Josh Barnett wants next fight in Strikeforce by end of 2012

In a lot of ways, Strikeforce Heavyweight Josh Barnett has been the odd man out since he lost to Daniel Cormier in the promotion's heavyweight grand prix championship, when the two went toe-to-toe at Strikeforce: "Barnett vs. Cormier" in San Jose, Calif., back on May 19, 2012.

Before the two fought, it seemed like a virtual lock that the next fight for each man would be in the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) Octagon. I mean, there are no other heavyweights on the Strikeforce roster. It just makes sense, right?

Not so fast.

Showtime was quick to enforce its respective contracts with each fighter, and, ostensibly, forced both Cormier and Barnett to fulfill their contracts and fight one more time for the promotion before they can move on to greener pastures.

For "DC," that means a cross promotional fight with Frank Mir, which will take place later this year. But what about Barnett?

In an interview with Spencer Lazara of MMAInterviews.TV, Barnett talked about his current situation and how he is handling being the last guy to not be invited to the party:

"I'm training with Erik Hammer. I'm hanging out...a lot. I'm doing some stuff up in L.A. I'm just, sort of, biding my time, man. I'm just really focusing on me being healthy, and that's all that matters."

So, will the fight take place in a Strikeforce cage? Barnett believes it will, but he (along with the rest of us) has no idea who his opponent would be:

"I just want it. I don't care where it happens, but I absolutely would assume it will be in Strikeforce. I want it to be before the end of the year."

Lastly, Barnett was asked to give his prediction on who he thinks will emerge victorious between Cormier and Mir, later this year.

His answer was to the point, and he didn't hesitate to pick the man who gave him his last defeat:

"Daniel. I mean, Frank is dangerous, but I just don't see it happening."

Check out the full video of Barnett's interview, here: