Fedor Vs. Henderson Fight Card Previews

The main event at Strikeforce: Fedor vs. Henderson is, naturally, Fedor Emelianenko vs. Dan Henderson. The former PRIDE heavyweight champion takes on the current Strikeforce light heavyweight champion in a heavyweight affair. Fedor weighed in at 223lbs yesterday while Henderson tipped the scales at 207lbs. This is a non-title fight scheduled for three, five-minute rounds. Henderson enters this bout after having bested Rafael Cavalcante to take the title Henderson currently owns. Emelianenko enters this bout after being stopped by Antonio Silva back in February.

The fights kick off on Showtime tonight at 10 p.m. ET. For more ways on how to watch, check out our guideline.

In this video, I explain the keys to victory for both fighters. While I have picked Henderson to win, Emelianenko arguably has more ways to win, both standing and by submission. By contrast, Henderson will likely have to win by being more aggressive standing, electing to control pocket real estate and being first in exchanges.

The co-main event of tonight's Strikeforce: Fedor vs. Henderson is a women's welterweight fight for the division's title. Women's welterweight is 135lbs. Champion Marloes Coenen defends her title against challenger Miesha Tate. Coenen enters this bout having most recently defeated Liz Carmouche at Strikeforce: Feijao vs. Henderson. Tate enters this bout after a long layoff, having most recently competed in August of 2010 where she bested Hitomi Akano. This fight is scheduled for five, five-minute rounds.

The fights kick off on Showtime tonight at 10 p.m. ET. For more ways on how to watch, check out our guideline.

In this video, I try to argue despite the layoff, Tate's combination of wrestling with submission grappling might prove too potent of a combination for Coenen. However, a year off from competing in conjunction with Coenen's battle-tested skill set is a tall order for any challenger.

The third fight on the main card of Strikeforce: Fedor vs. Henderson is a middleweight bout - meaning 185 pounds - between Tim Kennedy and Robbie Lawler. Kennedy enters this bout having most recently defeated Melvin Manhoef at Strikeforce: Feijao vs. Henderson. Lawler enters this most having most recently lost to Ronaldo Souza at Strikeforce: Diaz vs. Cyborg. This is a non-title fight scheduled for three, five-minute rounds.

This is a non-title bout scheduled for three, five-minute rounds.

The fights kick off on Showtime tonight at 10 p.m. ET. For more ways on how to watch, check out our guideline.

In this video, I try to make the case that Lawler's wrestling, while not poor, won't significantly improve even among the company of excellent wrestlers in Ryan Bader, Aaron Simpson and C.B. Dollaway. Moreover, Kennedy has the ability to mix wrestling with submission grappling, something likely to be troublesome of Lawler.

The second fight on the main card at Strikeforce: Fedor vs. Henderson is a welterweight bout - meaning 170 pounds - between Paul Daley and Tyron Woodley. While nothing is official, it is believed the winner of this bout could contend for Strikeforce's vacant welterweight title. Daley enters this bout having most recently been stopped by former Strikeforce welterweight champion Nick Diaz. Woodley enters this bout having most recently defeated Tarec Saffiedine in January of 2011. This is a non-title bout scheduled for three, five-minute rounds.

The fights kick off on Showtime tonight at 10 p.m. ET. For more ways on how to watch, check out our guideline.

In the video below, I argue Woodley is probably the safer pick given the skill differential in wrestling. But the reality is Daley can attack without having to kick, has underrated defensive wrestling and Woodley lacks finishing skills. Daley, for certain, is perfectly capable of defeating Woodley.

The first fight on the main at Strikeforce: Fedor vs. Henderson is Tarec Saffiedine vs. Scott Smith. This is a welterweight bout, meaning 170 pounds. The fighters have never faced the other and both enter this bout coming in off of a loss. Saffiedine lost to fellow main card competitor Tyron Woodley back in January while Smith was recently knocked out cold by Paul Daley in December at Strikeforce: Henderson vs. Babalu.

The fights kick off on Showtime tonight at 10 p.m. ET. For more ways on how to watch, check out our guideline.

In the video, I explain that Saffiedine has more skills and blends more divergent elements of the offensive game than Smith. Smith's also taken a worrisome amount of damage in his career, losing three of his last four. Saffiedine, though, stands a little too tall in the pocket, something Smith could exploit.