CSAC(California State Athletic Commission) has released the fighter payouts for last Saturday’s Strikeforce: Fedor vs. Werdum card and as expected Fedor was the top earner, collecting a solid $400,000 for his losing effort. Keep in mind the numbers above are base salary and don’t include things such as fight bonuses, unofficial payments, or sponsorships which can add up to far more than the amount listed below. However the numbers also don’t deduct for things such as taxes, insurance, licensing and other expenses.

Fabricio Werdum: $100,000
Fedor Emelianenko: $400,000

Bobby Stack: $2,800 ($1,300 to show, $1,500 to win)
Derrick Bernsed: $2,000
Base fighter payroll totalled $788,800 and the live gate for the event came to $1,066,739.

Jan Finney is still a bit blurry on the details of her fight with women's middleweight champion Cristiane "Cyborg" Santos this past Saturday at "Strikeforce and M-1 Global: Fedor vs. Werdum."

Finney concedes her game plan went out the door when she took a few punches.

And though many fans are angry over how many of those punches she took
before referee Kim Winslow stopped the bout in Santos' favor, Finney
holds no one other than herself responsible for the fight's result.

“Strikeforce: Fedor vs Werdum” did not just surpass expectations, it absolutely smashed them. Such was the aura of invincibility surrounding Fedor Emelianenko that many are calling Fabricio Werdum’s submission victory the greatest mixed martial arts upset of all time.

It is difficult to disagree with this description. Other results, such as Georges St Pierre’s loss to Matt Serra, might have been equally surprising but no figure in MMA history has ever attracted the same levels of adulation as Fedor.

Werdum’s surprise win was the good. It is a fantastic story which will dominate the MMA media for months to come and make this arguably the most memorable Strikeforce card in history.

Strikeforce’s decision to match Cristiane ‘Cyborg’ Santos with Jan Finney was the bad and referee Kim Winslow’s failure to stop the fight thereby allowing Finney to sustain a completely unnecessary amount of punishment was the ugly.

The bookmakers were under no illusions as to how competitive a contest the fight between Santos and Finney would be, Finney was a 15/1 outsider to win this fight. If this card taught us one thing it is that upsets do happen in MMA but there was only ever going to be one outcome from this mismatch.

Fights like this simply should not be allowed to take place on a promotion of the stature of Strikeforce. If the Strikeforce matchmakers really cannot find credible female opponents for Cyborg then perhaps they need to give serious consideration to allowing her to fight against members of the opposite sex.

This was a horrible match up which firstly, should have been stopped before it started, and secondly, should have been stopped a lot sooner after it did start. Refereeing might be primarily about enforcing the rules but as with any supervisory job involving potentially dangerous pursuits a degree of common sense is required.

It was immediately obvious from the opening exchanges that Finney was not going to win the fight. A sensible referee should have been looking for the slightest excuse to stop the fight from this moment onwards. Winslow seemed absolutely determined to allow Cyborg to batter Finney for as long as possible. Even Cyborg herself at times seemed to be reluctant to inflict any more punishment on an opponent who was clinging helplessly to her leg.

I have nothing against women fighters and I have nothing against women referees but this ‘fight’ seriously detracted from an otherwise excellent show and Strikeforce should take steps to ensure we are never forced to witness another debacle like this again.

The opening fight saw Josh Thomson get the reward he deserved for a series of ambitious submission attempts eventually forcing Pat Healy to tap due to a rear naked choke late in the third round. Healy spent the majority of the fight in dominant positions but never looked like coming close to finishing or even hurting Thomson.

Thomson showed great persistence in repeatedly trying to submit Healy and after coming close with triangles and armbars he finally found success with the late rear naked choke. Healy managed to withstand the choke for an inordinate amount of time but was finally forced to tap with just over 30 seconds remaining in the fight.

Cung Le’s first fight with Scott Smith came close to being stopped early as Smith seemingly had no answer for Le’s eclectic selection of strikes. Smith was given the benefit of the doubt and in this instance the referee was vindicated as he came from behind to knock Le out in an amazing comeback.

It was the first loss of Le’s MMA career and one he was anxious to avenge. Smith seemed determined not to leave it until late in the third round to land his first meaningful punch and came out swinging. Le was extremely composed and easily avoided Smith’s combinations while landing a few swift counters of his own.

It was one way traffic, much like the first meeting, but this time Le was actually able to finish the fight. Smith survived until early in round two when Le landed with a devastating back kick to the liver which left his opponent entirely incapacitated.

Earlier in the evening another Le victim Frank Shamrock announced his retirement from MMA. Le, at 38, is a year older than Shamrock and is surely approaching the end of his fighting career which is a shame because he is one of the most gifted fighters on the planet. He would surely have achieved even more in the sport had he started his MMA career a little earlier and not allowed himself to become sidetracked by acting opportunities.

