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JR's Blog: Strikeforce Thoughts...Lesnar vs. Carwin/Lashley...Mean Gene's Grill...Kip Frey...On Line Biz Booming

Posted: May 17th 2010 By: mikeiles

Beautiful day w/o tornadoes in Oklahoma. Hope everyone's weekend is going well. We're having one of our biggest weekends of the year with our on line business which is awesome. Plus, I'm meeting with the grocery story folks next week to look at taking our products to the next level. Lots of positive things on going.

Thought the Strikeforce show on Showtime Saturday night was average but a decent night of TV. After watching UFC in Montreal, the live crowd in St. Louis felt subdued. With no TV vehicle with which to promote these Showtime events in advance it's challenging for many fans to emotionally engage in a Strikeforce fight like one does for UFC.

Why isn't Showtime doing a 30 minute TV show ala 24/7, etc to help fans want to engage in their MMA brand?

I have the same concerns as usual about a three man announce booth for the Strikeforce shows. Not sure why CBS is insistent on having a three man announce team nor am I sure what Gus Johnson brings to the table that Mauro Ranallo and Frank Shamrock couldn't handle.

MMA announcers in general still need to remember that every viewer is not a hard core fan and that simple explanations of basic terminologies need explaining more simplistically.

Was expecting more out of Brett Rogers vs. Alistair Overeem even though I felt the match would end via a KO. Perhaps I was just hoping to see more than one round. Or Rogers land more than one punch.

Now the talk has obviously turned to Overeem vs. Fedor Emelianenko for later this year which would be a fight that most of us would want to see. This would be a huge fight for CBS to air if they should choose to do so. Or is it a PPV? PPV strikes me as a bit of a risk with the overcrowded PPV marketplace.

Negotiating with Fedor and his 'people' is seemingly always unpredictable so nothing is guaranteed but without question, if Fedor wins his next fight, Fedor vs. Overeem is the 'money' fight for the Strikeforce/Showtime partnership. If it does occur, I'm curious as to how the CBS people will promote this attraction.

One can speculate that Overeem's physique and how he may or may not attain such will be a bigger point of contention that the fact that he's won 8 or his last 9 fights.

Andrei Arlovski has great name identity from his UFC days but his fight against Antonio 'Big Foot' Silva was a disappointment. Arlovski seemed to leave his passion in the locker room or the dojo as his performance was less than inspiring. I actually thought Arlovski would win the fight so I'm happy I placed no wagers. By the way, just how big are Silva's feet?

Does Arlovski really have fangs?

Jimmy Lennon, Jr. adds a nice, classy touch to the Strikeforce/Showtime presentations. Old timers will recall, with a smile, Lennon, Jr.'s dad who was one of the great boxing ring announcers of all time and who also did a ton of pro wrestling ring announcing.

Is Kevin Randleman done? He seems like his next fight could easily be his last. Roger Gracie has a bright future and his reach advantage over most in Gracie's weight class will always be an advantage.

Funny how many Anderson Silva verbal references were made Saturday night which would be like TNA talking about WWE or a specific star like John Cena on a TNA broadcast. I know I'm talking apples and oranges here but it just felt strange at times.

Loved it when Ranallo used the term 'styling' and 'profiling.' Nice to hear 'Naitch' get an indirect shout out from the long time wrestling fan. But, Mauro, no 'Slobber-Knocker?'

Strikeforce, without the benefit of any type of TV show to build up their fighters and fights, might want to consider using graphics to display fighter bio info so that the average fan could take a crash course in knowing more about the participants. This might work during the entrances which seem to be lacking in emotion and presentation.

The Q&A Section of the site has been updated as of Sunday afternoon. One dude took me to task that my 'ego and arrogance' that has caused my downfall. I actually printed the comments and gave him an answer. I don't think that I'm arrogant, at least I hope that I'm not, but I'm certainly not without 'ego' as ego driven self confidence kept me in the game when my 'look' and southern accent did me no favors with selected decision makers. But, hey, everyone has the right to their own opinion.

Dream Match for Undertaker? Easy one...young Andre vs. Undertaker at Wrestlemania with the Streak on the line. Might be a helluva video game play. Or, perhaps a red hot, Bruiser Brody vs. Undertaker also at 'Mania with the Streak at stake.

Favorite Shawn Michaels matches? Too many to list but some that quickly pop into my mind are HBK vs. Taker Hell in a Cell, HBK vs. Foley, HBK vs. Austin @ WM, HBK vs. HHH when Shawn returned to WWE after about a 4 year absence, and of course the WM25 match pitting Michaels vs. the Undertaker in Houston. Yeah, I know that I've probably left some other obvious one's out. Sorry.

Prediction...Brock vs. Carwin...I'm a Lesnar guy but I will guarantee you that this will be a war and will be Lesnar's toughest test to date in MMA. Shane Carwin has many of the same physical tendencies and comparable athletic background that Brock possesses but until someone gets it done, I'm going with Lesnar. The mental makeup of Brock Lesnar is something to behold and one has to fully understand the man to know just how much he hates/detests losing. The former WWE and NCAA champion will trainlike a madman in preparation for this July 3 confrontation on PPV in Vegas.

For the record, I've known many 'driven,' world class athletes in my career but none more so than Brock Lesnar.

Will we ever see a Lesnar vs. Bobby Lashley MMA match? Perhaps, but not any time soon. Lashley is still putting together his body of work and has many more fights to go until most feel that the talented Lashley could realistically challenge Brock.

Got a call today from old pal Mean Gene Okerlund who was on his way to Connecticut to do some WWE studio work this week. Gene is opening several more 'Mean Gene's Grills' in the coming weeks so check them out if one opens in your area. Do any of you have a 'Mean Gene's Grill' in your area now? If so, tell us about them. I think the world of Gene Okerlund and consider him a friend of which the wrestling business doesn't produce an overabundance.

How do I rate Taz' ECW career? It was extraordinary. Taz was ECW's version of Stone Cold and when Taz did something or said something I believed. Taz' on air persona in ECW was a tremendous example of how it's done. Taz believed and therefore the audience believed.

Was Kip Frey a TV writer? No...K. Allen Frey was the head of WCW for a time and a nice guy. He did not have pro wrestling product knowledge which has been the kiss of death more often than not for decision makers within the biz. Kip was fun to be around and I personally wish that he had stayed in WCW as I enjoyed working with him but he was put into a situation by Turner 'blue suits' that Kip needed time to understand and to wrap his arms around. Yet another example of the lack of respect and product knowledge displayed by many Turner executives who looked upon WCW essentially as a 'red headed step child.'

Over the generations, pro wrestling has been wrought with con men and Kip Frey was a victim of such thanks to being put in a position that he was not prepared to handle. It would be akin to someone being asked to run a NFL franchise and having no understanding of the game, it's players, traditions, and predicted pit falls.

Thanks for dropping by and a special thanks to all of you that have placed orders or who are going to place orders soon. We'll make your grilling season much more enjoyable. Be sure and keep sharing your recipes and the various ways that many of you are using our products.

Remember to follow us on Twitter at JRsBBQ.

Be well and keep counting those blessings.

Boomer Sooner!

J.R.

Tags: Jim Ross, TNA, WWE, Ric Flair, Andre the Giant, Bruiser Brody, Mick Foley, ECW, WCW