Cormier & Barnett have 1 fight left on their Strikeforce contracts

http://mmajunkie.com/news/28826/zuffa-josh-barnett-also-gets-one-more-fight-in-strikeforce.mma

Both finalists in the Strikeforce World Heavyweight Grand Prix will have another fight in the organization.

By winning the heavyweight tournament this past weekend in San Jose, Calif., Daniel Cormier moves to a fight that Strikeforce parent Zuffa previously promised to broadcaster Showtime, to highlight the grand-prix winner.

But it turns out that the other tourney finalist, Josh Barnett (31-6 MMA, 2-1 SF), also will have one more bout in Strikeforce, parent company Zuffa told USA TODAY on Monday.

Whoever faces them will have to come from outside Strikeforce's current ranks. Cormier and Barnett are the last two heavyweights left in the organization; Zuffa has already moved Strikeforce's other prominent heavyweights to the UFC.

UFC's next show might provide a pool of potential candidates. The promotion has an all-heavyweight main card planned for Saturday in Las Vegas. Three of the top four heavyweights in the USA TODAY/SB Nation consensus rankings are scheduled for the card, along with three others in the top 21.

Weeks before the tournament final, Barnett said the identity of his opponents no longer matters.

"I stopped a long time ago caring about specifically who I fought, and only gave a damn if they were willing enough to sign their name to the dotted line," Barnett said. "Because I've had plenty of people not be willing to face me in the ring, in the cage, whatever; Japan, United States.

"You can't make fights happen. The only way you can make a fight happen is if you go and track the guy down in the bathroom and say, 'Alright, it's going to happen,' and start swinging on somebody.

"Otherwise you've got management, you've got the promoters; you've got all these different factors that can come in and nix a matchup. So why care anymore?"

Regardless of who they face, neither Barnett nor Cormier will be fighting for awhile because of broken hands incurred during their bout. Cormier expects to undergo surgery after re-injuring a right hand that was first fractured in September during his victory against Antonio "Bigfoot" Silva. Barnett hurt in his left hand, with the X-ray seeming to show a complete break just above the point where the index finger joins to the thumb and wrist bones.

Cormier will be a welcome addition to the UFC roster...Barnett probably will head back to Japan, but who knows?

I'm not sure if they'll do that, with the Showtime deal still in place.