Sobral defeats Lawler in Los Angeles

June 16, 2010 by GFL · Leave a Comment
Filed under: MMA News 

Renato “Babalu” Sobral scored a three round unanimous decision over Robbie Lawler in a 195 lb catchweight fight at the Nokia Theater in Los Angeles.

After a good first round by Lawler, Sobral camed on strong and landed numerous strikes that broke down Lawler.

Sobral, 193 1/2 lbs of Costa Mesa, CA won by scores of 29-28 on all cards and is now 36-8.  Lawler, 195 lbs of Granite City, IL is now 17-6.

Sobral said he would like a rematch with Dan Henderson who defeated him eleven years ago.

Evangelista Cyborg scored a first round stoppage over Mariusz Zaromskis in a scheduled three round Welterweight bout.

Cyborg hurt Zaromiskis early in round one with some hard strikes.  Zaromskis made a desperate attempt at a running high knee that was thwarted by Cyborg and Zaromskis fell to the ground where Cyborg pounced on him with three hard shots and referee Herb Dean stopped the bout at 2:38.

Cyborg, 171 lbs of Brazil is now 18-13 with eleven knockouts.  Zaromskis, 169 1/2 lbs of San Jose, CA is now 13-5.

Tim Kennedy scored a first round submission over Trevor Prangley in a scheduled three round Middleweight bout.

Kennedy, 185 1/2 lbs of Austin, TX won via choke at 3:35 and his record is now 12-2  with half of his wins coming by submission.  Prangley, 185 1/2 lbs of South Africa is now 22-6-1.

KJ Noons scored a three round split decision of Conor Heun in a 160 lb catchweight bout.

Heun almost had Noons out in the first as he had Noons in a rear naked choke.  Heun was bloodied under his left eye in the first round and fought through heavy blood flow as he ate a lot of shots by Noons, who is an accomplished boxer.

Noons, 159 1/2 lbs of San Diego won by scores of 29-28 and 29-28 while Heun, 159 1/2 lbs of Hollywood, CA took a cardc at 29-28.

Noons is now 8-1.  Heun is now 8-4.

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* FREE OPEN TO THE PUBLIC WEIGH IN *

June 15, 2010 by GFL · Leave a Comment
Filed under: MMA News 

“BABALU” SOBRAL, ROBBIE LAWLER,

TIM KENNEDY, KJ NOONS, CYBORG SANTOS

& ALL THE FIGHTERS TO WEIGH IN

Tuesday/Tomorrow, June 15 at 5 p.m. PT

NOTE NEW LOCATION — at the Crowne Plaza LAX (near the airport)

WHO: Former STRIKEFORCE Light Heavyweight Champ Renato “Babalu” Sobral

Exciting Knockout artist “Ruthless” Robbie Lawler

American military hero and up-and-coming middleweight Tim Kennedy

Former World Champ KJ Noons

Hollywood’s Conor “Hurricane” Heun

DREAM belt-holder Marius “The Whitemare” Zaromskis

Welterweight Evangelista Cyborg

& More

WHAT: All 16 fighters participating in Wednesday’s STRIKEFORCE Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) event at Nokia Theatre L.A. LIVE in downtown Los Angeles on Wednesday, June 16, will weigh in on Tuesday/tomorrow at an OPEN TO THE PUBLIC event at the Crowne Plaza LAX in the Continental Ball Room Salon C (5985 Century Blvd., Los Angeles, 90045) near the Los Angeles International Airport. The fights will be televised LIVE on SHOWTIME® at 11 p.m. ET/PT (delayed on the West Coast).

Sobral (35-8), the former STRIKEFORCE Light Heavyweight (205 pounds) Champion who hails from Brazil and fights out of Orange County, will collide with exciting knockout artist Robbie Lawler (17-5) at a catch weight of 195 pounds in the main event.

American military hero and San Luis Obispo native Kennedy (11-2) will face former South African National Wrestling Champion Trevor Prangley (22-5-1) at middleweight (185 pounds).  Kennedy, a former United States Army Special Forces sniper with the 19th Special Forces outfit based in San Antonio, has toured the Middle East multiple times, and earned the Army’s Bronze Medal Star medal for valor under fire.  Inside the cage, Kennedy has won three in a row and 11 of his last 12.

Heun (8-3), who fights out of Hollywood, will face former world champion KJ Noons (8-2) of San Diego, Calif., in an excellent lightweight (155 pounds) match.

DREAM belt-holder Marius “The Whitemare” Zaromskis (13-4) will face Evangelista Cyborg (17-13) in a welterweight (170 pounds) contest

Tickets are on sale at STAPLES Center box office, all Ticketmaster locations (800) 745-3000, Ticketmaster online (www.ticketmaster.com) and STRIKEFORCE’S official website (www.strikeforce.com).

WHEN:            Tuesday, June 15, at 5 p.m. PT

WHERE:         Crowne Plaza LAX (Continental Ball Room Salon C)

5985 Century Blvd., Los Angeles, 90045

(323) 728-3600

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JUNE 16 LOS ANGELES HEADLINERS BABALU SOBRAL & ROBBIE LAWLER, STRIKEFORCE CEO SCOTT COKER MEDIA TELECONFERENCE HIGHLIGHTS

June 9, 2010 by GFL · Leave a Comment
Filed under: MMA News 

Sobral, Lawler and Coker participated in a national media conference call on Wednesday to discuss the upcoming STRIKEFORCE Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) event at Nokia Theatre L.A. LIVE in downtown Los Angeles, Calif. on Wednesday, June 16, LIVE on SHOWTIME® at 11 p.m. ET/PT (delayed on the West Coast).

Lawler (17-5) will collide with former STRIKEFORCE Light Heavyweight (205 pounds) Champion Sobral (35-8) at a catch weight of 195 pounds in the main event.

Lawler, 6-1-1 with one No Contest in his last eight outings, is coming off a dramatic, come-from-behind 3:33, first-round knockout over highly regarded Melvin Manhoef on Jan. 30, 2010. Sobral’s start will be his first since losing his STRIKEFORCE belt to Gegard Mousasi on Dec. 19, 2009.  Prior to the defeat, Sobral had reeled off five consecutive victories.

The first-ever STRIKEFORCE event scheduled for mid-week will take place in the midst of the E3 Expo, the premier trade show for computer and video games. During E3 Expo 2010 at the L.A. Convention Center, EA SPORTS™ will exhibit its highly anticipated title, EA SPORTS MMA, in which STRIKEFORCE is featured as a premier league.

The principal fighters on the June 16 fight card, including Lawler, Sobral, Evangelista Cyborg, Marius Zaromskis and Tim Kennedy, are all featured in the EA Sports MMA title.

What the fighters had to say on Wednesday’s call:

OPENING COMMENTS:

SCOTT COKER: “We’re happy to have the fight between Robbie and Babalu and we’re looking forward to a great fight.  That fight is going to have a lot of implications.  I think that that fight, the winner, if Babalu wins and looks good, he will be first in line for a matchup against King Mo (Muhammed “King Mo” Lawal).  Robbie, if he wins the fight, will be first in line to have a title shot at 185 against (Ronaldo) “Jacare” (Souza).  Normally, we don’t put those fights out there, but I just wanted to let everyone know that this fight will have consequences and it will be an interesting show and we’re looking forward to putting it on.”

