Strikeforce (UFC’s closest competitor here in the U.S.) promotes one of the bigger fights of the year tomorrow in Fedor vs. Brett Rogers. It takes place in Chicago, which explains why EA Sports just held a press conference there to reveal more details of its upcoming MMA game, entitled EA Sports MMA. EA Sports says that Strikeforce will be the “premier” mixed martial arts league in the game, and that well-known referee “Big” John McCarthy will be in the game.
The game, which is due out for the Xbox 360 and PS3 next year, will, as such, feature Brett Rogers and other Strikeforce fighters.
In-game commentary will be provided by Frank Shamrock and Mauro Ranallo. I haven’t played an EA Sports game in three years, so I have no idea who good the commentary is these days.
Other fighters confirmed to be in the game include current UFC star Randy Couture, Gegard Mousasi, Renato Sobral, and Cung Le. (Check Wikipediafor the full list of confirmed and rumored fighters. Hopefully Alistair Overeem makes the cut. You’d think he would, being that he’s the Strikeforce heavyweight champion, even if he hasn’t defended the belt in two years.)
Presumably EA Sports MMA will now be colloquially referred to as “the Strikeforce game.” Hopefully EA can work in plenty of Dream fighters, as well as the Dream arenas.
Oh, the first trailer of the game will debut during tomorrow night’s Strikeforce show that airs on CBS at 9pm. And if you’re interested in a little backstory, check out Showtime’s 30-minute documentary on both Fedor and Rogers. Fun stuff.