Overeem Demolishes Rogers at Strikeforce: Heavy Artillery

ST. LOUIS — Heavy.com is live and on the scene for tonight’s “Strikeforce: Heavy Artillery” event at the Scottrade Center in St. Louis, Missouri. Headlining the event will be a Strikeforce heavyweight title match between devastating kickboxer Alistair Overeem and top contender Brett Rogers.

Our live coverage will begin with the preliminary bouts, which begins at roughly 7:30 p.m ET. Join us for complete coverage of all the preliminary and televised bouts!

Matt Ricehouse vs. Greg Wilson

Wilson never quite found a rhythm in this fight, mainly due to the fact that Ricehouse would not let him. Ricehouse worked well on the feet, but the minute Wilson had a bit of success, he would take him down. Things really started to fall apart for Wilson in the second, when Ricehouse worked to the full mount and remained in dominant positions throughout the vast majority of the fight. He nearly locked on an anaconda choke, but Wilson managed to ward off the submissions.

The exhausted Wilson answered the bell for the third round rather exhausted, and Ricehouse seemed to notice. A nice slam gave Whitehouse the back of his demoralized opponent and gave him the opportunity for a rear naked choke at 0:45 of the third round. Dominant performance by Whitehouse in the opening fight of the night. Whitehouse via submission (rear naked choke) at 0:45 of Round 3.

Tom Aaron vs. Erik Steenberg

Not much to write about here. Aaron landed an early takedown and looked to pass. Steenberg was stubborn at first, but left the veteran an opening to sink in a tight guillotine choke before the fight aged a minute. Aaron via submission at 0:56 of Round 1.

Lee Brousseau vs. Francisco France

This fight did run longer than the Steenberg-Aaron 56 second affair, but not by much. After a short feeling-out process, France landed a takedown, and Brousseau decided to give up his back. France flattened him out and sunk in the choke without any hesitation at all. France via submission (rear naked choke) at 1:27 of Round 1.

Mike Chandler vs. Sal Woods

Chandler looked for the takedown early and got caught in a fairly deep guillotine, but managed to roll out of it. Back to the feet, he once again looked to get the fight to the floor and he did so in a big way. A powerful slam seemed to disorient Woods, as Chandler effortless moved to his back, sinking in the hooks and flattening out his opponent. Moments later, the choke was in and the fight was over. Chandler via submission (rear naked choke) at 0:59 of Round 1.

Booker DeRousse vs. Daryl Cobb

In the first minute, we learned that Cobb had a rather effective sprawl and the support of the fans. DeRousse’s initial shots to get the fight to the ground were stuffed by the hometown boy, but he finally managed to get his takedown and worked in some ground and pound for the better half of the five minute first round.

While DeRousse may have stolen the first, he looked fairly exhausted entering the second. After getting stuffed on his first takedown attempt, he managed to get Cobb to the ground and looked to score the fifth submission victory of the night. But Cobb was having none of it, rolling into the guard of DeRousse and then into side control. As the round came to a close, Cobb moved to the full mount where he did what little damage he could in the closing seconds.

The third round was similar to the first two, as Cobb was able to stifle the initial takedown efforts. But there was no stopping DeRousse, who scored another takedown and hung out on top for the remainder of the fight. However, his wrestling would not be enough to earn the win against the hometown favorite. Daryl Cobb via split-decision (29-28, 28-29, 29-28).

Vitor “Shaolin” Ribeiro vs. Lyle “Fancy Pants” Beerbohm

Round 1

Beerbohm immediately looks for the takedown and the two clinch up against the cage. Beerbohm has an underhook, but is not having much luck controlling Ribeiro, who nearly throws himself over the back of “Fancy Pants”. Knee by Ribeiro lands, but Beerbohm continues to press him up against the cage. The clinch game continues with neither man holding much of an advantage. And the two are still clinching with not much action. The referee resets them, and Beerbohm looks for a takedown yet again, which leads the two back to the clinch again. Ribeiro thinks about working a kimura, but decides against it. Crowd begins to show their disapproval of the clinch battle, booing loudly for a few seconds. Beerbohm continues to press Ribeiro up against the cage, but the referee separates them after another incredibly uneventful clinch war. The round ends and the crowd boos. Not surprised consider the fighters spent 99% of the round in the clinch. Heavy.com scores the first round for Beerbohm, but it was very close.