ROBBIE LAWLER: “Training is going good. I’m down in Arizona for fight camp.  I’m just working real hard, working on my skills and looking forward to having a good show.”

BABALU SOBRAL:  “I look forward to this fight.  It’s going to be in California, my backyard, so it’s going to bring a lot of fans in.”

QUESTIONS:

With all the middleweight tournaments that you are having, could the winners be in a potential tournament?

COKER: “That is still to be determined. It hasn’t been mapped out 100 percent, but we’ll probably have an announcement in the next 10 days or so.”

Babalu could potentially face King Mo, but he’s recently said that he wouldn’t want to fight him because of their relationship.  Is that true?

RICHARD WILNER (Babalu’s Manager) “Yes and no.  For what it’s worth, if the question is ‘are we looking for a fight with Mo,’ with all do respect, the answer is no because of our relationship with Mo.  If that’s the fight on the table because the fans are clamoring for it, then we’ll do what we have to do.   If the question is ‘who do we want to fight,’ I could easily answer that question – and the answer is Dan Henderson and Gegard Mousasi.”

As far as Jacare goes, you said Robbie Lawler would face him for the title.  Is Jacare absolutely locked to fight for the title next, regardless?

COKER: “This depends on how things shake out with Jake (Shields).  If we end up in a situation where we’re looking for a 185-pound champion, I think Jacare would be a No. 1 or No. 2 seed in the slot.”

Babalu, how is your training going considering Robbie has such good power?

BABALU:  “I’ve been working hard.  He’s a great striker and, as everybody knows, I don’t try knocking people out, so I have to defend from that.”

Robbie, how is your submission defense coming?

LAWLER:  “Everything is going good. I’ve been training hard, working on all my skills as usual, so everything is going good.”

Babalu, how are you preparing for this fight after almost one year of not fighting?

BABALU:  “Well, I took a little time off.  I have been going to the gym; I’ve been prepared all along.  I was supposed to fight in DREAM, but that go cancelled and STRIKEFORCE offered me this opportunity.  I just had to push the training a little bit more.  It’s been good training.  I’ve had a very, very amazing camp.”

Scott, will the winner of the Fedor-Werdum fight get a shot at (Alistair) Overeem?

COKER:   “When the fight is over, should Fedor be victorious, we will definitely be sitting down with M-1 to try to put that fight together.”

Scott, how is this type of event different for STRIKEFORCE?

COKER:  “Basically, what happened was E3 was on the books about six months ago and EA Sports was putting out this MMA game. They asked us if we could put together some sort of event.  We said, why don’t we do a fight and it will be our first real time in the Los Angeles market with SHOWTIME.  We thought this will be a fun opportunity to do something in conjunction with EA Sports as part of the E3 convention.  Then we started thinking about what type of card we’d bring there.  Would we bring a Challengers card, do we have the available space (for a big card)?  There was really a tight, tight grip on a lot of the venues there, so we couldn’t pull a big arena show.  We talked to Ken Hershman and thought about doing a hybrid-type of show, and he gave it the green light.  It’s kind of a sampling where you’ll have two fights on the undercard, it’s not going to be a fight where we normally have four or fight undercard fights, it’s a little bit later of a start time, but you’ll get to see some of the best and some of the up-and-coming guys who are trying to keep their value up.”

How is the LA market treating you so far?

COKER: “Ticket sales are terrific; I think we’re about 2/3 there (to sell out).”

Robbie, you’ve been knocking a lot of guys out, but your last couple of losses were by submissions.  How are you going to approach Babalu, who is a submission specialist?

LAWLER: “Really, I’ve just been doing what I normally do: working on all my skills, striking, grappling, wrestling, just trying to build everything at the same time.  (Against Jake Shields) I got caught in a submission, it was tight and I made a mistake. It was an easy mistake to fix and that’s what I’ve been doing.  I grapple as much as I do anything else, so I’m not leaving anything behind.  I’m working on all my skills.”

Babalu, your last fight in STRIKEFORCE you lost by knockout to Mousasi.  What have you done to improve your standup and striking for Robbie?

BABALU: “The only thing that I changed a little bit because Robbie is southpaw is I’ve been training more southpaw then I used to train. That’s the only difference.

“Sometimes it’s good to get your ass kicked, and sometimes it can come back to haunt you. Mentally, I’m more prepared for this. I can’t wait to come back and fight.  I’ve improved more, but I can strike too.  There’s no secret to my game. I’ve fought everybody under the sun.”

Robbie, can you talk about the difference at fighting at 195 pounds and what your preparation is?

LAWLER:  “I’m not too worried about my weight. I decided that I’d just eat whatever I’d want to and not worry about my weight.  I tried bulking up, adding more fluids and taking a little more supplements than usual.  If I was going to weigh 190, I’ll weigh 190.  If I weigh 195, that’s fine.  I’m just going to work hard and that’s what I’ve been doing.”

Babalu, what’s the difference in your approach at 195?

BABALU:  “I haven’t been 195 since I was, like, 15 years old.  For me to make 195, that’s a good opportunity to fight Robbie. He’s a big man and he’s a great challenger.”

Facing a striker after the way you lost last night, what’s your thought?

BABALU:  “I lost my last fight, but that wasn’t because I punched in the head.  He tripped me and took me down.  I was on the ground, it wasn’t because I was weak.  I will come back strong from the loss.  I want to get back to my winning track.”

Robbie, your last fight was a tremendous and grueling fight.  How long does it take for you mentally and physically to get over that fight?

LAWLER:  “Physically a little bit longer. Once I got out here to Arizona I started pushing it a little harder, and that’s when I started feeling really good. Mentally, I was ready to go. I’m always mentally there where I believe in myself and I believe I can beat anyone – that’s easy.  The physical part is always the part where you need to work hard and get back into shape and that’s what I did.”

How would you rate that victory (over Melvin Manhoef) over your other victories in your career?

LAWLER:  “I think it was one of my biggest because everyone knows what kind of striker he is.  Everyone said I should have taken him down, which maybe I should have.  But to knock him out standing and to beat him on his feet, where he’s supposedly one of the best in the world, felt good.”

Babalu, do you feel any added pressure in this fight because of the extra time off and because a title shot is on the line?

BABALU: “There’s always added pressure. The pressure is always on.  The next fight is always the most important fight in your life.”

Robbie, do you think there’s some advantage because he has taken some time off and is coming off of a loss?

LAWLER:  “No, I don’t look at that as an advantage.  Sometimes, taking time off you come back stronger and you’re able to look at what you need to work on and you’re fresher when you come into the fight. It all depends on the individual and how they train if it’s a benefit. I’m ready to go – that’s all I can control.”

Babalu, what would you say your strengths or advantages are going into this fight?

BABALU:  “Normally, I would say my submission skills.  But, I don’t know.  I don’t think I have any advantages. I’ve just been training really hard and feel comfortable with what I’ve done.  I’m just trying to get as mentally and physically prepared as I can to get the job done so I can come back to my house and kiss my family.”

Robbie, what would you say your strengths or advantages are going into this fight?

LAWLER: “I don’t really want to talk about my advantages, but, as far as my strengths are, I’m mentally prepared.  I’m ready to go; I’m physically ready to go.  I’ve been training real hard.  Babalu is a really good opponent; he’s fought everyone it seems at different weights.  So he’ll be ready to go and I’ll be ready to go.”

