Recently, it’s been confirmed that Fedor Emelianenko will be fighting Dan Henderson at Heavyweight on July 30 in strikeforce. The “Fedor vs. Henderson” fight card has almost-immediately became one of Strikeforce’s can’t-miss events for the year. And in addition to that mega match, two more interesting matches have been slated for July 30, live on Showtime. One of them involves a champion defending her crown, the other a former champion battling against a man that’s led a revival of the Gracie name single-handedly. Here are all the details. ...

I have no problem admitting that I felt quite deflated when it was announced that Mike Kyle had to pull out of his upcoming bout with Gegard Mousasi due to an injury. Kyle won me over as a fan back when he nearly stopped Antonio Silva and displayed quite a lot of heart and skill while doing so. But now Mousasi finds himself in much the same situation as BJ Penn: sitting on the sidelines and waiting for a new opponent. And in much the same vein, I’m going to throw my hat into the mix and give a list of the five fighters I think Gegard Mousasi should fight. Let’s dive right in. ...

Former Strikeforce light heavyweight champion "King Mo" will be returning to the cage in the immediate future. In fact, for Lawal, it will be a chance for Muhammed to gain back some of the spotlight that was taken from him in August of last year, when former champ Rafael Cavalcante was able to dethrone the wrestling powerhouse on third-round strikes in Houston, Texas. Lawal will be returning to familiar territory when he comes back this June after an extended layoff due to a knee injury, when he meets with either Roger Gracie or Ovince St. Preux, two of Strikeforce's top light heavyweight stars. Muhammed will make his return in Dallas, Texas of all places. ...

Everyone has been talking about it: Strikeforce is now a Zuffa-owned company. It’s become apparent that the upstart promotion will continue to operate as its own entity for at least the next two years or so, but after that it’s anyone’s guess. So of course, many are hoping that there comes a day where the UFC’s best meets Strikeforce’s best. I too can’t wait for that day, so here’s a little something we’ve all been discussing lately: my top 5 Strikeforce vs. UFC matches. Let’s get to it. ...

Former Strikeforce light heavyweight champion Muhammed Lawal is still on the mend, however may be back in action in the foreseeable future, possibly in the first quarter of 2011. The world class wrestler was last seen in action in a losing effort to current title holder Rafael Cavalcante this past August. The Brazilian striker and training partner of Anderson Silva, was able to connect on a knee in the second round that rocked "King Mo". Additional blows would later call a halt the bout, and just as quickly as Muhammed had earned the title in April of this year in a five-round war of attrition against then champ Gegard Mousasi, he lost it just as swiftly. However, Mo may now have the opportunity to add another name to his mantle if he is successful in dispatching long time veteran, Jeff Monson. ...

Ovince St. Preux could be on the fast track to a title shot. Antwain Britt, a former contender in the Strikeforce light heavyweight class and a contestant on season eight of "The Ultimate Fighter" was dominated early by Haitian fighter. "Juggernaut" was able to storm back in the final round, however St. Preux's effectiveness in the early goings with his obvious edge in the striking as well as ground departments had him ahead early on the score cards and it was enough for him to walk away with the unanimous decision victory. It marks the first time that Ovince has gone the distance in any of his career wins, which are mostly highlighted by either knockout's or submissions. ...

As the year is coming closer to an end, the now annual World MMA Awards, which is hosted by Fighters Only Magazine, has recently announced their finalists for the December 1st event, which will take place once again in Las Vegas, Nev., which has become a hot bed for all things fighting related. The 2009 event opened up to a large audience, and has become a propellant in the mixed martial arts world, opening up the eyes to a mainstream audience, by the community taking leaps and bounds in order to legitimize itself as not only a legitimate sport, but one that deserves that same sort of recognition that most others receive, here in these United States. ...

