Non-Title Bout

Gegard “The Dreamcatcher” Mousasi vs “The African Assassin” Rameau Thierry Sokoudjou

Round 1:
Sokoudjou landed a nice combination and a leg kick early on and followed with a left hook to the liver. A head kick just missed from Mousasi, but he scored with a leg kick. Time was briefly called after an inadvertent low blow from Mousasi. A left hook and a right leg kick landed for Sokoudjou and Mousasi answered with a quick flurry. Sokoudjou landed another one-two and followed with a leg kick, but Mousasi backed him up with a barrage of punches.

Sokoudjou scored a takedown and tried for a guillotine from the top, but Mousasi reversed and worked from side-control as Sokoudjou already began to breathe heavily. Mousasi looked for a Kimura and Sokoudjou scrambled up, then threw Mousasi to the mat. Sokoudjou secured a guillotine choke and Mousasi broke free. Mousasi attempted a trip takedown, but Sokoudjou reversed. Sokoudjou stood up and ate a trio of upkicks, and Mousasi used an extremely impressive leg trip from his back to take Sokoudjou down. Very close round. 10-9 Mousasi.

Round 2:
Quick punches were exchanged in the opening seconds of round two and Mousasi clinched against the cage. He landed knees to the legs and body and the fighters traded big punches. Mousasi tripped Sokoudjou to the mat, but wound up on the bottom. Mousasi worked for a Kimura and used it to sweep, then stood up. He took Sokoudjou down and landed punches from the top. Mousasi postured up and rained down hard punches until an exhausted Sokoudjou turtled and the referee stopped the fight. Solid win for Mousasi.

Winner: Gegard Mousasi by TKO (Punches) at 3:43 of round two. He improves to 27-2-1.

Post-Fight Press Conference Notes:
The soft-spoken Mousasi stated that he had tried out a new game plan for the fight and it had not been effective, but he was pleased to have taken the win over Sokoudjou, whom he felt was very underrated going into the fight.

Sokoudjou also offered relatively few comments, but said that he had trained hard and done his best, but tonight had simply not been his night. He praised Mousasi as an excellent fighter. Sokoudjou will look to rebound in the finals of the DREAM Super Hulk Tournament at K-1 Dynamite!! 2009 on New Year’s Eve.

Fabricio “Vai Cavalo” Werdum vs Antonio “Bigfoot” Silva

Round 1:
Silva just missed with a head kick early on and the fighters traded leg kicks. Werdum rushed forward, but was rocked by a big combination from Silva and fell to his back. Silva landed more punches from a standing position, but Werdum managed to weather the storm. Back on the feet, Werdum landed a leg kick and kept his distance. He landed a punch-kick combination and clinched, but was tossed to the mat.

Silva allowed Werdum to stand and landed two leg kicks, but Werdum cracked him with a hard right cross counter. Silva clinched and Werdum reversed against the cage. An elbow over the top backed Werdum up, but Werdum recovered and tried for a head kick. Silva answered with a knee and Werdum just missed with another head kick. Wild spinning kicks followed from Werdum and Silva clinched. He landed another big elbow over the top and Werdum dove for a takedown. Silva landed punches from the top. 10-9 Silva.

Round 2:
A one-two from Silva dropped Werdum in the opening seconds, but he quickly recovered and kicked at Silva’s legs. Werdum grabbed onto a leg and swept Silva, then worked from half-guard. He postured up and punished Silva with punches from the top. Silva scrambled back to his feet and ate a pair of leg kicks from Werdum. Silva clinched against the cage and tried to take Werdum down.

The fighters engaged in a stalemate in the clinch and the referee separated them. Silva missed with a lunging one-two and clinched again, but Werdum reversed and pressed him against the cage. He took Silva down and punched from half-guard. Werdum passed to side-control and tried for a Kimura, then locked on a kneebar in a scramble. Silva powered out before the bell. 10-9 Werdum.

Round 3:
Leg kicks were exchanged to begin the final round and Werdum landed a one-two. He clinched and pressed Silva against the cage. Silva landed an elbow and backed away, but Werdum took him down. Silva gave up his back and Werdum landed punches to the sides of Silva’s head. Silva battled back to his feet and Werdum landed a knee from a Thai clinch. Silva landed a three-punch combination and Werdum began to dance around as he dodged Silva’s punches.

Werdum clinched again and pushed Silva against the cage, then landed more knees from a Thai clinch. Werdum backed away and both fighters landed hard rights. Werdum once again danced around Silva’s punches as the pace slowed. He secured a front head lock and landed knees to Silva’s head, then dragged him to the mat. Werdum scored with more punches and nearly passed to mount, but opted to strike from half-guard instead. He tried for an arm-triangle choke just before the bell. 10-9 Werdum.

Winner: Fabricio Werdum by Unanimous Decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28) after three rounds. He improves to 13-4-1.

Post-Fight Press Conference Notes:
Werdum was asked whom he would like to face next and he referenced his 2006 submission victory over reigning Strikeforce Heavyweight Champion Alistair Overeem, but stated that he would like to be the next challenger for Fedor Emelianenko.

Strikeforce CEO Scott Coker said that it would depend on Overeem’s availability, but that Overeem would be forced to either defend his belt in early 2010 or vacate the title for a new champion to be crowned.

Marloes Coenen vs Roxanne Modafferi

Round 1:
The first round began with an immediate exchange of strikes and Modafferi, showing significantly improved technique, landed a one-two and a body kick. Coenen backed up briefly, but countered with a two-punch combination of her own and punctuated it with a hard leg kick.

Coenen dropped Modafferi with a right hook, but Modafferi recovered and managed to drag Coenen to the ground. Modafferi looked to work from Coenen’s guard, but Coenen wasted little time in trapping Modafferi’s right arm in an armbar. She flattened Modafferi out and extended the hold, forcing Modafferi to quickly submit.

Winner: Marloes Coenen by Submission (Armbar) at 1:05 of round one. She improves to 20-3-0.

Post-Fight Comments:
After the fight, a clearly disappointed Modafferi, who had had a giant smile on her face throughout the week after finally receiving a chance to compete in Strikeforce, reflected on the bout.

She felt that she had not had a chance to display any of the skills that she had learned throughout the year, but should return to compete in her natural weight class (135 pounds) in Strikeforce next year.