Babalu, how many times ideally would you like to fight each year?

BABALU: “Without injury I can fight every week.  But I used to fight 12 times in one year back in the day. Honestly, every four months is perfect.  I don’t know if that’s possible, but that’s the dream.”

CLOSING COMMENTS:

COKER:  “I’d like to invite everyone down to the event, and if you can’t make it you can always watch it on SHOWTIME.  We have a very busy month with SHOWTIME, we have Fedor fighting Fabricio Werdum on the 26th.  We’re very excited to host that event; it’s going to be a big show.  You know, everyone is talking about Fedor, Fedor, but, let me tell you something, I think people underestimate Fabricio in this fight.  He beat Fedor’s brother, he beat Alistair Overeem, who’s our current champion, back in PRIDE, and he just beat (Antonio) Big Foot Silva, who just had a great win over Andrei Arlovski. This guy has fought the best in the world and I think it’s going to be a great fight.  Tune into SHOWTIME to watch both fights.”

Tickets are on sale at STAPLES Center box office, all Ticketmaster locations (800) 745-3000, Ticketmaster online (www.ticketmaster.com) and STRIKEFORCE’S official website (www.strikeforce.com).  Tickets will also be sold at the Nokia Theatre L.A. LIVE box office on days when events take place there.

About  STRIKEFORCE
STRIKEFORCE (www.strikeforce.com) is a world-class mixed martial arts cage fight promotion which, on Friday, March 10, 2006, made history with its “Shamrock vs. Gracie” event, the first sanctioned mixed martial arts fight card in California state history.  The star-studded extravaganza, which pitted legendary champion Frank Shamrock against Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu black belt Cesar Gracie at San Jose’s HP Pavilion, played host to a sold-out, record crowd of 18,265.  Since 1995, STRIKEFORCE, sanctioned by ISKA, has been the exclusive provider of martial arts programming for ESPN and, after 12 years of success as a leading, world championship kickboxing promotion, the company unveiled its mixed martial arts (MMA) series with “Shamrock vs. Gracie.”  In May 2008, West Coast Productions, the parent company of STRIKEFORCE, partnered with Silicon Valley Sports & Entertainment (SVS&E), an entity created in 2000 to oversee all business operation aspects of the San Jose Sharks and HP Pavilion at San Jose.

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TIM KENNEDY TO FACE TREVOR PRANGLEY AT NOKIA THEATRE L.A. LIVE WEDNESDAY, JUNE 16

May 26, 2010 by GFL · Leave a Comment
Filed under: MMA News 

Lawler Meets Babalu In Main Event; Lashley-Sparks Fight Off

NEW YORK (May 26, 2010) – American military hero and up-and-coming middleweight, Tim Kennedy, will be opposed by the dangerous Trevor Prangley in one of the featured STRIKEFORCE Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) fights at Nokia Theatre L.A. LIVE on Wednesday, June 16, on SHOWTIME®.

The first-ever STRIKEFORCE event scheduled for mid-week will take place in the midst of the E3 Expo, the premier trade show for computer and video games. During E3 Expo 2010 at the L.A. Convention Center, EA SPORTS™ will exhibit its highly anticipated title, EA SPORTS MMA, in which STRIKEFORCE is featured as a premier league.

Tickets are on sale at STAPLES Center box office, all Ticketmaster locations (800) 745-3000, Ticketmaster online (www.ticketmaster.com) and STRIKEFORCE’S official website (www.strikeforce.com).  Tickets will also be sold at the Nokia Theatre L.A. LIVE box office on days when events take place there.

In other televised fights on SHOWTIME, hard-knocking, hard-hitting “Ruthless” Robbie Lawler (17-5) will collide with former STRIKEFORCE light heavyweight (205 pounds) champion Renato “Babalu’’ Sobral, at a catch weight of 195 pounds in the main event and. DREAM welterweight champion Marius “The Whitemare” Zaromskis (13-4) will face Evangelista Cyborg (17-13) in a welterweight (170 pounds) contest.

A previously announced heavyweight match between Bobby Lashley and Ron Sparks will not transpire. Lashley suffered a knee injury during training.

Both 185-pound fighters – Kennedy (11-2), of Austin, Tex., by way of San Luis Obispo, Calif., and Prangley (22-5-1), of Couer D’ Alene, Idaho, via Cape Town, South Africa — have been impressive in recent starts.

The 5-foot-11, 30-year-old Kennedy, a United States Army Special Forces sniper with the 19th Special Forces outfit based in San Antonio, has toured the Middle East multiple times, and earned the Army’s Bronze Medal Star medal for valor under fire.

Inside the cage, Kennedy has won three in a row and 11 of his last 12. In his last outing, he submitted (north-south choke) Zak Cummings in the second round during a STRIKEFORCE Challengers event on Sept. 25, 2009.

Prangley, a six-foot, 37-year-old former South African national wrestling champion and Olympic alternate who turned to MMA after suffering a knee injury in college, is 11-1-1 in his last 13 fights. A five-fight winning streak ended  Feb. 26, 2010, when a STRIKEFORCE: Challengers fight he seemingly was on his way to winning against Karl Amoussou ended in a technical draw at 4:14 of the first round due to an accidental thumb to Amoussou’s eye.

Kennedy has split two fights with Jason “Mayhem’’ Miller. Kennedy’s only other defeat came to Scott “Hands Of Steel’’ Smith in his pro debut on Aug. 31, 2001.

“I am fighting full-time and still in uniform, which is what I’ve wanted all along,’’ Kennedy said. “I am looking forward to fighting again against a good, solid wrestler like Prangley, who trains at AKA (American Kickboxing Academy in San Jose, Calif.).

“He’s got heavy hands and a good chin. This will be a good fight for me.

Kennedy signed with STRIKEFORCE in 2009 after a two-year break from the sport due to his military commitments. This will be his third start on SHOWTIME for the San Jose-based organization. Before walking through the previously unbeaten Cummings (10-0 going in) in Tulsa, Okla.,  Kennedy scored a second-round submission (punches) over former BodogFIGHT champion Nick “The Goat’’ Thompson at Kent, Wash.

“I want to keep winning,’’ Kennedy said. “STRIKEFORCE has a bunch of guys in my weight class who I match up very well with. I want to fight all of these guys and put on a good show for SHOWTIME and STRIKEFORCE.”

Prangley may not be the most feared fighter in MMA, but he is definitely not one many want to enter the cage with. He’s capable of besting anyone on any given night.

Since his pro debut (as a light heavyweight) in January 2001, Prangley has met some good ones, including “Babalu,’’ Jorge Santiago (his last loss) and Chael Sonnen. Prangley’s most significant victory may have come against Sonnen.

Prangley has fought for STRIKEFORCE in the past. Besides his last start against Amoussou, he also competed in STRIKEFORCE: Four Men Enter, One Man Survives, the first sanctioned MMA tournament in the state of California on Nov. 16, 2007 and was victorious over Anthony “A Train” Ruiz by way of unanimous decision at the second STRIKEFORCE event at the world-famous Playboy Mansion in Beverly Hills, Calif. on Sept. 20, 2008.

Doors at Nokia Theatre L.A. LIVE will open for the event at 5:15 p.m. PT.  The first non-televised preliminary bout will begin at 7 p.m. and the first main card fight will begin at 8 p.m.

