Marloes Coenen: Challenging for the Strikeforce TitleAs a co-main event on the Strikeforce card scheduled for January 30th, newly-crowned Strikeforce Women’s Lightweight Champion Cristiane “Cyborg” Santos will defend her belt for the first time against Dutch grappling champion Marloes Coenen, once regarded as one of the top female competitors in the world just a couple short years ago, now set to show the world why this Saturday night in Miami.

David Hojak spoke with Marloes last week about her forthcoming bout with Cyborg, her words back and forth since 2004 with well-known women’s MMA veteran Erin Toughill, and the potential for the two to rematch down the line in lieu of their postponed rematch from last year.

Storied as her words back and forth between herself and Toughill have been, some are surprised they haven’t fought since Marloes was knocked out by Erin way back in 2004. Some, Toughill inclusive, have also had their qualms about the fact that Coenen is fighting for a title, given only one win in Strikeforce. However, Coenen is comfortable in the challenger role, and aware of what got her there.

Since that long-ago loss to Toughill in 2004, Marloes has competed eleven times, racking up nine wins while avenging one career loss incurred in that timeframe, and finishing every opponent by either submission or punches. Of her seventeen career victories since 2000, Marloes has only gone to decision four times, winning in two of those instances.

As we speak of Toughill, who has been critical of Coenen’s strides since their encounter half a decade ago, the comparative work rate of the two fighters can be seen as somewhat lopsided: Toughill has fought only five times since December of 2004, citing difficulties finding opponents, and having pulled out of a scheduled rematch against Coenen in late October of 2009. Marloes has more than doubled this competitive output since their match. Toughill’s four wins are outmatched by Coenen’s nine down the same stretch.

In addition, Marloes has finished all but two opponents in her seventeen-victory stretch, thirteen wins by way of submission. Straightforwardly, Marloes has finished as many fights as Toughill has had competitive bouts.

Toughill’s had much to say about Coenen’s competitive viability, as well as her forthcoming shot at a title, dating back to August of last year when Erin’s Strikeforce debut was originally scrapped. Frankly, while Toughill is out there saying, Coenen is out there doing.

Incorrectly citing what was actually a split decision victory for Roxanne Modaferri when she first met Marloes in 2007, Toughill criticized Coenen’s record, stating that she wasn’t fighting opponents with winning records, and that she’d just lost to Roxanne. Soon afterward, Coenen went on to debut in Strikeforce and avenge the loss Toughill referred to, finishing Modaferri with an armbar submission just past the first minute of the first round in their second encounter. Toughill has yet to debut in Strikeforce.

When asked of all that’s been said, Marloes is simple in her admission. “I do not care what Erin says,” confides Coenen. “It is her way of making PR. It's not worth my energy.”

Marloes goes on to convey that she looks forward to a rematch with Toughill, and hopes for it to take place in Strikeforce, following her bout with Cyborg.

Preparing for an upcoming title shot can be a stressful endeavor, made more arduous by the level of competition she’s facing. Yet, the 2000 ReMix World Cup and Dutch Brazilian Jiu Jitsu Champion confides that she will prepare for Cyborg as she normally would for a fight, giving the Brazilian striker only as much credibility as others she’s faced in her own mind.

“Cyborg is just another opponent,” Coenen confidently boasts. “I train as I usually do, and have adapted some extra techniques to her way of fighting in my training.”

Marloes trains out of Holland’s Golden Glory, home to such noteworthy talent as Strikeforce Heavyweight Champion Alistair Overeem, Semmy Schilt, Sergei Kharitonov and K-1 veteran, Stefan Leko. She speaks highly of the tutelage and support her team provides her, as well as some of the team’s up-and-coming members.

“I train under Martijn de Jong who is an old MMA fighter himself, as well as the head coach of MMA at Golden Glory,” tells Marloes. “I’ve trained with him since the age of 14.”

“I hope that besides Alistair and me, some more Golden Glory fighters will join the Strikeforce family, like Siyar Bahadurzada (currently Shooto’s Light-Heavyweight Champion), Dion Staring (19-6, loss to “Minotoro”, European Shooto Champion) and Vincent Latoel (16-16-2).”

Speaking of the evaporation of the K-1 organization, Marloes is also hopeful that the remaining K-1 athletes of Golden Glory will eventually transfer over to either fighting in MMA or training other Golden Glory MMA fighters.

Her predictions for the fight’s outcome are bold. When asked what she foresees when anticipatively visualizing the fight’s course and result, she’s judicious in her words.

“A big war, there will be a KO,” she offers as prediction.

Marloes Coenen faces Cristiane Cyborg Santos on Saturday, January 30th at Strikeforce: Miami, which will air on Showtime at 10pm EST.

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