The planned Strikeforce eight-man heavyweight tournament is nearly complete and it comes at the perfect time for the San Jose based promotion as the UFC's 265-pound division is currently in a state of upheaval.
With the recent announcements of booked match-ups including Fedor Emelianenko vs Antonio Silva and Alistair Overeem vs Fabricio Werdum, that left two fights and four competitors to be sorted out.
According to MMAFighting.com, the final two bouts will see Josh Barnett vs Brett Rogers and Andrei Arlovski vs Sergei Kharitonov.
It looks like Strikeforce may have put together the tournament that many thought impossible.
There are certainly a few hurdles still to overcome. The Barnett vs Rogers match-up is contingent on "The Baby-Faced Assassin" getting licensed to compete. His re-scheduled hearing with the California State Athletic Commission is set for next month.
A location and date for that planned bout is unknown at this time.
That's not the case for the Andrei Arlovski vs Sergei Kharitonov fight. They're scheduled to hook-em-up on the Strikeforce card set for Feb. 12 at the Izod Center in East Rutherford, New Jersey.
Arlovski will come into the bout having lost his last three contests, all against fighters currently slated to compete in the tournament.
Kharitonov on the other hand, has won four of his last five, including a 2007 knockout victory over current Strikeforce Heavyweight Champion and tournament participant Alistair Overeem at K-1 Hero's 10.
To reiterate, the tournament pairings as they stand right now are Fedor Emelianenko vs Antonio Silva, Alistair Overeem vs Fabricio Werdum, Josh Barnett vs Brett Rogers and Andrei Arlovski vs Sergei Kharitonov.
Stay tuned to MMAMania.com for any updates or developments on this still-unconfirmed tournament.
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