The event will be televised live on SHOWTIME at 11 p.m. ET/PT (delayed on the West Coast).

About  STRIKEFORCE
STRIKEFORCE (www.strikeforce.com) is a world-class mixed martial arts cage fight promotion which, on Friday, March 10, 2006, made history with its “Shamrock vs. Gracie” event, the first sanctioned mixed martial arts fight card in California state history.  The star-studded extravaganza, which pitted legendary champion Frank Shamrock against Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu black belt Cesar Gracie at San Jose’s HP Pavilion, played host to a sold-out, record crowd of 18,265.  Since 1995, STRIKEFORCE, sanctioned by ISKA, has been the exclusive provider of martial arts programming for ESPN and, after 12 years of success as a leading, world championship kickboxing promotion, the company unveiled its mixed martial arts (MMA) series with “Shamrock vs. Gracie.”  In May 2008, West Coast Productions, the parent company of STRIKEFORCE, partnered with Silicon Valley Sports & Entertainment (SVS&E), an entity created in 2000 to oversee all business operation aspects of the San Jose Sharks and HP Pavilion at San Jose.  In March 2009, STRIKEFORCE signed a multi-year agreement with SHOWTIME® to stage live events on the premium cable television network.  The promotion has since also produced two live, primetime events on the CBS Television Network.

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“BABALU” SOBRAL TO FACE ROBBIE LAWLER IN STRIKEFORCE MAIN EVENT AT NOKIA THEATRE L.A. LIVE WEDNESDAY, JUNE 16

April 30, 2010 by GFL · Leave a Comment
Filed under: MMA News 

Tickets Go On Sale Tomorrow

LOS ANGELES (April 30, 2010) – Knockout artist “Ruthless” Robbie Lawler (17-5) will collide with former STRIKEFORCE Light Heavyweight (205 pounds) Champion Renato “Babalu” Sobral (35-8) at a catch weight of 195 pounds in the main event when STRIKEFORCE Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) hits Nokia Theatre L.A. LIVE in downtown Los Angeles, Calif. on Wednesday, June 16.

Tickets go on sale to the general public at 10 a.m. PT tomorrow/Saturday, May 1, at STAPLES Center box office, all Ticketmaster locations (800) 745-3000, Ticketmaster online (www.ticketmaster.com <http://www.ticketmaster.com/> ) and STRIKEFORCE’S official website (www.strikeforce.com <http://www.strikeforce.com/> ).  Tickets will also be sold at the Nokia Theatre L.A. LIVE box office on days when events take place there.

The first-ever STRIKEFORCE event scheduled for mid-week will take place in the midst of the E3 Expo, the premier trade show for computer and video games. During E3 Expo 2010 at the L.A. Convention Center, EA SPORTS(tm) will exhibit its highly anticipated title, EA SPORTS MMA, in which STRIKEFORCE is featured as a premier league.

Sobral’s start will be his first since he relinquished his STRIKEFORCE crown to superstar Gegard Mousasi, who stopped the Brazilian fighter one minute into their meeting at San Jose, Calif.’s HP Pavilion on Dec. 19, 2009.  Prior to the loss, Sobral had reeled off five consecutive victories.

The 34-year-old Sobral, who resides in Orange County, Calif., has faced and defeated some of the sport’s toughest competitors during his 13-year career.  On Sept. 6, 2003, he defeated three consecutive, first-rate opponents – Trevor Prangley, Mauricio Rua, and Jeremy Horn – in one night of single-elimination tournament action.

Also slated for action on the card are former WWE champion turned undefeated heavyweight MMA sensation Bobby Lashley (5-0) and lightweight star K.J. Noons (8-2)

Doors at Nokia Theatre L.A. LIVE will open for the event at 5:15 p.m. PT.  The first non-televised preliminary bout will begin at 6 p.m. and the first main card fight will begin at 8 p.m.

The event will be televised live on SHOWTIME at 11 p.m. ET/PT (delayed on the West Coast).

About  STRIKEFORCE
STRIKEFORCE (www.strikeforce.com <http://www.strikeforce.com/> ) is a world-class mixed martial arts cage fight promotion which, on Friday, March 10, 2006, made history with its “Shamrock vs. Gracie” event, the first sanctioned mixed martial arts fight card in California state history.  The star-studded extravaganza, which pitted legendary champion Frank Shamrock against Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu black belt Cesar Gracie at San Jose’s HP Pavilion, played host to a sold-out, record crowd of 18,265.  Since 1995, STRIKEFORCE, sanctioned by ISKA, has been the exclusive provider of martial arts programming for ESPN and, after 12 years of success as a leading, world championship kickboxing promotion, the company unveiled its mixed martial arts (MMA) series with “Shamrock vs. Gracie.”  In May 2008, West Coast Productions, the parent company of STRIKEFORCE, partnered with Silicon Valley Sports & Entertainment (SVS&E), an entity created in 2000 to oversee all business operation aspects of the San Jose Sharks and HP Pavilion at San Jose.  In March 2009, STRIKEFORCE signed a multi-year agreement with SHOWTIME® to stage live events on the premium cable television network.  The promotion has since also produced two live, primetime events on the CBS Television Network.

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“RUTHLESS’’ ROBBIE LAWLER, KJ NOONS AND BOBBY LASHLEY WILL BE FEATURED AT STRIKEFORCE EVENT WEDNESDAY, JUNE 16, AT NOKIA THEATRE L.A. LIVE

April 28, 2010 by GFL · Leave a Comment
Filed under: MMA News 

Tickets Go On Sale Saturday, May 1; Pre-Sale Begins
Tomorrow/Thursday, April 29, via “STRIKEFORCE Insider”

LOS ANGELES (April 28, 2010) – Knockout artist and former middleweight world champion “Ruthless” Robbie Lawler (17-5), ex- WWE wrestling champion-turned-undefeated Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) heavyweight star Bobby Lashley (5-0) and former lightweight world champion KJ Noons (8-2) will fight in the featured bouts when STRIKEFORCE hits Nokia Theatre L.A. LIVE here on Wednesday, June 16.

The first-ever STRIKEFORCE event scheduled for mid-week will take place in the midst of the E3 Expo, the premier trade show for computer and video games. During E3 Expo 2010 at the L.A. Convention Center, EA SPORTS™ will exhibit its highly anticipated title, EA SPORTS MMA, in which STRIKEFORCE is featured as a premier league.

A special pre-sale ticket purchase opportunity for the event will take place for “STRIKEFORCE Insider” e-newsletter subscribers (http://strikeforce.com/insider.html) and Nokia Theatre L.A. LIVE e-newsletter subscribers from 10 a.m. PT tomorrow/Thursday, April 29, until 10 p.m. PT on Friday, April 30.  STRIKEFORCE Insiders will receive an e-newsletter with the pre-sale code.

Tickets go on sale to the general public at 10 a.m. PT on Saturday, May 1, at STAPLES  Center box office, all Ticketmaster locations (800) 745-3000, Ticketmaster online (www.ticketmaster.com) and STRIKEFORCE’S official website (www.strikeforce.com).  Tickets will also be sold at the Nokia Theatre L.A. LIVE box office on days when events take place there.

Opponents for the three fighters will be announced soon.

