Strikeforce ‘Lawler vs. Shields’ Preview

Phil Baroni vs. Joe Riggs

The Breakdown: Because every card needs a guaranteed dogfight, Strikeforce delivers the always articulate Baroni (13-10) into battle with Riggs, a division-hopping regular. Don’t look for any world-class grappling, but count on both men coming in ready to go for broke on the feet. The difference is that Riggs (29-10, 1 NC) can back up his stand-up bombs with his always dangerous ground-and-pound, an advantage that will play heavily in his favor the longer this fight goes.

The X Factor: Neither fighter is known for his gas tank, and if we don’t get an early knockout, someone is bound to start sucking wind. Once that happens, it comes down to who can summon up the juice to gut out a win. Flip a coin, and hope you didn’t bet on whoever gets laid out.

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The Bottom Line: At this point, Baroni gets about a mile per gallon and has not shown much evolution since his days as a free-swinging braggart. Meanwhile, Riggs has developed solid striking on the feet and on the mat, which should be more than enough to handle Baroni’s one-dimensional offense. Expect a dominant display from Riggs, who puts Baroni out of commission with a cringe-inducing ground-and-pound blitzkrieg.