Gus Johnson not leaving Strikeforce commentating
Despite the fact tha Strikeforce commentator Gus Jiohnson is a trained martial artist, and speaks admiringly of MMA on for…
Despite the fact tha Strikeforce commentator Gus Jiohnson is a trained martial artist, and speaks admiringly of MMA on for example boxing broadcasts, he is not wildly popular with the hardcore MMA fan base. He unfortunately blurted out “These things happen in MMA” during the Strikeforce Brawl, and that more or less became his epitaph when it was announced last week that he could not come to terms with CBS. Those reports proved premature however, as Johnson had a contract for MMA and boxing separate from his cotnract for basketball and football, and will continue to appear on Strikeforce broadcasts.
Sources told MMAFighting.com that Johnson’s contract with CBS was for basketball and football, and that his deal to call fights (both MMA and boxing) for Showtime was a separate contract. That contract is still in effect, and Johnson will call Saturday night’s Andre Ward-Arthur Abraham boxing match for Showtime. Although Showtime hasn’t yet announced who will broadcast its next MMA show (a June 18 Strikeforce card), Johnson is expected to call that event as well.
Theoretically, it’s even possible that Johnson could be back on the CBS airwaves if CBS ever aired another Strikeforce fight: When Johnson called EliteXC and Strikeforce fights on CBS in the past, that was part of his Showtime deal. It’s probably a long shot that we’d see Johnson back on CBS, however.