Lawler and Lashley were overwhelmingly victorious in their last starts, both of which took place at the STRIKEFORCE event at BankAtlantic Center in Sunrise, Fla., on Jan. 30, 2010.

Lawler weathered an early onslaught from Melvin “No Mercy” Manhoef before rallying dramatically to crumble Manhoef with a devastating right hand at 3:33 of the opening round and Lashley stopped Wes Sims with a barrage of punches in the first round (2:06).

Recognized as one of the hardest punchers in the sport, the 28-year-old Lawler, of Granite City, Ill., was discovered and schooled by MMA legend Pat Miletich.  Lawler’s fight with Aaron Riley

at UFC 37 on May 10, 2002 later became the first MMA bout in history to air on network TV (FOX Sports).

At 6-foot-3, 265 pounds, Lashley, 33, is a monstrous specimen of  a man who has stopped all but one of his five opponents in the first round.  A resident of Denver, Colo., he soared to stardom while competing on WWE’s Raw and Smackdown! series between 2005 and 2007.

Noons is a confident, prolific striker who has won four in a row and is the last  fighter to defeat current STRIKEFORCE welterweight champion Nick Diaz. In a thrilling, bloody fight on Nov. 10, 2007, Noons won by first-round TKO when a cageside doctor stopped matters after the first round due to excessive cuts around Diaz’ eyes.

The 5-foot-11, 27-year-old Noons’ other victories during his winning streak came over Edson Berto (KO 3, knee) on July 27, 2007, Yves Edwards (TKO 1, punches and elbows) on June 14, 2008 and, in his first outing following a near-two-year respite to continue a boxing career, a decision over Andre Armado at DREAM 13 last March 22.

Doors at Nokia Theatre L.A. LIVE will open for the event at 5:15 p.m. PT.  The first non-televised preliminary bout will begin at 6 p.m. and the first main card fight will begin at 8 p.m.

The event will be televised live on SHOWTIME® at 11 p.m. ET/PT (delayed on the West Coast).

About  STRIKEFORCE
STRIKEFORCE (www.strikeforce.com) is a world-class mixed martial arts cage fight promotion which, on Friday, March 10, 2006, made history with its “Shamrock vs. Gracie” event, the first sanctioned mixed martial arts fight card in California state history.  The star-studded extravaganza, which pitted legendary champion Frank Shamrock against Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu black belt Cesar Gracie at San Jose’s HP Pavilion, played host to a sold-out, record crowd of 18,265.  Since 1995, STRIKEFORCE, sanctioned by ISKA, has been the exclusive provider of martial arts programming for ESPN and, after 12 years of success as a leading, world championship kickboxing promotion, the company unveiled its mixed martial arts (MMA) series with “Shamrock vs. Gracie.”  In May 2008, West Coast Productions, the parent company of STRIKEFORCE, partnered with Silicon Valley Sports & Entertainment (SVS&E), an entity created in 2000 to oversee all business operation aspects of the San Jose Sharks and HP Pavilion at San Jose.  In March 2009, STRIKEFORCE signed a multi-year agreement with SHOWTIME® to stage live events on the premium cable television network.  The promotion has since also produced two live, primetime events on the CBS Television Network.

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Robbie Lawler ‘not too worried’ about Melvin Manhoef’s stand up (Video)

January 29, 2010 by kenny · Leave a Comment
Filed under: MMA News 

Written By: Jesse Holland (MMAmania.com)

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MMA SUPERSTAR CUNG LE RETURNS TO CAGE DEC. 19 AGAINST HARD-HITTING SCOTT “HANDS OF STEEL” SMITH; STRIKEFORCE NEWCOMERS MATT “THE LAW” LINDLAND, “JACARE” SOUZA, “KING MO” LAWAL TO DEBUT, “RUTHLESS” ROBBIE LAWLER ALSO ON SHOWTIME® CARD

November 9, 2009 by GFL · Leave a Comment
Filed under: MMA News 

Tickets For STRIKEFORCE: Evolution On Sale Friday, Nov. 13;

Special Presale Opportunity For “STRIKEFORCE Insiders” Begins Tuesday, Nov. 10

NEW YORK (Nov. 9, 2009) – The stakes will be high when STRIKEFORCE closes out a spectacular 2009 with the return of one of the most prolific and exciting fighters in Mixed Martial Arts – unbeaten former STRIKEFORCE world middleweight champion Cung Le, who will face Scott “Hands of Steel” Smith in the main event of a star-studded lineup at HP Pavilion in San Jose, Calif. on Saturday, Dec. 19, on SHOWTIME®.

Joining Le (6-0) and Smith (16-6) will be three other outstanding and widely recognized 185-pound stalwarts, “Ruthless” Robbie Lawler (16-5), Matt “The Law” Lindland (21-6) and Ronaldo “Jacare” Souza (10-2) as well as light heavyweight star (205 pounds) Muhammed “King Mo” Lawal (5-0).  Lindland will face Souza in what represents both fighters’ STRIKEFORCE debuts. Opponents for Lawler and “King Mo,” whose start will also be his first with STRIKEFORCE, will be announced soon.

A special pre-sale ticket purchase opportunity will take place for “STRIKEFORCE Insider” e-newsletter subscribers (www.strikeforce.com <http://www.strikeforce.com/> ) beginning at 10:00 AM, PT Tuesday, Nov. 10, and ending at 10 PM, PT on Thursday, Nov. 12.  “STRIKEFORCE Insiders” will receive a special e-newsletter today with the pre-sale code.

Tickets, priced from $30, go on sale to the general public at 10:00 AM, PT on Friday, Nov. 13 at the HP Pavilion ticket office as well as at all Ticketmaster locations (800-745-3000), Ticketmaster online (www.ticketmaster.com <http://www.ticketmaster.com/> ) and STRIKEFORCE’S official website (www.strikeforce.com <http://www.strikeforce.com/> ).

A cross-over star who also has made a name for himself in Hollywood, the popular Le has never lost a fight in his decorated career as a professional. He’s perfect in MMA, kickboxing (22-0) and Sanshou (17-0).

Le, who recently relinquished his STRIKEFORCE belt to concentrate on a movie career – his latest flick, Pandorum, was released recently and another movie, Tekken, is due out soon –  will be making his first start since dismantling the renowned Frank Shamrock on March 29, 2008, at HP Pavilion.

In an impressive performance, Le kicked the daylights out of Shamrock, breaking Shamrock’s arm in the process of winning by third-round TKO. Shamrock could not come out for the fourth round.

The 5-foot-10, 37-year-old Le was born in Saigon <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saigon> , South Vietnam <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/South_Vietnam> , and moved to San Jose when he was 10. In 1994, he had his first amateur fight and turned pro in 1998. His main concentrations were in Sanshou and kickboxing until 2005. His MMA debut came in March 2006. Smith, of Sacramento, Calif., has won two of three and registered 13 knockouts in his 16 victories.

A game, exciting Muay Thai specialist and one of the most dangerous strikers in the business, Smith is a KO artist who comes out throwing bombs with an abandon.

A fighter who detests fights that go that distance, Smith has fought the likes of Nick Diaz and Lawler twice but will forever be remembered most for his dramatic, comeback, highlight-reel victory over Pete “Drago” Sell in one of the most unexpected, shocking endings to a fight in MMA

Souza, a 2008 Dream Middleweight Grand Prix runner-up, is a submission wizard who signed with STRIKEFORCE earlier this year.  “Jacare,” which is Portuguese for the species of alligator that inhabit Manaus, the town in Brazil where he was born, took up Jiu Jitsu at the age of 17.

