Paul Daley is Newest Member of Strikeforce
Welterweight Paul Daley has signed a multi-fight deal with Strikeforce, according to multiple reports. Daley. 27, was booted out of the UFC following his fight with Josh Koscheck at UFC 113 on May 8th, 2010, which was for the #1 contender slot in the division and the opportunity to coach opposite the champ Georges St. Pierre on Season 12 of The Ultimate Fighter. Daley threw a punch at Koscheck in the cage after the fight was over, and as quick as the cheap shot was, Dana White made the decision to can the British fighter.
A win vs. Koscheck would have given Daley both a title shot as well as months of publicity coaching the Spike TV show. Instead a loss coupled with a frustrated mistake, got him exiled from the most popular and successful mixed martial arts organization in the world.
Daley has already had two fights since his UFC exit, he defeated Daniel Acacio at Impact FC 2 in July by submission and recently he knocked off Jorge Masvidal at Shark Fights 13, but he weighed in at 171.5 and had to forfeit some of his purse.
Daley a.k.a. Semtex is 13-3 in his last 16 fights with the losses coming to Koscheck, Nick Thompson, and Jake Shields. He holds wins over Martin Kampmann and Dustin Hazelett. Now he joins the #2 organization in the world of MMA.
Strikeforce has suffered a number of setbacks in recent months. Their Middleweight Champ Jake Shields left for the UFC, top free agent signings Fedor Emelianenko, Dan Henderson, Gegard Mousasi, and Bobby Lashley all lost televised fights. Despite these misfortunes, Strikeforce still has more upside than any other competitor, DREAM, Bellator, Shine, Shark, Sengoku, etc.
The Strikeforce Welterweight Champion, Nick Diaz, just got a legitimate opponent in Daley. Add him to the mix with K.J. Noons, Marius Zaromskis, Evangelista Santos, and you can create some intriguing match ups. Missing out on signing Karo Parisyan is tough for the company, but they are clearly trying to stay competitive.
If you wanted anymore proof that the UFC is head and shoulders above every other organization in the world, take a look at the best fighters in the #2 company. Paul Daley - kicked out of UFC; Babalu Sobral - kicked out of UFC; Nick Diaz - struggled in UFC left with bad feelings on both sides; Robbie Lawler - struggled in UFC; Dan Henderson - not re-signed by UFC; Fedor - M-1 wanted to co-promote with UFC; Josh Barnett - used steroids in UFC... and on down the line.
It's probably only a matter of time that Alistair Overeem and Gilbert Melendez make the move, but for now Strikeforce should be excited about addition of Paul Daley, a legit Top 10-15 Welterweight in the world.
BostonThrowdown.com
