Jason Miller vs. Tim Kennedy

A trilogy is set to be completed at Strikeforce 32, as familiar foes Jason “Mayhem”Miller(24-7) and decorated war veteran Tim Kennedy(12-3) will square off once again according to MMAjunkie. Neither fighter seemed to thrilled with the fight announcement, but with both trying to stay relevant in the division, they have decided to co-headline the upcoming March 5th fight card.

11th ranked middleweight “Mayhem” Miller has done something rarely seen in MMA today, by becoming popular amongst mainstream fans without being in the UFC. Miller’s tv show “Bully Beatdown” has been a relative hit on MTV, and his ongoing saga with Nick Diaz has made him one of the pillars of Strikeforce. Unfortunately for Miller, all the popularity surrounding his name has not helped him land a marquee fight. There weren’t many options left for Miller once Diaz turned down the fight. Now, Miller has been hinting at a possible move to the UFC, but his free bird spirit will likely not fly in the UFC.

Tim Kennedy(ranked 13th) has risen through the ranks ever since re-committing to his MMA career. Kennedy doesn’t have the most fan-friendly fight style as he’d rather grind opponents out, rather than swing for the fences. It’s common-place in MMA these days, but with free swingers(Robbie Lawler, Melvin Manhoef) in the Strikeforce middleweight division, it’s little wonder why opponents are not stepping up to fight him.

This fight will likely go down just like the other two before it, but I do expect to see improvements from Kennedy and a slight decline in skills from Mayhem. Kennedy is the hungrier fighter at this stage in their careers, and he is likely out to prove a point that he is the #1 middleweight contender. Conversely, Mayhem has made it known he’s fighting purely for money, and with not much controversy swirling from Kennedy’s side, I think Mayhem’s not going to train or dedicate himself enough to win this fight.