Round 2

“Fancy Pants” comes out the second round pretending he is willing to stand, but Ribeiro knows better, stuffing the takedown and landing some rather powerful knees. Each fighter shoots for a takedown, but they just end up back on the feet. Body kick lands for Beerbohm, as he takes the center of the cage. Beerbohm looks for another takedown, and the fans will surely not approve. Before a significant amount of boos could fill the arena, the two separated and Ribeiro gets the fight to the ground. “Shaolin” is controlling his opponent, looking to take the back. Armbar attempt by Ribeiro, and Beerbohm somehow pulls out of the deep submission attempt. Beerbohm gets on top on the ground and looks to land some blows. Nearly gets caught in another submission as the round comes to a close. Heavy.com scores round two for Ribeiro.

Round 3

Third round begins the same as the second, except Ribeiro is the one shooting in for a takedown, and he gets it. Beerbohm is working his way back to the feet, before getting slammed back to the mats. “Shaolin” looks for the back, but rolls off into the guard of Beerbohm. Ribeiro grabs an arm, looking for a submission, but Beerbohm once again gets out. The two fighters change position, and then change again. Ribeiro in Beerbohm’s guard. Another submission attempt, but it is not successful. The two stand, and Beerbohm delivers a knee. Back to the clinch, where Beerbohm finds Ribeiro’s back, but only for a moment. The two separate and a late takedown by Ribeiro is stuffed. Heavy.com scores the round “Fancy Pants”, but this one could be on its way to a split-decision. Beerbohm def. Ribeiro via split-decision (30-27, 28-29, 30-27).

Botter: Sadly, Fancypants was not sporting the actual fancy pants on this fine evening. He wore regular fight trunks, which made him seem like a mere mortal instead of the fancy warrior that he is. He had enough fancy pants warrior in him to avoid getting submitted roughly 10,534 times by Shaolin, though. Seriously, Shaolin is really, really fast with his submission attempts. But you have to give credit to Fancypants for getting out of the attempts, I guess. You also have to credit the Strikeforce ring card girls who held up the cards for round 2, which would have been really helpful if they weren’t doing it before round three.

Jesse Finney vs. Justin DeMoney

Round 1

Kick lands for Finney, marking the first major action of the final preliminary bout. Right hand lands solid for Kinney. Head kick clips DeMoney, who seems a bit timid, as he shoots in for a takedown.DeMoney gets the fight down, and Finney immediately looks for an exit. The hometown favorite roles DeMoney onto his back and ends up in half guard. Finney looks for an armlock, but lets it go. The fighters are back to the feet, but Finney gets the fight to the floor and pounds away from his opponents back. North-South position for Kinney, who locks in a slick guillotine choke. Not much of a competition here. Finney def. DeMoney via submission (guillotine choke) at 3:22 of Round 1.

Botter: In St. Louis, “Finney’s Gym” t-shirts are like Affliction shirts in 2008. Everybody has one. Jesse runs one of the biggest gyms in the area, so he had a pretty big following for this fight. And this is not to say that I’m the most in-shape guy in the world or anything, but Jesse DeMoney looked like a frail human being in comparison to Jesse. I sensed this would be a mismatch, and it wasn’t quite that one-sided, but you had the sense that Finney could pretty much do whatever he wanted and end the fight whenever he got bored.

Antwain Britt vs. Rafael “Feijao” Cavalcante

Round 1

Feijao” takes the center of the cage, and Britt circles around him.Britt lands a hard left, then a nice flurry just moments later. “Feijao” clinches and pushes Britt up against the cage. “Feijao” hits the mat after a big uppercut from Britt. Britt is really letting his hands go, but elects to clinch and push “Feijao” up against the cage. The two are in the corner of “Feijao”, and Anderson Silva shouts instructions to his fellow Brazilian. The two separate and Britt lands heavy on Cavalcante, but the two clinch almost immediately at the opposite end of the cage. The two are separated and “Feijao” lands a big right hand, followed by a left that staggers Britt. In serious trouble, Britt stumbles backwards, and “Feijao” pounds him out up against the cage for the stoppage. “Feijao” def. Britt via knockout at 3:45 of Round 1.

Botter: Here’s a perfect example of what can happen when you leave your hands by your side and swing wildly for the knockout punch: you can get punched in the face and knocked out, Rashad Evans-style. Antwain Britt has plenty of power. I mean, this guy used to be really, really big. And he has good wrestling ability, which of course means he’s going to forego the wrestling entirely and swing for the fences. Britt missed the fences, but Feijao certainly didn’t. Cornerman Anderson Silva celebrated wildly, which is the first action we’ve seen from him since last August.