No matter what your favorite promotion is, it’s fun to play “armchair booker” once in a while and try to envision a fantasy card that brings all of your favorite fighters from competing promotions under one roof to truly determine who the best in the world is. The UFC did just that, for the most part, when they bought out the legendary PRIDE FC promotion in 2007. But with the arrival and rise of the Strikeforce promotion, fans are once again creating fantasy match-ups. To differentiate myself, today’s list will feature five matches between Strikeforce and the UFC that specifically does not include any of the obvious choices, like Fedor Emelianenko vs. Brock Lesnar or Cung Le vs. Anderson Silva. While they're fun debates to have, they've been discussed for quite a while now. With this list, I’m going for a little something different. Some picks may surprise you, but here are my top five (obvious examples excluded) Strikeforce vs. UFC fights. ...

While the Strikeforce event last Saturday, in Houston, Tex., has unveiled some interesting outcomes, exciting fights, the event itself didn't leave unscathed--not without controversy at least. The San Jose, based promotion took its show on the road down south, when Strikeforce visited Texas with two-title fights and some sure crowd pleasers. ...

Former Strikeforce light heavyweight champion King Mo, is in a new position that he has yet to endure in his young MMA career--he lost his first fight as a professional, in somewhat devastating fashion. Although not unaccustomed to losing, as he has lost several--though not many--matches in is long and storied wrestling career, that spans from collegiate wrestling to competition overseas. ...

I really enjoyed Strikeforce: “Houston”. We had some upsets, some shocking surprises, some highs, some lows, some quick finishes, some all-out wars, and even a couple of controversial moments. From Chad Griggs beating Bobby Lashley to Rafael Cavalcante KO’ing Muhammed Lawal, “Houston” was a solid event and gave MMA fans a great night of action. It’s true that the future is never certain, but here’s what I think the months ahead will hold for the winners and losers of Strikeforce: “Houston”. ...

Strikeforce: “Houston” has now drawn to a close, and it made for quite an eventful night of fights. But the biggest story to come out of “Houston” had to have been the crowning of two Brazilian champions, both of whom train in the prestigious Black House gym, home to such famous fighters as Lyoto Machida, the Nogueira brothers (Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira and Antonio Rogerio Nogueira), Junior Dos Santos, and Anderson Silva. For “Houston”, Black House was represented by Ronaldo Souza in a fight to crown a new Strikeforce Middleweight Champion after the title had been vacated due to former champion Jake Shields parting ways with the company, and also by Rafael Cavalcante in the first defense of Strikeforce Light Heavyweight Champion Muhammed “King Mo” Lawal’s belt. Both fights were back-and-forth wars of non-stop action that fully proved the heart, dedication, determination, and skills of both “Jacare” and “Feijao”. Here’s how it all broke down. ...

Today marked the official weigh-ins for the upcoming Strikeforce: "Houston" event, scheduled for August 20, 2010 from the Toyota Center in Houston, Texas. The event features controversial Strikeforce Light Heavyweight Champion Muhammed Lawal, better known as “King Mo”, in his first defense of the championship he won after beating the highly-regarded Gegard Mousasi to win the belt. The co-main event will also be a championship affair, as feared submission wizard (his nickname, “Jacare”, means Alligator) Ronaldo Souza takes on 12-2 Tim Kennedy for the vacant Middleweight Championship, which was rendered vacant when former champion Jake Shields promptly left the promotion and signed with the UFC after defeating new Strikeforce signee and MMA legend, Dan Henderson. The “Houston” weigh-ins weren’t immune to a bit of controversy, as several fighters failed to make weight. Here’s how it all broke down. ...

Muhammed “King Mo” Lawal has a lot to be happy for nowadays. He’s been in the professional MMA game for less than two years, and he’s already got a pretty big championship to call his own. To get the belt he beat former Strikeforce Light Heavyweight Champion Gegard Mousasi, who was known to his fans as both “the future of Mixed Martial Arts” and “the next Fedor Emelianenko”. Mo he beat him pretty convincingly, too: he took “The Dreamcatcher” to the mat at will and controlled him with some big ground and pound. Mo is set to make the first defense of his Strikeforce Light Heavyweight Championship on August 21, when he takes on Rafael Cavalcante. Even with such a brief career as a professional Mixed Martial Artist, “King Mo” is already beginning to rub some fans the wrong way with his brash, cocky attitude. In a recent interview, he came right out and said “Some [fans] are cool, some are idiots. They're fans- they don't know what the **** they are talking about. That’s why I’ll say it again: **** the fans. A lot of them ain't educated. They're just bandwagon jumpers." While I’m not one to shy away from some good trash-talking, King Mo has gone a little too far. ...

