» Fighter: Cory Devela

Fighters.com’s ninth-ranked Kazuo Misaki (21-8-2) TKO’d “Diesel” Joe Riggs (28-11) at 2:29 of round two Saturday night in Beverly Hills, north of Los Angeles.

“I’m happy with the win,” Misaki said through an interpreter.

There was a frustrating seven-minute build-up to the fireworks finale in which both veterans circled and strategized while  the crowd begged for action.

Riggs struck first in the second round, nailing Misaki with a big left and a kick; but, Misaki countered with a right cross that floored “Diesel”.

Misaki followed Riggs to the mat and landed several shots before referee Josh Rosenthal ended the fight.

“I had my hands covering my head,” argued Riggs after the stoppage.  “But it is what it is.”

Strikeforce Lightweight Champion “Punk” Josh Thomson (16-2) knocked “Archer” Ashe Bowman to the fence with a right and followed up with a flurry before referee Herb Dean ended the fight at 1:14 of round one.

Read More About Misaki Bangs Riggs, Thomson Battters Bowman…

Strikeforce announced Tuesday that Cory Devela (9-2) and Terry Martin (17-5) will fight in Beverly Hills, north of Los Angeles, 20 September.

Devela most recently beat Dan Molina (10-8) by unanimous decision in April and will go for his eighth consecutive win. He has a victory over “Diesel” Joe Riggs (28-10) under his belt, who was injured in the bout.

“I know he’s a short little brick house and a good wrestler, but I’ll have a lot or reach on him and I don’t think anybody’s wrestling compares to mine,” said a confident Devela, who stands 6’2” compared to the 5’8” Martin.  “People underestimate my wrestling.  Joe Riggs did and got thrown because of that.  I’m going to do the same thing to Terry if he wants to wrestle with me.”

Martin will look to rebound after a second-round knockout loss to “Phenom” Vitor Belfort (17-8) at Affliction’s debut event in July. He has lost three of his last four fights.

Reliably adequate Nor Cal MMA promotion Strike Force put on a snoozer Saturday at the Tacoma Dome.

The event headlined by “The Beast” Bob Sapp’s North American MMA debut was beamed live in HD on HDNet.

BUM-BUM BUM-BUM BUM-BUM BUM

Sapp was TKO’d in 55 seconds by 2-5 South African Jan Nortje.

That’s about as anti-climactic as the fight, which began with Sapp entering the cage to the theme music of “2001: A Space Odyssey”.

But, don’t shed a tear for “The Beast”, who drops to 9-3-1, nor raise your hopes that the cartoon will end.

Sapp has lost before and reportedly has a fight waiting for him 15 March in Dream’s inaugural promotion in Japan.  He’s still a draw in the East.

“The Beast” will live on.

Fast-rising middleweight Cory Devela notched a big name on his belt when “Diesel” Joe Riggs was forced to submit at 1:22 of the first round after a judo throw caused an injury in Riggs’s back.

Devela raises his record to 8-1, while Riggs falls to 27-10.

There’s been no word on the nature or severity of Riggs’s back injury, but Riggs was forced off a WEC card last year due to a back injury.

“GameBred” lightweight Jorge Masvidal continued his seven-fight streak with a unanimous decision over 9-3-1 Ryan Healy.

Masvidal has posted wins versus Yves Edwards, Nuri Shakir, and Joe Lauzon and seems ready to step-up in competition.

Former UFC Heavyweight Champion “Mo” Maurice Smith welcomed veteran kickboxing star “The Jet” Rick Roufus to MMA, submitting the K-1 fighter in an armlock at 1:53 of the first round.

On the undercard, Washington welterweight “Fast” Eddy Ellis pulled even at 14-14-1 with a unanimous decision versus “Red Nose” Steve Berger.

Hometown heavyweight Mychal Clark punched Josh Bennett’s eye swollen shut to register a TKO at the end of two rounds.

“Fancy Pants” Lyle Beerbohm remained undefeated after submitting fellow welterweight “Relentless” Ray Perales in a guillotine choke 1:19 into round three.

Heavyweight Mike Hayes won his pro MMA debut over Matt Kovacs in a unanimous decision.

Zach Skinner ruined Scott Shaffer’s MMA debut with a unanimous decision victory.

Finally, Nathan Coy improved to 3-0 after knocking out debuting Dave Courchaine in the first round.

Former UFC welterweight title challenger “Diesel” Joe Riggs will replace Cedric Marks versus Cory Devela in a middleweight fight on February 23’s Strikeforce card at the Tacoma Dome.

Riggs returns to Strikeforce after knocking out Eugene Jackson at the Playboy Mansion in September.

Devela makes his Strikeforce debut after a three round unanimous decision victory over Lodune Sincaid at SportFight in December.

Marks pulled out of the fight with a shoulder injury.