The Strikeforce Middleweight Landscape

Back when Pride had it's Bushido series, it was the place for Lightweights. It was the promotion to make a name for yourself and although it didn't have the true LW kingpin, BJ Penn, it did crown another top LW - Takanori Gomi.
For Middleweights, their Pride Bushido may now be the Strikeforce MW division, and the next great MW may be waiting in the wings.
Here's a quick preview and pseudo-rankings of the more well known movers and shakers.


Dan Henderson - King of the Hill

Not only does Hendo bring elite MMA status and recognition to Strikeforce, he was recently seen by millions on cable TV, coaching Team USA on the UK vs. USA season of TUF. He then offered up a highlight reel KO of Bisping at UFC 100. With KO power in both hands and a jaw seemingly made of titanium, it's a foregone conclusion that he will dethrone current champ, Jake Shields.


Gegard Mousasi - The Heir Apparent

"The Dreamcatcher" is nearly equal parts striker and submission fighter. He has the skills to keep the fight standing and outbox Dan, or work a slick ground game to force the tapout.
While not even 25 years old, Mousasi is riding a ridiculous 14-fight win streak and is the current Dream MW champion.


Ronaldo Souza and Jake Shields - The (Near) Top Dogs

Both guys have been using their established ground skills to rack up some nice wins.
"Jacare" is the more complete ground specialist, excelling in both MMA and the grappling world, having won numerous ADCC titles.
Shields is the current Strikeforce MW champ and hasn't lost since 2004. What he lacks in the striking area, he usually makes up for in a size and strength advantage, easily overpowering most opponents to a submission or decision victory.


Robbie Lawler and Matt Lindland - Best of the Rest

I see these two as being very similar to Souza and Shields, except that they have both lost recently and haven't shown much improvement in areas of their game that desperately need it.
Lawler is a powerful puncher with a good chin, but lacks the grounds skills to avoid submissions.
Lindland has world class, Greco-Roman wrestling that enables him to grind out victories, but very little in the striking department or ground game to defend against submissions.


Cung Le, Frank Shamrock, Jason Miller, Scott Smith - The Gatekeepers

Each of these fighters has recently been adding to both their win and loss columns, which prevents them from advancing any farther on this list.


Nick Diaz and Melvin Manhoef - The Wildcards

Diaz is riding a 5 fight win streak, including obliterations of Smith and Shamrock, but he bounces from Welterweight to Middleweight. Considering Diaz and Shields are both out of the Cesar Gracie camp, it will be unlikely he will attempt to get to the top as a MW.
Manhoef is another big, power puncher that could do some heavy damage to the division. He's similar to Robbie Lawler, in that he prefers to stand up but shares the same weakness of having no ground game.