The San Jose based promotion, Strikeforce, has recently put out a press release, declaring the full fight card, including a finalized preliminary card, for the August 21st show, which will be in Houston, Texas. The card features a light heavyweight title fight against newly crowned champion "King Mo" Lawal against top contender Rafael "Feijao", out of Team Blackhouse, who trains alongside the likes of the Nogueria brothers, Anderson Silva, and Junior dos Santos. ...

Wrestling Olympian and American Kickboxing Academy product, Daniel Cormier has returned from Australia, on the heels of his third win in mixed martial arts. Traveling to the land down under, Cormier made his third mixed martial arts appearance when he took on native Aussie, Lucas Browne. A true heavyweight, who stood at a staggering 6'6 and weighed in at the limit of 265 pounds, Cormier put his wrestling to the test, taking down his much larger opponent, before opening up a ground and pound assault that would halt the contest, inside of the first round. ...

With the hype train behind Fedor Emelianenko now derailed, many are left wondering what happens not only to strikeforce’s Heavyweight division, but where Strikeforce as a whole goes from here. Some call Strikeforce a breeding ground for UFC cast-offs, while followers of the San Jose-based promotion are quick to point out that Strikeforce contains world-caliber champions and aspiring newcomers, resulting in fight cards that are a hit more often than not. Going forward, here’s what I think will be the keys to success for Strikeforce. ...

"Once it's confirmed, game over," said “King Mo” Muhammed Lawal (4-0) at MMA Junkie about a potential title shot versus Strikeforce light heavyweight champion “Dreamcatcher” Gegard Mousasi (24-2-1) at Strikeforce in April.  "I'll feel better when it's confirmed, you know what I'm saying?" ...

Light heavyweight prospect “King Mo” Muhammed Lawal (4-0), DREAM veteran middleweight “Jacare” Ronaldo Souza (8-2), and UFC veteran middleweight “The Law” Matt Lindland (21-6) are set for Strikeforce Evolution in San Jose December 19, Strikeforce has announced. ...

Sengoku middleweight champion Jorge Santiago (21-7) will defend his title at Sengoku Eleventh Battle in Tokyo 7 November, Sengoku announced on its website Friday. Also announced are former UFC heavyweight champion "Monster" Kevin Randleman (17-13), who now competes at 185 pounds, and former UFC lightweight Michihiro Omigawa (3-7). No opponents were announced for any of the fighters. A report Thursday claimed that Randleman could fight “King Mo” Muhammed Lawal (4-0), but Fighters.com has not confirmed that report. ...

“King Mo” Muhammed Lawal (4-0) TKO’d late replacement “Smashing Machine” Mark Kerr (14-11) in 25 seconds at M-1 Global Breakthrough in Kansas City Friday night, sending Kerr’s mouthpiece zipping across the mat at the end of a right hook while Kerr lie flat on his stomach. Lawal had crouched low out of his corner; and, Kerr threw a low kick. Lawal caught Kerr’s low kick and dumped Kerr on his stomach, beginning the onslaught of punches that ended the fight. For Lawal, the "W" is Pyrrhic as the talented light heavyweight wastes time versus opponents, like Kerr, who don't develop his talent. ...

