At Thursday’s UFC 140 pre-event press conference, UFC President Dana White was asked again about the future of Strikeforce, once competition that was purchased by parent company Zuffa earlier this year.
White not only said that Strikeforce will remain in business, but that big things are ahead.
“Just sit and wait and watch what I do. Trust me: it’s going to be just fine. Like I said last time when I talked to you guys about this, I’m getting into this and I’m going to handle it. Watch and see.”
Strikeforce’s deal with Showtime is set to expire in February 2012. The promotion officially announced a January 7th date today and fans are still waiting to hear about when Josh Barnett will battle Daniel Cormier in the Grand Prix finals. They will put their final event of 2011 next Saturday with Lightweight Champion Gilbert Melendez defending against Jorge Masvidal.
White said that a deal hasn’t been signed with the pay-cable provider yet, but that should come “any day now” with Monday potentially as the target for understanding what’s next. White was mum on any details, but alluded to the success of the WEC under the Zuffa banner as an example of how it could work. However, the WEC was eventually absorbed by the UFC, so perhaps that wasn’t the best example.
When the news is announced, we’ll have the details for you on BE. Could Strikeforce survive and how? Comment below with what you think.