The talented, six-foot-tall, 29-year-old Souza held MMA legend Randy “The Natural” Couture to a draw in a grappling contest in 2006 and, shortly thereafter, began training at Xtreme Couture.  He has long since returned to training in his homeland.

Souza established his position as a top tier 185-pounder after placing second in the 2008 Dream single elimination tournament in Japan.  Souza, who won a decision over “Mayhem” Miller earlier in the Dream Grand Prix, is coming off a no-contest with “Mayhem” in his most recent start on May 26, 2009. Souza had won eight in a row before losing to world-class, top-five middleweight, Gegard Mousasi, in his outing before last in the finals of the Dream tourney on Sept. 23, 2008.

Lindland is the 2000 Olympic Games silver medalist who holds wins against Pat Miletich <http://www.sherdog.com/fighter/Pat-Miletich-188> , former UFC welterweight champion Carlos Newton <http://www.sherdog.com/fighter/Carlos-Newton-7>  and Jeremy Horn <http://www.sherdog.com/fighter/Jeremy-Horn-202> . The comebacking Lindland is one of only two men to submit Brazilian jiu-jitsu black belt Travis Lutter <http://www.sherdog.com/fighter/Travis-Lutter-4586> .

Lawler, who fights out of Granite City, Ill., is known for utterly destroying opponents with an aggressive, unbashful, swing-for-the-fences, almost, at times, reckless style of fighting. A southpaw who has never turned down a fight, Lawler possesses enormous punching power, usually aimed at an opponent’s head.

A fan favorite who matches the strength behind his punches with unexpected flying knee kicks, the 5-foot-11, 27-year-old has long been regarded as one of the world’s top middleweights. Since October 2006, EliteXC’s last middleweight <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Middleweight>  belt-holder and former two-time ICON Sport <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ICON_Sport>  middleweight titlist is 5-1 with one no-contest.

The charismatic, outspoken “King Mo” will be making his United States debut after fighting five times in Japan where the 5-foot-11, 28-year-old of Temecula, Calif., by way of Mufiesboro, Tenn., became an instant fan favorite and is extremely popular.

A former three-time U.S. Senior National and NCAA wrestling champion, “King Mo” turned pro on Sept. 28, 2008.

“King Mo,” whose public feud with Quinton “Rampage” Jackson has been well-documented, has won four of his five pro fights by knockout (punches), three in the first round. In his last outing, a member of “Team Thirsty” and “Team GDP” required all of 25 seconds to dispatch of Mark Kerr.

Doors at HP Pavilion will open at 5 p.m. PT for the STRIKEFORCE: “Evolution” event presented by Rockstar Energy Drink and the first preliminary bout will begin at 6:00 PM, PT.

The live SHOWTIME telecast, which will include as many as five bouts, will begin at 10 p.m. ET/PT (delayed on the west coast).

About STRIKEFORCE
STRIKEFORCE (www.strikeforce.com <http://www.strikeforce.com/> ) is a world-class mixed martial arts cage fight promotion which, on Friday, March 10, 2006, made history with its “Shamrock vs. Gracie” event, the first sanctioned mixed martial arts fight card in California state history.  The star-studded extravaganza, which pitted legendary champion Frank Shamrock against Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu black belt Cesar Gracie at San Jose’s HP Pavilion, played host to a sold-out, record crowd of 18,265.  Since 1995, STRIKEFORCE has been the exclusive provider of martial arts programming for ESPN and, after 12 years of success as a leading, world championship kickboxing promotion, the company unveiled its mixed martial arts series with “Shamrock vs. Gracie.”  In May 2008, West Coast Productions, the parent company of STRIKEFORCE, partnered with Silicon Valley Sports & Entertainment (SVS&E), an entity created in 2000 to oversee all business operation aspects of the San Jose Sharks and HP Pavilion at San Jose.

Tags: , ,

MMA SUPERSTAR CUNG LE RETURNS TO CAGE DEC. 19 AGAINST HARD-HITTING SCOTT “HANDS OF STEEL’’ SMITH; STRIKEFORCE NEWCOMERS “JACARE’’ SOUZA, “KING MO’’ LAWAL TO DEBUT, “RUTHLESS’’ ROBBIE LAWLER ALSO ON SHOWTIME® CARD

November 8, 2009 by GFL · Leave a Comment
Filed under: MMA News 

Tickets For STRIKEFORCE: Evolution On Sale Friday, Nov. 13;

Special Presale Opportunity For “STRIKEFORCE Insiders” Begins Tuesday, Nov. 10

CHICAGO (Nov. 7, 2009) — The stakes will be high when STRIKEFORCE closes out a spectacular 2009 with the return of one of the most prolific and exciting fighters in Mixed Martial Arts – unbeaten former STRIKEFORCE world middleweight champion Cung Le, who will headline a star-studded lineup at HP Pavilion in San Jose, Calif. on Saturday, Dec. 19, on SHOWTIME®.

Joining the legendary Le (6-0) will be five other outstanding and widely recognized 185-pound stalwarts, Scott “Hands Of Steel’’ Smith (16-6), “Ruthless” Robbie Lawler (16-5), Matt “The Law” Lindland (21-6) and highly regarded STRIKEFORCE newcomers Ronaldo “Jacare” Souza (10-2) and Muhammed “King Mo” Lawal (5-0), who will be making their respective highly anticipated debuts for the organization. Souza will face Lindland. Opponents for Lawler and “King Mo’’ will be announced soon.

A special pre-sale ticket purchase opportunity will take place for “STRIKEFORCE Insider” e-newsletter subscribers (www.strikeforce.com) beginning at 10:00 AM, PT Tuesday, Nov. 10, and ending at 10 PM, PT on Thursday, Nov. 12.  ”STRIKEFORCE Insiders” will receive a special e-newsletter today with the pre-sale code.

Tickets, priced from $30, go on sale to the general public at 10:00 AM, PT on Friday, Nov. 13 at the HP Pavilion ticket office as well as at all Ticketmaster locations (800-745-3000), Ticketmaster online (www.ticketmaster.com) and STRIKEFORCE’S official website (www.strikeforce.com).

A cross-over star who also has made a name for himself in Hollywood, the popular Le has never lost a fight in his decorated career as a professional. He‘s perfect in MMA, kickboxing (22-0) and Sanshou (17-0).

Le, who recently relinquished his STRIKEFORCE belt to concentrate on a movie career – his latest flick, Pandorum, was released recently and another movie, Tekken, is due out soon — will be making his first start since dismantling the renowned Frank Shamrock on March 29, 2008, at HP Pavilion.

In an impressive performance, Le kicked the daylights out of Shamrock, breaking Shamrock’s arm in the process of winning by third-round TKO. Shamrock could not come out for the fourth round.

The 5-foot-10, 37-year-old Le was born in Saigon, South Vietnam, and moved to San Jose when he was 10. In 1994, he had his first amateur fight and turned pro in 1998. His main concentrations were in Sanshou and kickboxing until 2005. His MMA debut came in March 2006. Smith, of Sacramento, Calif., has won two of three and registered 13 knockouts in his 16 victories.