The fight between Fedor and Werdum was over almost as soon as it had started. Normal service appeared to be underway when Fedor knocked Werdum to the floor but the Russian made an uncharacteristic error of judgement and was punished for it. Rather than letting the fight remain on the feet, where he clearly had the advantage, he elected to attempt a little ground and pound.

Werdum’s only realistic chance of victory was to secure a submission and Fedor should have seen the warning signs when he narrowly escaped an armbar attempt by the Brazilian. Instead the ‘Last Emperor’ chose to remain in and around Werdum’s guard and quickly paid the ultimate price as Werdum sank in an inescapable triangle choke.

This loss does not make Fedor any worse a fighter than he was a week ago. It does not alter the fact that he had won his previous 18 fights beating a who’s who of heavyweight opposition in the process. It definitely does not make the prospect of Fedor fighting Strikeforce Champion Alistair Overeem, UFC champion Brock Lesnar, or any of the other heavyweights in the UFC for that matter, any less palatable.

What this loss does demonstrate is just how competitive the sport of mixed martial arts has become. At an elite level even the slightest hint of a mistake is likely to be ruthlessly exploited. Fedor learned this lesson the hard way against Werdum and I expect him to be a better fighter in the future because of it.

Mixed Martial Arts history was made last evening in California as decorated Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu black belt Fabricio Werdum became the first man to hand the greatest fighter of our time Fedor Emelianenko the first true defeat of his professional fighting career.

Also in action from San Jose during “Strikeforce and M-1 Global: Fedor vs. Werdum” was Strikeforce 145 lb. Female Champion Cristiane “Cyborg” Santos, who dished out a beating to Jan “Cuddles” Finney that she will not soon forget, along with former middleweight champ Cung Le who evened the score with Scott Smith in the highly anticipated rematch between the two with a vicious second round TKO.

A selection of photos from the event are available below courtesy of Strikeforce and Esther Lin (click to enlarge):

SAN JOSE, Calif. - The on-again, off-again relationship between
Strikeforce and female slugger Erin Toughill is
apparently in good standing.

Following Strikeforce female champion Cristiane "Cyborg" Santos' utter
destruction of Jan Finney on the main card of Saturday's "Strikeforce
and M-1 Global: Fedor vs. Werdum" event, Strikeforce CEO Scott Coker
said Toughill will provide the Brazilian's next challenge
provided she wins in a yet-to-be announced late summer tune-up.

"Erin Toughill is someone we're going to invite into the cage to fight
here," Coker said. "Before the end of the year, you'll see 'Cyborg' and
her in the cage."

Click here to view the embedded video.

“Cyborg” Santos talks about her dominating victory over Jan Finney in her second title defense in the co-main event of “Strikeforce and M-1 Global: Fedor vs. Werdum” event.

HT: Showtime Sports

Click here to view the embedded video.

HT: Strikeforce.com

The man widely considered to be the greatest fighter of our time, Fedor Emelianenko, was handed the first legitimate defeat of his professional fighting career this evening in San Jose as decorated Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu black belt Fabricio Werdum made mixed martial arts history in California, submitting the feared Russian heavyweight with vice-like armbar/triangle choke early into the very first round.

Emelianenko looked to have Werdum in a world of trouble in the opening moments of round one during “Strikeforce and M-1 Global: Fedor vs. Rogers“, battering the Brazilian with a series of big left hooks that dropped the submission specialist to the canvas. Fedor’s fatal mistake came when he followed the decorated grappler to the ground looking for the ground and pound finish. After escaping an initial armbar attempt, Emelianenko’s willingness to momentarily play his cards on the canvas with Werdum quickly left him vulnerable to the bout ending armbar/triangle choke conversion just 1:09 into the contest.

True to form, and expressionless Emelianenko seemed unaffected by the suprising loss at the hands of the fellow PRIDE veteran when asked what he was thinking immediately following his first true professional defeat as a mixed martial artist, stating, “Really, nothing, because the one that doesn’t fall doesn’t get up.”

Cung Le managed to avenge the sole defeat of his career in his hometwon of San Jose as the decorated San Shou practitioner showed a tremendous amount of patience while mercillesly picking apart Scott Smith over the course of one and a half rounds striking on his way to the second round TKO victory. A perfectly timed spinning heel kick to the ribs from Le lit the fuse and a few unanswered strikes to the battered Smith on the canvas sealed the deal.

Also on the card was Cristiane “Cyborg” Santos defending her 145 female title against a game but outmatched Jan “Cuddles” Finney. Cyborg beat Finney about the cage for the duration of the two rounds contested between the two, eventually swarming her battered and bruised opponent in the second round with a series of punches which were capitalized by a brutal fight finishing knee to the chin.

