Strikeforce: Barnett vs. Kharitonov

Strikeforce: Barnett vs. Kharitonov
Information
Promotion	Strikeforce
Date	September 10, 2011
Venue	U.S. Bank Arena
City	Cincinnati, Ohio
Attendance	7,006
Event chronology
Strikeforce: Fedor vs. Henderson Strikeforce: Barnett vs. Kharitonov Strikeforce: Melendez vs. Masvidal

Strikeforce: Barnett vs. Kharitonov was a mixed martial arts event held by Strikeforce that served as the Heavyweight Tournament semifinals.^[1] The event aired live on Showtime.^[2] The event took place on September 10, 2011 at U.S. Bank Arena in Cincinnati, Ohio.

Background

Ronaldo Souza and Luke Rockhold were rumored to meet at Strikeforce: Fedor vs. Henderson, but the bout was moved to this card.^[3]

Alistair Overeem was expected to face Antônio Silva in the semifinals of the Strikeforce Heavyweight Grand Prix at this event. However, on July 18 it was announced that Overeem refused to compete at this event, claiming that a toe injury would prevent him from being ready in time. Alistair Overeem was subsequently removed from the tournament and released by the company, he was replaced by Daniel Cormier.^[4]

Gegard Mousasi was originally scheduled to face Mike Kyle at this event,^[5] but it was later announced that Strikeforce newcomer Marcos Rogério de Lima would replace Mousasi in the bout.^[6] The Mousasi/Kyle fight would eventually take place at Strikeforce: Marquardt vs. Saffiedine in January 2013, where Mousasi won by first round submission.

Josh Thomson was scheduled to take on Maximo Blanco at this event. However, on August 23, it was announced Thomson had to withdraw from the bout due to a foot injury.^[7] Pat Healy stepped in as Thomson's replacement.^[8]

On August 23, 2011, it was announced that the preliminary card for this show would air live on HDNet.^[9] This would be the last Strikeforce event to feature televised prelims on HDNet, with remaining 2011 preliminary bouts not being televised, and future preliminary cards were instead shown on Showtime Extreme.

Results

Preliminary card (HDNet)

• Middleweight bout: Dominique Steele vs. Chris Mierzwiak

Steele defeated Mierzwiak via unanimous decision (29–28, 29–27, 29–27).

• Women's Bantamweight bout: Alexis Davis vs. Amanda Nunes

Davis defeated Nunes via TKO (punches) at 4:53 of round 2.

• Light Heavyweight bout: Mike Kyle vs. Marcos Rogério de Lima

Kyle defeated de Lima via unanimous decision (29–28, 29–28, 30–27).

• Welterweight bout: Evangelista Santos vs. Jordan Mein

Mein defeated Santos via TKO (elbows) at 3:18 of round 3.

• Light Heavyweight bout: Rafael Cavalcante vs. Yoel Romero

Cavalcante defeated Romero via KO (punches and knee) at 4:51 in round 2.

Main card (Showtime)

• Lightweight bout: Pat Healy vs. Maximo Blanco

Healy defeated Blanco via submission (rear-naked choke) at 4:27 of round 2.

• Light Heavyweight bout: Muhammed Lawal vs. Roger Gracie

Lawal defeated Gracie via KO (punches) at 4:33 of round 1.

• Heavyweight Grand Prix Semifinal bout: Antônio Silva vs. Daniel Cormier

Cormier defeated Silva via KO (punches) at 3:56 of round 1.

• Heavyweight Grand Prix Semifinal bout: Josh Barnett vs. Sergei Kharitonov

Barnett defeated Kharitonov via submission (arm-triangle choke) at 4:28 of round 1.

• Middleweight Championship bout: Ronaldo Souza (c) vs. Luke Rockhold

Rockhold defeated Souza via unanimous decision (50–45, 48–47, 48–47) to become the new Strikeforce Middleweight Champion.

Heavyweight Grand Prix Bracket

	Quarter-finals				Semi-finals				Final
	Fedor Emelianenko	RD 2
	Antônio Silva	TKO
					Antônio Silva	RD 1
					Daniel Cormier**	KO
	Alistair Overeem	RD 3
	Fabrício Werdum	UD
									Daniel Cormier	UD
									Josh Barnett	RD 5
	Andrei Arlovski	RD 1
	Sergei Kharitonov	KO
					Sergei Kharitonov	RD 1
					Josh Barnett	SUB
	Josh Barnett	RD 2
	Brett Rogers	SUB

** = Replacement

Alternates

• Shane Del Rosario
• Chad Griggs

Reported Payout

The following is the reported payout to the fighters as reported to the Ohio Athletic Commission. The salaries listed below do not include fight bonuses, sponsorships, percentages and other unofficial payments. It also does not include deductions for expenses such as insurance, taxes, etc.^[10]

• Luke Rockhold: $50,000 ($25,000 win bonus) def. Ronaldo Souza: $70,000
• Josh Barnett: $150,000 (no win bonus) def. Sergei Kharitonov: $100,000
• Daniel Cormier: $100,000 ($50,000 win bonus) def. Antonio Silva: $100,000
• Muhammed Lawal: $85,000 (no win bonus) def. Roger Gracie: $80,000
• Pat Healy: $17,500 ($5,000 win bonus) def. Maximo Blanco: $13,000
• Rafael Calvacante: $60,000 ($30,000 win bonus) def. Yoel Romero: $10,000
• Jordan Mein: $16,000 ($8,000 win bonus) def. Evangelista Santos: $20,000
• Mike Kyle: $44,000 ($22,000 win bonus) def. Marcos Rogerio de Lima: $5,000
• Alexis Davis: $6,000 ($3,000 win bonus) def. Amanda Nunes: $7,500
• Dominique Steel: $5,000 ($3,000 win bonus) def. Chris Mierzwiak: $3,000

References

1. "Strikeforce World Heavyweight Grand Prix". strikeforce.com. 2011-07-25.
2. "Sources: Strikeforce grand prix semifinals set for Sept. 10". MMAjunkie.com. 2011-07-15.
3. "Ronaldo ‘Jacare’ Souza Defends Strikeforce Title Against Luke Rockhold on Sept 10". MMAWeekly.com. 2011-06-05.
4. "Overeem yanked from Strikeforce grand prix, Cormier to fill in against "Bigfoot"". MMAjunkie.com. 2011-07-18.
5. "Mike Kyle vs. Gegard Mousasi possible for September Strikeforce event". MMAJunkie.com. 2011-06-22.
6. "Top Prospect 'Pezao' Set for Sept. 10 Strikeforce Debut Versus Kyle". sherdog.com. 2011-07-19.
7. "Josh Thomson scratched from "Strikeforce Grand Prix: Barnett vs. Kharitonov"". MMAjunkie.com. 2011-08-23.
8. "Healy replaces Thomson, meets Blanco at "Strikeforce Grand Prix: Barnett vs. Kharitonov"". MMAjunkie.com. 2011-08-30.
9. "HDNet to air "Strikeforce Grand Prix: Barnett vs. Kharitonov" prelims and weigh-ins". MMAjunkie.com. 2011-08-23.
10. "Strikeforce: Barnett vs. Kharitonov" salaries: Barnett tops $942,000 fighter payroll". MMAjunkie.com. 2011-09-12.