Roger Gracie vs. Kevin Randleman

Round 1

Randleman comes out to the center and looks about a foot shorter than Gracie. Kick lands forRandleman. He lands another kick. Gracie misses with the left. And misses with the right. Gracie goes for a takedown, but Randleman pushes it off. Gracie lands a knee, and Randleman takes a step back. Gracie looks to work the jab, which is not a terrible idea consider his significant reach advantage. The two are exchanging, but no significant action, and the crowd agrees, booing the two light heavyweights. Randleman pushes Gracie up against the cage, and Gracie is looking for a guillotine. Fight goes to the floor, but Randleman scrambles to the feet and out of danger. The round comes to a close with Randleman throwing a flurry, but none of the strikes land flush. Heavy.com scores the round 10-9 for Gracie.

Round 2

Randleman lands a nice combination to the body. Gracie throws wildly as he chases Randleman around the cage, landing a few of his punches. The action stalls for a moment, until the two clinch against the cage again. Gracie looking for a guillotine choke, as Randleman looks for the slam. Wrist control for Gracie. Gracie works out of the clinch and lands a big knee on Randleman. “The Monster” hits the floor and Gracie is on top. He gets the mount, now to the back. Randleman is in trouble. Body triangle by Gracie, and Randleman is in survival mode. Randleman tries to role and gives up his neck. Gracie sinks in the choke, and “The Monster” goes to sleep. Gracie def. Randleman via submission (rear naked choke) at 4:10 of Round 2.

Botter: Roger Gracie is pretty cool. The guy came out announced as “The Golden Child of MMA’s First Family.” If that’s not a lofty title, I don’t know what is. Gracie had zero sponsors on his shorts, choosing to rock the plain black Stone Cold Steve Austin-style trunks instead. He also neglected to bring out one of those gaudy banners for his cornerman to unfurl behind him. All of that aside, Roger Gracie is pretty good with submissions. His striking is a different story, but as ugly as it was, it did the job. He also has a nasty fierce choke grip, putting Randleman out almost instantly. This went a long way towards erasing the memory of Rolles Gracie’s performance in the UFC earlier this year. Well, not really, but you get the point.

Ronaldo “Jacare” Souza vs. Joey Villasenor

Round 1

Jacare shoots in for the takedown, but Villasenor stuffs it. The two clinch up against the cage. Jacare with am underhook. They separate and Jacare throws some big shots, but misses. He doesn’t miss with his next takedown attempt, though, taking Villasenor to the floor. Jacare issuing some ground and pound from half guard. He moves to the mount. High mount for Jacare, who is bringing down some heavy blows. Villasenor exits out the back, and the two are back to the fight. Jacare still the aggressor in the clinch. Villasenor throws a few knees, but Jacare does the same. Villasenor is dragged down again, and Jacare immediately throws down some heavy leather. He is dominating Villasenor on the ground. Half guard for Jacare. Villasenor stands back up, but only for a moment. Big slam by Jacare sends the two back to the ground. Straight armbar attempt for Jacare. Villasenor escapes. Round comes to a close. Very one-sided round. Heavy.com scores it 10-9 for Jacare.

Round 2

Overhand right misses for Jacare. Villasenor is moving forward, as his opponent circles away. Another takedown for Jacare, who ends up in half guard. Jacare is working to free his right leg and gain either side control or mount, but Villasenor is able to stand. Jacare pushes him up against the cage, and Villasenor ends up on his back again. Working in Villasenor’s full guard, Jacare looks to pass. And he does. Half guard for Jacare. He passes to side control, but Villasenor stands up again. Villasenor is beginning to put together some combinations, but is failing to do much damage at all. Left hook, followed by a right and a takedown by Jacare. Ground and pound by Jacare, but Villasenor pushes off his hips to work back to the feet. Takedown stuffed by Villasenor, and the round comes to a close. Heavy.com scores the round 10-9 for Jacare.

Round 3

Villasenor works some combinations, but nothing significant lands. Takedown by Jacare is stuffed. Body shot by Villasenor lands nicely. jacare looks for another takedown, but Villasenor avoid it again. Spinning back kick by Jacare clips Villasenor, who gets taken down just seconds later. Half guard for Jacare. Doesn’t seem interested in passing at this point, but works some minor ground striking. Now he is stepping it up a notch, throwing some heavier shots. The crowd is not very happy with the ground game, growing restless as the referee stands the two fighters up. Villasenor has officially entered desperation mode, nearly landing a big knee. The strike ultimately causes him to be put on his back once again, where Jacare pounds him out to the closing bell. Heavy.com scores the round 10-9 for Jacare. Jacare def. Villasenor via unanimous decision (30-27, 29-28, 29-28)

Botter: Jacare looked like he was going to run right through poor Joey Villasenor in the first round. He caught him with just about every strike he threw and took him down at will. It felt like only a matter of moments before The Alligator clamped on one of his trademark submissions and finished the fight off in classic Souza style. And then….nothing. Sure, he kept taking him down, but Villasenor is one of the toughest dudes out there and just wouldn’t quit, and Souza couldn’t do much of anything. So the latter half of the fight was a lot of Jacare laying on top of Joey. If Strikeforce (or Missouri, for that matter) allowed elbows, this battle probably would have been over in the first round. But they don’t, and it wasn’t.

