» Fighter: Robbie Lawler

Strikeforce put on the first show of this year last night and there were highs and lows plus some shocking revelations post-fight. I will start with the high points of the night first which leads me to the showdown between “Ruthless” Robbie Lawler (17-5) and Melvin Manhoef (23-6-1).

Read More About Strikeforce: Miami and the Sunday Reflection…

Strikeforce welterweight title challenger Nick Diaz (20-8) and heavyweight prospect “Dominator” Bobby Lashley (4-0) both made weight for their respective fights at Strikeforce in Miami January 30.

Read More About Nick Diaz, Bobby Lashley Make Weight For Strikeforce Miami…

What may possibly be the most explosive fight on the Strikeforece: Miami card Saturday night is the fight between “Ruthless” Robbie Lawler (16-5) and Melvin Manhoef (23-5-1). Last night on MMA Gospel Radio we had a great discussion on this fight and I thought I would break it down further here and tell you why Robbie Lawlers only way to lose in this fight would be his ego.

Read More About Robbie Lawler has Tools to Beat Melvin Manhoef at Strikeforce:Miami …

Former EliteXC middleweight champion “Ruthless” Robbie Lawler (16-5) and recent Strikeforce signee “Marvelous” Melvin Manhoef (23-5-1) are “likely” to matchup in a potential stand-up war at Strikeforce Miami Jan 30, according to reporting from Five Ounces of Pain and MMA Junkie.

Lawler was supposed to return from a loss to Fighters.com’s second-ranked middleweight and Strikeforce champ Jake Shields (23-4-1) at Strikeforce in St. Louis June 6 versus “Razor” Benji Radach (19-5), then Shark Fights light heavyweight champion Trevor Prangley (20-4) at at Strikeforce in San Jose December 19, but both Radach and Prangley pulled up lame.

Read More About Strikeforce Miami: Brawlers Robbie Lawler vs Melvin Manhoef “Likely”…

Shark Fights light heavyweight champion Trevor Prangley (20-4) has been forced to withdraw from Saturday’s Strikeforce matchup versus former EliteXC middleweight champion “Ruthless” Robbie Lawler (16-5), according to Sherdog.

Read More About Strikeforce: Trevor Prangley Bails on Robbie Lawler…

Former EliteXC middleweight champion “Ruthless” Robbie Lawler (16-5) and recently crowned Shark Fights light heavyweight champion Trevor Prangley (20-4) will matchup at Strikeforce in San Jose December 19, the promotion announced.

Read More About Strikeforce: Robbie Lawler Versus Trevor Prangley in San Jose…

ProElite, Inc. has cancelled it’s 8 November EliteXC MMA event, ceased operations, and filed for bankruptcy, according to numerous reports.

ProElite, Inc. is the parent company of the EliteXC promotion that is nationally broadcast in the States on CBS, as well as owner of the MMA brands King of the Cage, CageRage, ICON, and Spirit MC.

ProElite’s website is functioning and has no mention of the company’s bankruptcy.

However, Gracie Fighter, the website of EliteXC fighter Nick Diaz’s  (18-7) manager, Cesar Gracie, posted Monday evening, “We are confirming that EliteXC has folded.”

The cancelled event was to have taken place in Reno and aired on Showtime featuring title fights in two weight divisions.

Read More About MMA Promotion EliteXC Goes Bankrupt…

A rematch between Fighters.com’s fourth-ranked middleweight and EliteXC Champion “Ruthless” Robbie Lawler (16-4) and Joey Villasenor (26-6) was announced Friday.

It will take place 8 November and air on Showtime.

Villasenor will look to avenge his KO loss to Lawler in October 2006.  Lawler’s flying knee ended the bout in 22 seconds.

Villasenor won his last fight over “New York Bad Ass” Phil Baroni (12-10) via first-round TKO in May.

Lawler’s win over Villasenor began his current win streak.  He last fought “Hands of Steel” Scott Smith (13-5) in July, TKO’ing him in the second round and successfully defending his title.

Lawler’s first bout versus Smith in May ended in a No Contest.

Fighters.com’s seventh-ranked middleweight “Twinkle Toes” Frank Trigg (17-6) made a successful comebackwith an anti-climactic unanimous decision over Makoto Takimoto (4-5) in Saitama, north of Tokyo, 25 August and plans to fight Falaniko Vitale (26-8) 3 October in Denver.

Trigg also welcomed a son, Stone, to his family in September.  Congratulations from Fighters.com.

The remainder of the Middleweight Top Ten was on holiday last month…well, at least at middleweight.

Top contender “Ace” Rich Franklin (23-3) made a successful return to light heavyweight in Atlanta 6 September.  He remains wishy-washy about his future in either division.

But, before Franklin could move-up to 205, Fighters.com’s Middleweight Champion “Spider” Anderson Silva (22-4) beat him there.  Franklin must wonder whether Silva is going to move to Cincinnati and start teaching high school math too.

Silva is preparing to defend his Fighters.com and UFC titles versus “Predator” Patrick Cote (13-4) in Chicago 25 October.

Third-ranked “Ely” Paulo Filho’s (16-0) WEC title defense versus Chael Sonnen (20-9-1) was postponed from tonight to 5 November due to Hurrican Ike.

Fourth-ranked EliteXC champ “Ruthless” Robbie Lawler (16-4) is rumored to be considering a rematch versus Joey Villasenor (26-6), whom Lawler KO’d in 22 seconds in 2006.

Read More About Fighters.com’s September Middleweight Rankings…

The middleweight top ten whirls like a dervish across the UFC, WEC, EliteXC, DREAM, Sengoku, and Strikeforce, leaving Fighters.com’s Middleweight Champion “Spider” Anderson Silva (22-4) to defend versus “Predator” Patrick Cote (13-4) in Chicago 25 October.

The UFC seemed intent that sixth-ranked “Thunder” Yushin Okami (21-4-1) miss his de facto UFC top contender challenge of Silva, marketing Cote versus “Cachorrao” Ricardo Almeida (9-3) in Las Vegas 5 July as an eliminator fight even before Okami pulled up lame with a broken hand.

Cote won by split decision.

Read More About Fighters.com’s August Middleweight Rankings…