A game, exciting Muay Thai specialist and one of the most dangerous strikers in the business, Smith is a KO artist who comes out throwing bombs with an abandon.

A fighter who detests fights that go that distance, Smith has fought the likes of Nick Diaz and Lawler twice but will forever be remembered most for his dramatic, comeback, highlight-reel victory over Pete “Drago’’ Sell in one of the most unexpected, shocking endings to a fight in MMA

Souza, a 2008 Dream Middleweight Grand Prix runner-up, is a submission wizard who signed with STRIKEFORCE earlier this year.  “Jacare,” which is Portuguese for the species of alligator that inhabit Manaus, the town in Brazil where he was born, took up Jiu Jitsu at the age of 17.

The talented, six-foot-tall, 29-year-old Souza held MMA legend Randy “The Natural” Couture to a draw in a grappling contest in 2006 and, shortly thereafter, began training at Xtreme Couture.  He has long since returned to training in his homeland.

Souza established his position as a top tier 185-pounder after placing second in the 2008 Dream single elimination tournament in Japan.  Souza, who won a decision over “Mayhem’’ Miller earlier in the Dream Grand Prix, is coming off a no-contest with “Mayhem’’ in his most recent start on May 26, 2009. Souza had won eight in a row before losing to world-class, top-five middleweight, Gegard Mousasi, in his outing before last in the finals of the Dream tourney on Sept. 23, 2008.

Lindland is the 2000 Olympic Games silver medalist who holds wins against Pat Miletich, former UFC welterweight champion Carlos Newton and Jeremy Horn. The comebacking Lindland is one of only two men to submit Brazilian jiu-jitsu black belt Travis Lutter.

Lawler, who fights out of Granite City, Ill., is known for utterly destroying opponents with an aggressive, unbashful, swing-for-the-fences, almost, at times, reckless style of fighting. A southpaw who has never turned down a fight, Lawler possesses enormous punching power, usually aimed at an opponent’s head.

A fan favorite who matches the strength behind his punches with unexpected flying knee kicks, the 5-foot-11, 27-year-old has long been regarded as one of the world’s top middleweights. Since October 2006, EliteXC’s last middleweight belt-holder and former two-time ICON Sport middleweight titlist is 5-1 with one no-contest.

The charismatic, outspoken “King Mo’’ will be making his United States debut after fighting five times in Japan where the 5-foot-11, 28-year-old of Temecula, Calif., by way of Mufiesboro, Tenn., became an instant fan favorite and is extremely popular.

A former three-time U.S. Senior National and NCAA wrestling champion, “King Mo’’ turned pro on Sept. 28, 2008.

“King Mo,’’ whose public feud with Quinton “Rampage’’ Jackson has been well-documented, has won four of his five pro fights by knockout (punches), three in the first round. In his last outing, a member of “Team Thirsty” and “Team GDP” required all of 25 seconds to dispatch of Mark Kerr.

Doors at HP Pavilion will open at 5 p.m. PT for the STRIKEFORCE: “Evolution” event presented by Rockstar Energy Drink and the first preliminary bout will begin at 6:00 PM, PT.

The live SHOWTIME telecast, which will include as many as five bouts, will begin at 10 p.m. ET/PT (delayed on the west coast).

About STRIKEFORCE
STRIKEFORCE (www.strikeforce.com) is a world-class mixed martial arts cage fight promotion which, on Friday, March 10, 2006, made history with its “Shamrock vs. Gracie” event, the first sanctioned mixed martial arts fight card in California state history.  The star-studded extravaganza, which pitted legendary champion Frank Shamrock against Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu black belt Cesar Gracie at San Jose’s HP Pavilion, played host to a sold-out, record crowd of 18,265.  Since 1995, STRIKEFORCE has been the exclusive provider of martial arts programming for ESPN and, after 12 years of success as a leading, world championship kickboxing promotion, the company unveiled its mixed martial arts series with “Shamrock vs. Gracie.”  In May 2008, West Coast Productions, the parent company of STRIKEFORCE, partnered with Silicon Valley Sports & Entertainment (SVS&E), an entity created in 2000 to oversee all business operation aspects of the San Jose Sharks and HP Pavilion at San Jose.

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SHIELDS CHOKES OUT LAWLER FOR 12TH CONSECUTIVE VICTORY; UNBEATEN ROGERS KO’s FORMER UFC CHAMP ARLOVSKI IN 22 SECONDS; NICK DIAZ, JOE RIGGS, MIKE WHITEHEAD ALSO WIN

June 9, 2009 by GFL · Leave a Comment
Filed under: MMA News 
BIGGEST WOMEN’S FIGHT IN MMA HISTORY: 
GINA CARANO Vs. CRIS “CYBORG”
SET FOR AUG. 15 AT HP PAVILION IN SAN JOSE
ON SHOWTIME; ALSO ON CARD,
 THOMSON-MELENDEZ II FOR STRIKEFORCE TITLE, OVEREEM TO DEFEND
_____________________________________________________________________________________

 

Saturday, June 6, 2009, LIVE on SHOWTIME

From Scottrade Center, St. Louis, Missouri

 

ST. LOUIS (June 7, 2009) – Jake Shields, a world-ranked welterweight, submitted (guillotine choke) world-rated middleweight, “Ruthless’’ Robbie Lawler, in the STRIKEFORCE main event Saturday on SHOWTIME® before 8,867 who turned out at the Scottrade Center for the most significant mixed martial arts event in the history of the Gateway City.

 

Shields’ 12th consecutive victory in a match fought at a catch weight of 182 pounds capped a wild and entertaining evening of MMA highlighted by undefeated Brett “The Grim’’ Rogers’ shocking 22-second knockout over former UFC heavyweight champion Andrei “Pitbull’’ Arlovski and another impressive performance by talented, world-class Nick Diaz, who submitted (rear naked choke) hard-trying Scott “Hands Of Steel’’ Smith at 1:41 of the of the third round.

 

In other results on SHOWTIME, southpaw Joe “The Diesel” Riggs registered a unanimous decision over Phil Baroni in a welterweight scrap and “Iron’’ Mike Whitehead scored the biggest victory of his career with a unanimous decision over comebacking former UFC standout and two-time NCAA Division I national wrestling champion Kevin Randleman in a light heavyweight bout.

 

The event, presented by SHOWTIME and STRIKEFORCE, aired live simultaneously on SHOWTIME and on the Web (Strikeforce: All Access) at http://strikeforce.sho.com. The SHOWTIME telecast aired at 10 p.m. ET/PT (delayed on the west coast); the Strikeforce: All Access webcast went at 10 p.m. ET/7 p.m. PT and is available through Tuesday, June 9, at the site.

 

It was announced during the SHOWTIME telecast that the biggest fight in the history of women’s MMA, the long-awaited, eagerly anticipated match between superstars Gina Carano and Cris “Cyborg’’  would take place on Saturday, Aug. 15, at the HP Pavilion in San Jose, Calif., on SHOWTIME.

 

 Also on Aug. 15, Josh Thomson will defend his Strikeforce lightweight title against former belt-holder and interim champ Gilbert Melendez and STRIKEFORCE heavyweight champion Alistair Overeem will defend against an opponent to be announced.