Andrei Arlovski vs. Antonio Silva

Round 1

Arlovski comes out looking timid, but immediately starts throwing in some combinations. He quickly reverts back to his conservative style after feeling the power of Silva. Silva looks to land some big shots, and Arlovski appears to take a few good punches before the two clinch. The clinch war goes on for some time, with neither fighter really dictating the fight. Silva scores some nice shots, while Arlovski looks timid for basically the entire round. The round comes to a close with Arlovski taking the majority of the damage, but avoiding a third-consecutive first round knockout. Heavy.com scores it 10-9 for Silva.

Round 2

Arlovski remains timid at the start of the round, but begins to loosen up, utilizing the jab. He misses with an overhand right, which Silva counters nicely. The two clinch and switch positions continuously. Arlovski is holding his own avoiding the takedowns of the Brazilian heavyweight. The two are separated by the referee due to the stalemate, but are immediately back to the clinch. The crowd is not a fan of said clinch and is not scared to let the fighters know. Regardless, the two ride out the clinch to the end of the round. Close round, but Heavy.com scores it 10-9 for Arlovski.

Round 3

The fighters clinch again, and Arlovski’s back is up against the cage yet again. John McCarthy separates the two and Silva lands a nice right, followed by another. Overhand right misses for Arlovski, and Silva moves in for the clinch again. Clinch battle going on again. Silva lands some knees before they are separated again. Body kick blocked by Arlovski. Nice body kick by Arlovski. Silva clinches again. Arlovski looks exhausted, and Silva scores the takedown. Silva in half guard. Arlovski holding on to Silva, looking for a stand up. Silva postures up and drops some shots, but reenters the guard of Arlovski. Arlovski gets back to his feet, and the two clinch again. The two are separated, but not enough time remains for Arlovski to do any damage. Heavy.com scores it 10-9 for Silva. Silva def. Arlovski via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28).

Botter: Arlovski came out sporting some pretty sweet Dolce & Gabbana boxing trunks. The crowd really liked him and they really wanted him to win.The only problem is that Antonio Silva was better than Arlovski in just about every facet of the game during this fight. Andre’s trademark boxing skills were completely nullified by Silva’s giant head and his ability to take a punch. He took punches that would kill a normal man, shook them off and continued punching.He turned Arlovski’s head into a giant, hairy human replica of a bobblehead doll several times in the fight. And at the end, he made like fellow Brazilian Anderson Silva and danced while avoiding Arlovski’s desperate lunging punches.

Alistair Overeem vs. Brett Rogers for Strikeforce Heavyweight Championship

Round 1

The opening bell rings, and Overeem takes the center of the cage. Rogers looks to wrap Overeem up after being dealt  a combination, but to no avail. Nice leg kicks by “The Demolition Man”. Another kick by Overeem. Rogers tumbles to the ground after being thrown by Overeem, but does not appear to be hurt. Overeem lands some nice shots to his opponent and moves into side control. Knee by Overeem. Overeem works some moderate ground and pound before moving into north-south position. Roger rolls, and the champion stands up and throws down before moving into side control once again. Overeem back to his feet. Rogers is in a bad spot here. Heavy ground and pound by the champion. It’s not going to be long. John McCarthy pulls Overeem off of Rogers after a good amount of ground and pound. Overeem def. Rogers via technical knockout at 3:40 of Round 1.

Botter: Well, I’m not sure what to say about this. From the opening bell, Overeem had Brett Rogers hesitant and…scared? Yeah, I guess scared is the right word to describe it. And for good reason, too. Overeem manhandled Rogers from pillar to post, all the while with a slight hint of disdain on his face. It was as if Overeem felt Rogers didn’t belong in the cage with him, and in the end, that was certainly the case. Alistair is on a completely different level than every other heavyweight besides Fedor, and if he doesn’t face Emelianenko after the Russian disposes of Fabricio Werdum, Strikeforce will have a big problem on their hands. And if the fight does ultimately happen, Fedor himself will have a huge problem on his hands.