Welcome to America: Gegard Mousasi's Superstar Potential

Gegard Mousasi must have woke up this morning cursing M-1 management.

Last night, Gegard Mousasi put on a crushing display of dominance, stopping Renato "Babalu" Sobral just a minute into his eagerly awaited American debut to capture the Strikeforce light heavyweight title while hardly breaking a sweat.  Mousasi pulverized "Babalu" with vicious ground and pound strikes that left Sobral looking like he'd just stuck his finger in an electrical socket. 

Calm, cool, and collected, Mousasi showed none of the nerves that one would expect from a fighter making not only his debut in the biggest MMA market in the world but also his debut in the cage after a full career spent fighting in a ring.  A lot of fighters who are accustomed to the many advantages of competing in a ring - better ability to work angles, re-starts when too close to the ropes, etc. - have expressed concern over fighting in the cage (see: Emelianenko, Fedor), yet Mousasi was unfazed by it all.

During the post-fight interview, Mousasi acknowledged that his first U.S. bout came with a bit more stress, but it was akin to a free diver admitting that a 300 meter descent would add pressure to his lungs. 

Fact is, Mousasi came off like a star and now just needs to be marketed like one.  Mousasi is young, good-looking, speaks English, and is, obviously, a hell of a fighter.  He possesses all of the tools required to be a huge star in the United States, and that is where his management did him no favors.  Credit Mousasi for being a man of his word and sticking with the contract he signed with Strikeforce even when it became apparent that M-1 Global played him like a Volynka though later Mousasi said there were no issues with his management and no contract offer from the UFC.

Everyone knows that Scott Coker and Strikeforce have had major difficulty building stars because they don't have the huge promotional muscle behind them that the UFC does.  Strikeforce is to UFC, as Reebok was to Nike.  Just as Strikeforce has some successful fighters, back in the day Reebok had some successful shoes.  Still we all know: Air Jordans > The Pump. 

The question now is who exactly will they have Mousasi fight after his upcoming fight with Sokoudjou?  Strikeforce's light heavyweight division is as thin as skim milk, "Feijao" needs to be built back up after a humiliating KO loss to Mike Kyle and the prospect of Mousasi facing Bobby Southworth is as exciting as a bowl of bran flakes.   

Mark my words, in the next couple of years Mousasi will be as big an MMA superstar as Georges St. Pierre.  But Strikeforce won't be the promotion to get him there - the UFC will.

Strikeforce: Carano vs. Cyborg coverage