Light heavyweight über-prospect “King Mo” Muhammed Lawal (3-0) and middleweight Brazilian "Spartan" Lucio Linhares (11-3) highlight Friday's M-1 Global Breakthrough in Kansas City that features an exhibition sparring match between Fighters.com’s Heavyweight Champion “Last Emperor” Fedor Emelianenko (29-1) and Strikeforce light heavyweight champ “Dreamcatcher” Gegard Mousasi (22-2-1). Breakthrough gets started at 7:30 PM local time at Memorial Hall in KC and the meat of the of the card will be broadcast on HDNet at 10:00 PM EST. Outside of the United States, the entire card will be streamed via the Internet. Details are available at M-1 Global's website. Tickets starting at $25 can be purchased at Ticketmaster and there's a buy-one-get-one-free offer. Fighters.com asked Mousasi to explain the exhibition sparring format last Thursday. “It’s just like a light sparring," he said, and added that the exhibition won't turn competitive in front of thousands in Kansas City. "We are not animals. We can control ourselves." ...

Affliction M-1 Global’s Trilogy scheduled for 1 August in Anaheim has been cancelled. "Finding an opponent for [Fighters.com Heavyweight Champion “Last Emperor” Fedor Emelianenko (29-1)] in such a short period of time was a huge endeavor and I’m thrilled at the amount of fighters willing to take on this challenge,” said Tom Atencio, vice president of Affliction Entertainment. "But in the end, we just didn’t have enough time to promote a new fight to our standards." Emelianenko was left without an opponent after ninth-ranked heavyweight “Babyface Assassin” Josh Barnett (20-5) tested positive for 2a-methyl-5a-androstan-3a-ol-17-one, an anabolic steroid, and was denied a license by the California State Athletic Commission to fight. ...

M-1 Global officially announced Thursday an already rumored, but little anticipated matchup between "King Mo" Muhammed Lawal (3-0) and forty-three year old former UFC champion "Predator" Don Frye (20-7-1) at Breakthrough in Los Angeles 28 August.

Also announced was a middleweight matchup between "Goat" Nick Thompson (38-11-1) and Frenchman "Psycho" Karl Amoussou (11-1-1).

Ostentatious former NCAA wrestling champion "King Mo" won a unanimous decision over Pancrase veteran Ryo Kawamura (9-3-2) at Sengoku Seventh Battle in Tokyo last March. He'll fight for the first time in his home nation at Breakthrough.
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Fighters.com’s second-ranked lightweight “Fireball Kid” Takanori Gomi (29-3) will face Red Devil Sports Club’s Sergey Golyaev (10-6) at Sengoku 6 in Saitama, 1 November, World Victory Road announced Wednesday. WVR also announced that Fighter of the Month “King Mo” Muhammed Lawal (1-0) will face Chute Boxe’s Fabio Silva (11-4). Gomi’s last fight, in August, went the distance but he won the decision over Seung Hwan Bang (5-2).  His next fight was to have been 4 January at Sengoku 7. Golyaev last fought in December 2006, winning via decision over Vladimir Soroka (3-1). Lawal won his MMA debut in September with a first round TKO of “Diesel” Travis Wiuff (53-12). Silva most recently KO’d Yoshiki Takahashi (28-24-3) in the second round at Sengoku 3 in June. ...

World Victory Road has officially added their Middleweight Grand Prix to Sengoku 6, taking place 1 November in Saitama, Japan. The winner of the tournament will face Fighters.com’s ninth-ranked middleweight “Grabaka Hitman” Kazuo Misaki (20-8-2) for the first-ever middleweight belt 4 January in Saitama at Sengoku 7. Kazuhiro Nakamura (12-8) will face Yuki Sasaki (22-14-1), and Jorge Santiago (18-7) will face “Afghan Killa” Siyar Bahadurzada (14-3-1). The event already features a lightweight tournament to determine an opponent for Fighters.com’s second-ranked lightweight “Fireball Kid” Takanori Gomi (29-3) at Sengoku 7 for the title. The bouts remaining in the lightweight tournament are Satoru Kitaoka (21-8-9) versus sixth-ranked Eiji Mitsuoka (14-5-2), and Kazunori Yokota (7-1-3) versus Mizuto Hirota (10-2). WVR also announced that Fighters.com’s Fighter of the Month “King Mo” Muhammed Lawal (1-0) will fight, although an opponent has not yet been determined. “GameBred” Jorge Masvidal (14-3) versus Seung Hwan Bang (5-2) is also official. Joe Doerksen (40-12) revealed through MySpace Tuesday that he has agreed to fight Izuru Takeuchi (25-9-6). ...

