weekend to check out two of the best MMA events of a summer that’s chock-full of them, as Strikeforce and World Extreme Cagefighting step up to the plate on Saturday and Sunday night, respectively.  Top ten-ranked fighters Robbie Lawler, Jake Shields, Nick Diaz, Andrei Arlovski, Urijah Faber and Mike Brown will be in action, along with some other great matchups that are sure to provide fireworks.

Strikeforce provides a card on Saturday night that is free to Showtime subscribers (surely you know one; just kindly inform them you’ll be coming over on Saturday) that is stacked from top to bottom.  Every fight on the main card either has implications in the rankings or is primed to be an exciting matchup.

The Lawler-Shields fight is worthy of a spot near or at the top of the card in any organization in the world.  Lawler is 8-1 with a no contest since October of 2004, a record that has taken him out of the “fun to watch, but out of the title picture” category and into the elite category of middleweights in mixed martial arts.  Meanwhile, Shields has methodically cranked out an eleven-fight win streak since December of 2004, so no matter what happens here, someone will be tasting defeat for the first time in four and a half years.

The other fights are of high quality, too, with Nick Diaz taking on the always-exciting Scott Smith, and Andrei Arlovski stepping in for Alistair Overeem to face one-time Kimbo Slice nemesis Brett Rogers.  Everyone wants to see if Arlovski can bounce back from the extreme disappointment that was his fight against Fedor Emelianenko, of course.  Cap it off with what is sure to be a slugfest between Phil Baroni and Joe “Diesel” Riggs, and a fight between Kevin Randleman and Mike Whitehead, and you have a night of fights that’s not to be missed.

Even with the UFC on the sidelines, Zuffa is present this weekend as the big show’s sister promotion, WEC, will have a long-awaited event this Sunday night.  For free on Versus, you can check out the highly anticipated rematch between WEC Featherweight Champion Mike Brown and former champ Urijah Faber.  What’s interesting about this fight (besides the difference in styles between the fundamentally-sound Brown and the freewheeling Faber) is that while Faber was far and away the most highly-regarded featherweight in the world just months ago, he now is being picked to lose by many against Brown.

The rest of the WEC card is rounded out with a bout between Jose Aldo and Cub Swanson, along with a fight between Jens Pulver, who badly needs a win, and Josh Grispi.  As usual, the WEC card, while not necessarily filled with household names, will have no shortage of high-energy fights between some of the best featherweights and bantamweights in the world.

If you need any proof of the depth of quality of fighters outside the UFC, just look to this weekend’s events for evidence.  With several fighters that rank among the best in their weight classes in action, and a few fights that appear to be earmarked for possible fight of the year status, every MMA fan should be checking out the Strikeforce and WEC events this weekend.  As always, Fightmania.com will have you covered with pre-fight analysis and post-fight coverage of both events.  Make sure to check back for a Strikeforce preview (and fight picks) tomorrow, with WEC picks and analysis coming on Sunday.

by Jon Hartley for Fightmania.com

Tags: Alistair Overeem, Andrei Arlovski, Brett Rogers, Fedor Emelianenko, Jake Shields, Jens Pulver, Mike Brown, Nick Diaz, Robbie Lawler, Strikeforce, UFC, WEC