Strikeforce on CBS thoughts: Amurica wins again

I think my initial reactions to watching this Strikeforce card would be that they have a very long way to go.  While it was an amazing endeavor to put on a primetime card for free with three title fights, the night was marred with technical snafus.  The use of the three commentators, only two of which who understand MMA, did not work at all.  While Gus Johnson and Frank Shamrock seemed to take over, Mauro Renello had a hard time getting a word in.  Shamrock looked like a villain from a bond film and at one point during the main event said something to the effect that "being trained in jiujitsu makes you better at jujitsu than someone not trained in jujitsu."  CBS needs to hammer this out and find a way to appear more professional in its production.

SBN coverage of Strikeforce: Nashville on CBS

There were also things about the production that I found both entertaining and innovative.  Using the new EA Sports MMA footage as a simulation of each fighter's game plan was actually kind of cool, and it was another way to promote the game.  The return of the runway entrance was also great to see.  Not quite Genki Sudo, but King Mo at least attempted to bring some swag with him into the cage.  I also thought the individual pre-fight hype videos were great, much more interesting than just having a fighter interviewed behind a black background. 

While they probably weren't the most entertaining of fights, there were in fact three upsets.  We saw a few guys get knocked down a few pegs and it will be interesting to see where they go from here.  After getting beaten like a pilgrim wife for the entire first round, Jake Shields was able to avoid the right hand of death and eek out another win over another marquee opponent.  As for Mousasi and Aoki?  Both men have some serious soul searching to look forward to on the long flight home.  (If they can get a flight out of the US.)

For me, the most exciting fight of the night was Jason Miller vs. Gilbert Melendez, Jake Shields, and the Diaz brothers.  Never in my wildest fantasies did I ever imagine.  Hope you guys like the WEC, because I have a feeling that's all the free fighting you're going to be seeing for quite some time.  I don't know whether to blame the CBS producer who undoubtedly allowed/pushed Mayhem into the cage, or Miller himself, but that little scuffle probably didn't help the MMA image campaign.