MMA rookie “King Mo” Muhammed Lawal (1-0) upset “Diesel” Travis Wiuff (53-12) by first-round TKO at 2:11 Sunday night in Tokyo. Lawal staggered Wiuff with a right Superman punch, then rushed in with a double-leg takedown at the ropes.  Lawal leapt on Wiuff and finished him off with ground’n’pound. Brazilian jiu-jitsu world champion “Xande” Alexandre Ribeiro (1-0) TKO’d Takashi Sugiura (1-3) in the last minute of his anticipated MMA debut. ...

“Diesel” Travis Wiuff (53-11) confirmed to MMA Weekly that his new opponent at Sengoku 5 in Tokyo 28 September will be wrestler “Mo” Muhammed Lawal (0-0). His original opponent, Roger Gracie (2-0), withdrew due to injury. Lawal is a new Team Quest member who will make his MMA debut at the event.  He is a former NCAA Division II amateur wrestling champion, and also finished first at the 2006 US Open and 2007 Pan-American Games. Wiuff KO’d Kazuyuki Fujita (15-7) in 1:24 at Sengoku 3 in June. ...

Last month the So Cal Team Quest camp announced the addition of "Mo" Muhammed Lawal (0-0), a championship wrestler making a gold run at the Beijing Summer Olympics. Lawal answered a few questions for Fighters.com; and, the first question I always ask wrestlers with MMA aspirations is whether they've ever been punched in the face. "I have been punched and kicked in the face," Lawal answered. It's a silly question until you've watched tough bastards who've avoided fist fights on reputation and appearance cower after taking a few hard shots to the dome. No one likes to get punched in the face.  It's a skill. Lawal has chosen the right path to pick-up the skills wrestlers before him have learned to be MMA champions. "I want to be a fighter," Lawal claimed.  "Not just a wrestler.  I love MMA and I'm an avid student of the MMA game. "I've sparred with Sokoudjou, Cyril Diabate, Dan Hendo', Chael Sonnen, Matt Lindland, Brian Stann, Alberto Crane, Mark Bocek and a few others.  I've trained with Matt and Dan, also GSP and Nathan Marquardt." Lawal has a legit' shot at Olympic gold in Beijing, which would be great for MMA, but could be terrible for Mo. Entering the sport as the big show could prevent Lawal from touring the small-ball circuits that prepare rookies for the big shows. See Brock Lesnar (1-1).  The former wrestling champion has all the physical talent to rule MMA's weak heavyweight division...eventually.  Because of his celebrity, he took only one warm-up versus "Mr. Shark" Min Soo Kim (3-6) before former UFC Heavyweight Champion Frank Mir (11-3) taught the rookie what a kneebar is in an anti-climactic minute-and-a-half.  Lesnar already has another former UFC champ on his docket, "The Hammer" Mark Coleman (15-8). But, Lawal seemed aware of the error in Lesnar's ways, saying, "I knew Brock would lose due to the inexperience factor with submissions.  It changes my attitude with the fact that I'm going to strive harder to be a well-rounded fighter." Lawal has high aspirations.  "I want to do everything Dan [Henderson] has done and more.  I want to fight at middleweight, light heavyweight, and heavyweight.  I want to be an MMA legend." He may first make himself an Olympic legend.  He's ranked third in the U.S. Senior Freestyle Rankings at 211.5-pounds, but said, "I am dropping back down to [185-pounds] for wrestling." Lawal gives MMA fans more reasons to watch the combat sport events at this summer's Olympics.  Besides Lawal, could there be a future MMA star among the wrestlers?  The judoka?  Beijing has added San Shou to the 2008 exhibition schedule, the base martial art of new Strikeforce Middleweight Champion Cung Le (6-0). ...