 

San Francisco’s Shields (23-4-1), the grappler moving up in weight, forced the slugger, Lawler (16-5, 1 NC), of nearby Granite City, Ill., to tap out at 2:02 of the opening round from a guillotine choke. The defeat ended a six-fight unbeaten streak (5-0, 1 NC) for Lawler.

 

“This was a great fight and I thank Robbie for the opportunity,’’ said Shields, who, along with Diaz, is a Cesar Gracie Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu black belt. “He is a great fighter but this was just my night.’’

 

Rogers’ victory, while perhaps not totally unexpected, figures to have the fans talking for a long time. After missing with his first punch, a right hook, Rogers (10-0), of St. Paul, Minn., landed a flush left hook, a right and another left hook that sent Arlovski (15-7), of Chicago, crumbling to the canvas. The referee stepped in and halted the proceedings immediately.

 

“I’ve always said that I can hurt people with my power and I proved it again tonight,’’ Rogers said. “Hopefully, this fight will get me into the top 10. Once, I touch you it is over. I will fight anybody.’’

 

Diaz (20-7), of Stockton, Calif., mostly dominated Smith (17-6, 1 NC) of Elk Grove, Calif. Diaz, who was coming off an easy victory over Frank Shamrock in April, seemed to do as he pleased for the most part. He out-punched the puncher, hurting Smith on numerous occasions. Known for miraculous comebacks, Smith had no answer on this night, going down twice, the last time from body shots.

 

“I’m not sure who I’ll fight next or if it is at 160, 170 or 180,’’ said Diaz after the fight was stopped at 3:38 of the third. “But I am happy with this fight.’’

 

Riggs (30-10), of Phoenix, Ariz., won by the scores of 30-27 on the three judges’ scorecards. After managing to bottle up Baroni and take the first two rounds, Riggs, despite two broken hands, dominated the third. “I want to fight Jake Shields,’’ Riggs said afterward.

 

Baroni (13-11) of Las Vegas by way of Long Island, NY, had a three fight winning streak end.

 

In the telecast’s opening bout, Whitehead (24-7), of Las Vegas, outpointed Randleman (17-13) of Las Vegas by the scores of 29-28 three times. It was the second straight victory for Whitehead, who is 15-1 in his last 16 fights. Randleman was fighting for first time since May 2008 and only the second time since October 2006.

 

Saturday’s exciting fights will re-air as follows:

           

            DAY                                                                 CHANNEL

Wednesday, June 10, at 10 p.m. ET/PT        SHOWTIME 2®

 

It will be available On Demand beginning Tuesday, April 14.

 

Versatile play-by-play broadcast veteran Gus Johnson called the action on SHOWTIME with MMA expert Mauro Ranallo and MMA superstar Frank Shamrock serving as expert analysts.

 

Saturday’s non-televised results: Pat Benson, St. Louis, submitted (triangle choke) Dave Cochran, St. Louis, at 2:18 of the first round (155 pounds); Lucas Lopes, Columbia, Mo., won by disqualification (illegal knee strike) over Scott Ventimiglia, Wood River, Ill., at 3:26 of the first round (185 pounds); Tyron Woodley, St. Louis,  submitted (choke) Salvador Woods, Granite City, Ill., at 4:20 of the first round (170 pounds);  Booker DeRousse, St. Genevieve, Mo., TKO 1 (strikes, 4:20) over James Woods, St. Peters, Mo. (205 pounds); Mike Kyle, San Jose, Calif., TKO 2 (strikes, 4:05) over Rafael  “Feijao” Cavalcante, Brazil (205 pounds); and Jesse Finney, St. Louis, submitted (keylock) Josh Bumgarner, Waterloo, Iowa, at 1:55 of the first round (175 pounds).

 

Mixed martial arts returns to SHOWTIME on Friday, June 19, when “Smokin” Joey Villasenor and Evangelista “Cyborg” clash in a middleweight showdown in the main event on Strikeforce Challengers (11 p.m. ET/PT, delayed on the west coast) at the ShoWare Center in Kent, Wash.

 

In other televised bouts, Cory “The One” Devela faces Luke Rockhold (middleweights), Lyle Beerbohm meets Duane “Bang” Ludwig (lightweights), Nick “The Goat’’ Thompson throws down with Tim Kennedy (middleweights), Sarah Kaufman takes on Shayna Bazsler in a 135-pound women’s fight and Jorge Gurgel will collide with Conor Heun in a 155-pound scrap.

 

Tickets for the Strikeforce Challengers event, priced from $32, are on sale at the ShoWare Center Box Office (253-856-6999 or 877-840-0457), online at ShoWareCenter.com, and at www.strikeforce.com. 

 

ShoWare Center doors will open for the Strikeforce Challengers event at 5:30 p.m. PT on June 19 and the first preliminary bout will begin at 6 p.m. PT.

 

For information on Showtime Sports Programming, including exclusive video, photos and news links on SHOWTIME CHAMPIONSHIP BOXING and EliteXC mixed martial arts telecasts, please go to www.SHO.com/sports.

 

About Strikeforce
Strikeforce is a world-class mixed martial arts cage fight promotion which, on Friday, March 10, 2006, made history with its “Shamrock vs. Gracie” event, the first sanctioned mixed martial arts fight card in California state history.  The star-studded extravaganza, which pitted legendary champion Frank Shamrock against Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu black belt Cesar Gracie at San Jose’s HP Pavilion, played host to a sold-out, record crowd of 18,265.  Since 1995, Strikeforce has been the exclusive provider of martial arts programming for ESPN and, after 12 years of success as a leading, world championship kickboxing promotion, the company unveiled its mixed martial arts series with “Shamrock vs. Gracie.”  In May 2008, West Coast Productions, the parent company of Strikeforce, partnered with Silicon Valley Sports & Entertainment (SVS&E), an entity created in 2000 to oversee all business operation aspects of the San Jose Sharks and HP Pavilion at San Jose.

 

About Showtime Networks, Inc.

Showtime Networks Inc. (SNI), a wholly-owned subsidiary of CBS Corporation, owns and operates the premium television networks SHOWTIME®, THE MOVIE CHANNEL® and FLIX®, as well as the multiplex channels SHOWTIME 2™, SHOWTIME® SHOWCASE, SHOWTIME EXTREME®, SHOWTIME BEYOND®, SHOWTIME NEXT®, SHOWTIME WOMEN®, SHOWTIME FAMILY ZONE® and THE MOVIE CHANNEL® XTRA. SNI also offers SHOWTIME HD®, THE MOVIE CHANNEL® HD, SHOWTIME ON DEMAND® and THE MOVIE CHANNEL® ON DEMAND. SNI also manages Smithsonian Networks, a joint venture between SNI and the Smithsonian Institution. All SNI feeds provide enhanced sound using Dolby Digital 5.1. SNI markets and distributes sports and entertainment events for exhibition to subscribers on a pay-per-view basis through SHOWTIME PPV®.        

 

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    • Brendan Barrett & Randy Smith Cold War About to Go Nuclear August 28, 2010
      For months the war of words between IFL and ROC veteran Brendan Barrett and Randy Smith finally has a venue to be turned physical. Lou Neglia and Brendan both confirmed yesterday that Barrett/Smith will finally go down at Ring of Combat 32 at the Taj Mahal in Atlantic City. The first volley of this battle [...] Related posts:Another Interview with Brendan […]
      Paul Miles

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