By Raphael Garcia 
The mixed martial arts world world bid farewell to Strikeforce this past weekend with a card that many felt was an ode to the mismatches that the organization had become known for. However, it was still an exciting card to watch. Now, many of these individuals will be welcomed into the Octagon, and these are some captivating matches for those that won on Saturday:
Tarec Saffiedine vs. Josh Koscheck
Saffiedine was the underdog going into his bout with Nate Marquardt, but he used a varying attack to stifle the veteran and pull out a decision victory. He’s become the first Belgian fighter to ever hold a belt under a Zuffa promotion, and with that win he locked up his opportunity to fight in the UFC, where the welterweight division is probably the toughest in the sport. A matchup with Josh Koscheck would be a perfect way to welcome the final Strikeforce champion into the fold.
Throughout his bout with Marquardt, Tarec beat the former champion to the punch in exchanges, and he dominated the bout overall. The leg kicks that left Nate’s leg purple and discolored would be an interesting weapon against a powerful wrestler like Koscheck who leaves that lead leg open. A victory against a longtime contender in Koscheck would be a perfect start to Tarec’s career, and a fight between the two could be a featured bout on any of Fox’s platforms.
Daniel Cormier vs. the winner of Gabriel Gonzaga vs. Ben Rothwell
Daniel Cormier walks into the UFC as the Strikeforce Heavyweight Grand Prix Champion, and with perhaps the most hype of any combatant to benefit from the acquisition. With his smashing of Dion Staring and calculated call out of Frank Mir and Jon Jones, Daniel has given the fans and analysts something to talk about over the coming months. However, if he elects to stay at heavyweight, Cormier should be matched against the winner between Gabriel Gonzaga and Ben Rothwell, who are poised to meet at UFC on FX 7.
Gonzaga and Rothwell are two individuals who have spent extended periods of time ranked in the top 10 at heavyweight, and Gonzaga once challenged for the title. Both fighters have names that the fans should recognize, and a victory over either would serve as a strong introduction to the UFC fanbase, many of whom have never seen Cormier fight. It is an appropriate welcome fight for Cormier, and one does not necessarily derail his quest to hold a title in the UFC.
This bout would work timingwise, and should be either a Fox or pay-per-view feature contest.
Josh Barnett vs. the winner of Lavar Johnson vs. Brendan Schaub
Josh Barnett was once the UFC heavyweight champion, but since that time hasn’t had the best of luck within the division. However, he has still proven to be one of the toughest heavyweights around, and his experience works well against many in the weight class. Either Lavar Johnson or Brendan Schaub would serve as a good opponent to welcome “The Warmaster” back into the UFC fold.
Josh Barnett is one of the best grapplers around in the heavyweight division. Once he gets the fight to the ground, there are very few that can stifle his ability to pass guard, mount, and look for submissions. While his striking isn’t the best, he’s shown an ability to avoid taking massive amounts of damage to get fights to the ground. Both Johnson and Schaub have shown the striking skills to put fighters away, and that advantage would be vital if matched against Barnett.
Josh Barnett against either Lavar Johnson or Brendan Schaub would serve best as a bout on one of the free platforms through the UFC’s partnership with Fox.
Former light heavyweight champion Gegard Mousasi has been on a tear since losing his title to “King” Mo Lawal back in 2010. With five wins and one draw in his six fights since then, he has looked much improved, and is now riding that wave into the UFC. Phil Davis would be a tough test to welcome Mousasi into the organization.
Mousasi seems to have corrected the problems against wrestlers that allowed Lawal to take his title. If he has the takedown defense to hold off some of Davis’s takedown attempts, he would be able to score in the striking department, where he would hold an advantage. Mousasi has also shown cardio problems in the past, and that would be a question mark that needs to be answered before he can be considered a prospect from Strikeforce worth consideration.
Davis vs. Mousasi would work across any of the UFC’s platforms, but would work best on a European card.
Ronaldo Souza vs. Constantinos Philippou
The middleweight division has experienced a resurgence of sorts lately, as a number of contenders have made themselves stand out in a quest to face Anderson Silva. The former Strikeforce middleweight champion Souza made an impressive statement of his own, however, needing less than one round to submit UFC middleweight Ed Herman during the final Strikeforce card. Matching him against the surging Constantinos Philippou would be a good way to find out which athlete is really going to continue that momentum through 2013.
Souza is a grappling wizard who has what some consider to be the best grappling abilities in MMA. Philippou, however, stands out when he’s mixing up his striking, and has yet to face a fighter with the submission skills that “Jacare” brings to the Octagon. The positional battle would be the key to this fight, as Souza would try to get it to the ground, while Constantinos would work to keep things on the feet.
Souza vs. Philippou would work as a main card bout on any of the free Fox outlets.
2013 will be the year we get to see whether the fighters who were standouts in Strikeforce will be able to successfully transition to the largest stage in mixed martial arts. With some key victories, we may be looking at new title challengers across a number of weight classes.
