Overeem wins ugly affair.

Allistar Overeem moved on to the next stage of the Strikeforce grand prix last Saturday night, beating Verbricio Verdum by unanimous decision in an awkward main event. Overeem was trying to avenge a loss to Verdum, in 2006, via Komura in round two. Verdum, on the other hand, was trying to prove to the skeptics that the victory over MMA legend, Fedor Emelinlenko, was due more to his strategy and not just a mental lapse of Fedor. Since Werdum is a jujitsu specialist and Overeem is a powerhouse kick boxer, their game plans were simple: Werdum wanted to take the fight to the ground and Overeem wanted it to be a striking battle.

In the first round, Werdum tried to surprise Overeem by throwing a high kick, but an excited Overeem clinched Werdum and went for his knees. After that brief scuffle, the fight started to deteriorate, Werdum would stand up as if he wanted to engage in battle, but as soon as Overeem would begin to oblige him, Werdum would fall to the ground without even being hit. Then, Overeem would move away, allowing Werdum to stand up and Werdum would motion to Overeem to come to the ground. Baffled by what Werdum was doing, Overeem would throw his hands in the air and look at the crowd.  The crowd, identifying with Overeem’s frustration would respond with a chorus of boos directed at  Werdum.

This continued throughout the fight to the disappointment of the fans, Overeem, and the judges who scored the fight overwhelmingly for him. With the win, Overeem will move on to fight Antonio “Big Foot’ Silva who beat Fedor Emelianenko in dominating fashion. This should be an exciting match up in a tournament that has already had its share of fireworks.

On the undercard Former UFC Heavyweight champion, Josh Barnett, easily defeated Bret Rogers in the second round with an arm triangle choke. Barnett will now move on in the tournament while Rogers suffers his second defeat.

Octagon Note: Alistair Overeem has dropped out of the Strikeforce tournament and Was cut by Strikeforce all together. Look for him to return fighting under the UFC banner.

In addition, Bret Rogers was cut from Strikeforce after second loss.