A full list of results from the event are below:

Bobby Stack def. Derrick Burnsed via split decision (29-28, 27-30, 29-28)

Yancey Medeiros def. Gareth Joseph via knockout (punches) – Round 2, 1:19

Bret Bergmark def. Vagner Rocha via unanimous decision (29-28, 30-27, 30-26)

Chris Cope def. Ron Keslar via TKO (strikes) – Round 2, 4:32

Josh Thomson def. Pat Healy via submission (rear-naked choke) – Round 3, 4:27

Cristiane “Cyborg” Santos def. Jan Finney via TKO (strikes) – Round 2, 2:56

Cung Le def. Scott Smith via TKO (strikes) – Round 2, 1:46

Fabricio Werdum def. Fedor Emelianenko via submission (armbar/triangle) – Round 1, 1:09

Once again it’s on and FiveOuncesofPain.com will be here all evening to make sure you are kept up to date with all of the latest live results and happenings from “Strikeforce and M-1 Global: Fedor vs. Werdum“.

The event will be taking place from the HP Pavilion in San Jose, California while airing live on Showtime.

Headlining the card will be a heavyweight showdown between Fedor Emelianeniko and Fabricio Werdum, while Cristiane “Cyborg” Santos will be putting her 145 pound female title on the line against Jan “Cuddles” Finney in the co-headliner of the evening.

A full set of live results from the event are listed below:

Bobby Stack def. Derrick Burnsed via split decision (29-28, 27-30, 29-28)

Yancey Medeiros def. Gareth Joseph via knockout (punches) – Round 2, 1:19

Bret Bergmark def. Vagner Rocha via unanimous decision (29-28, 30-27, 30-26)

Chris Cope def. Ron Keslar via TKO (strikes) – Round 2, 4:32

Josh Thomson def. Pat Healy via submission (rear-naked choke) – Round 3, 4:27

Cristiane “Cyborg” Santos def. Jan Finney via TKO (strikes) – Round 2, 2:56

Cung Le def. Scott Smith via TKO (strikes) – Round 2, 1:46

Fabricio Werdum def. Fedor Emelianenko via submission (triangle choke) – Round 1, 1:09

Tonight’s “Strikeforce and M-1 Global: Fedor vs. Werdum” event is already underway with the first preliminary bout of the night.

The show is taking place at the HP Pavilion in San Jose, Calif. with the night’s main card airing on Showtime beginning at 10PM EST (7PM PST). Viewers on the West Coast will get to watch the show on tape delay.

If you don’t have Showtime (and your country isn’t blocked) fans can pay $24.99 and watch the show at home online. You can also catch a round-by-round account of the event, including all of the preliminary bouts, at Sherdog.com.

The event is headlined by a heavyweight bout between Fedor Emelianenko vs. Fabricio Werdum, while the co-main event features a women’s title bout between Women’s Strikeforce Featherweight champ Cristiane “Cyborg” Santos vs. challenger Jay Finney.

As always The MMA News will be keeping the spoilers off the main page, especially with the tape delay on the West Coast. To view the full “Live Quick Results” click

The full results for “Strikeforce and M-1 Global: Fedor vs. Werdum” is as follows:

Main card:
Heavyweight bout: Fabricio Werdum def. Fedor Emelianenko via submission (armbar) – R1, 1:09
Middleweight bout: Cung Le def. Scott Smith via TKO (strikes) – R2, 1:46
Women’s featherweight championship bout: Cristiane “Cyborg” Santos def. Jan Finney via TKO (strikes) – R2, 2:56
Lightweight bout: Josh Thomson def. Pat Healy via submission (rear-naked-choke) – R3, 4:27

Preliminary card:
Middleweight bout: Chris Cope def. Ron Keslar via TKO (punches) – R2, 4:32
Welterweight bout: Bret Bergmark def. Vagner Rocha via unanimous decision (29-28, 30-27, 30-26)
Middleweight bout: Yancy Medeiros def. Gareth Joseph via KO (punch) – R2, 1:19
Welterweight bout: Bobby Stack def. Derrick Burnsed via split decision (29-28, 29-28, 27-30)

Each time top-ranked heavyweight Fedor Emelianenko steps onto the canvas, his legacy is questioned. And every time he steps from it, the public's faith is renewed.

This Saturday at "Strikeforce and M-1 Global: Fedor vs. Werdum," Emelianenko fights on American soil for the fourth time - this time amid a different climate, and perhaps a more critical one.

In our official event preview, MMAjunkie.com's Steven Marrocco explains why the focus has been as much on Emelianenko's future plans as this weekend's fight. Additionally, he breaks down the rest of the night's main card, including champ Cristiane "Cyborg" Santos' latest title defense.