» Fighter: Josh Thomson

“El Niño” Gilbert Melendez (17-2) regained the Strikeforce lightweight championship in a five-round decision over “Punk” Josh Thomson (15-3-1) in San Jose Saturday night.

“I just wanted to perform better than I did the last time,” said Melendez said after the victory.

Read More About Strikeforce: Gilbert Melendez Overpowers Josh Thomson to Regain Lightweight Title…

UFC lightweight “El Matador” Roger Huerta (20-3-1) told Sherdog Tuesday that he is officially a free agent and would consider signing to fight in the UFC, Strikeforce, and Bellator Fighting Championships.

Read More About UFC’s Roger Huerta Wants Shinya Aoki, Josh Thomson, and Gilbert Melendez…

“Endless Fighter” Mitsuhiro Ishida (19-4-1) will fill-in for Strikeforce lightweight champ “Punk” Josh Thomson (15-2-1) in San Jose 15 August, giving “El Niño” Gilbert Melendez (15-2) a crack at avenging a different loss than he had originally planned.

Ishida took Gil’ the distance for a UD at Yarennoka in Tokyo on New Year’s Eve 2007.

Read More About Strikeforce Taps Mitsuhiro Ishida to Rematch Gilbert Melendez…

Strikeforce has confirmed the full line-up for its Destruction event, which takes place 21 November in San Jose.

Two title fights, between Strikeforce Lightweight Champion “The Punk” Josh Thomson (14-2-1) and Yves Edwards (34-14-1) and between Light Heavyweight Champion Bobby Southworth (9-4) and “Babalu” Renato Sobral (29-8), will headline the event.

Also featured is a welterweight bout between “Diesel” Joe Riggs (28-10) and Luke Stewart (4-1).

The rest of the card includes:

Lemont Davis (1-2) versus Brian Schwartz (0-1) at 175 lbs
Brad Royster (1-1) versus Darren Uyenoyama (4-1) at 135 lbs
Tony Johnson (0-1) versus Eric Lawson (2-2) at 185 lbs
Alvin Cacdac (3-4) versus Jose Palacios (1-1) at  145 lbs
Bobby Stack (2-1) versus Cyrillo Padilha (1-1) at 155 lbs
Zakary Bucia (0-1) versus Jaime Rodriguez (0-0) at 155 lbs
Kurt Osiander (2-0) versus Raul Castillo (2-0) at 185 lbs
Nik Theotikos (5-0) versus Luke Rockhold (2-1) at 185 lbs

Strikeforce Lightweight Champion “Punk” Josh Thomson (16-2) will defend his title in a rematch versus Yves Edwards (34-14-1) in San Jose 21 November.

Edwards knocked out Thomson in the first round at UFC 49 in Las Vegas in August 2004.

“This rematch is about winning back something that I let slip through my fingers last  time,” Thomson explained.  “It was a  fluke, but that’s part of the fight game – anyone can get caught.  I blame my error last time on my cockiness.  This time, I’ve got to stamp my mark on it.”

Thomson had been seeking a big name lightweight for his first title defense and Fighters.com first reported 10 October that “Uno Shoten” Caol Uno (25-11-4) and Chris Horodecki (12-1) were being sought by Strikeforce.

Read More About Strikeforce Champ Thomson to Defend Versus Edwards…

Chris Horodecki (12-1) will face Dan Lauzon (10-2) at Affliction’s January event, and will not fight “Punk” Josh Thomson (16-2) at Strikeforce next month, according to MMA Weekly Saturday.

Horodecki’s management team confirmed the lightweight bout with Lauzon, who was his original opponent for Day of Reckoning on 11 October before the event was postponed.

Strikeforce executive Mike Afromowitz confirmed that Horodecki will not be on the Destruction card on 21 November.

Horodecki said, “I’d like to fight Thomson, but now I’m thinking about November and Affliction.”

Horodecki is also considering a November fight in Japan’s Shoot Boxing organization.

Fighters.com has confirmed with sources that Strikeforce is in negotiations with both Affliction and K-1 to find lightweight champion “Punk” Josh Thomson’s (16-2) first title defense in San Jose 21 November.

According to Fighters.com’s source, Strikeforce has narrowed their list of opponents to up-and-coming Chris Horodecki (12-1) and veteran “Uno Shoten” Caol Uno (25-11-4).

Twenty-one-year old Horodecki won a UD over Nate Lamotte (6-3) in East Rutherford, west of New York City, 4 April, then signed with Affliction and agreed to fight on Affliction’s 11 October event before it was rescheduled.

A veteran of Shooto, UFC, K-1 Hero’s, and DREAM, Uno lost a UD to Fighters.com’s ninth-ranked lightweight “Tobikan Judan” Shinya Aoki (18-3) in the semi-finals of DREAM’s Lightweight Grand Prix in Osaka 21 July.

Read More About Uno, Horodecki on the Punk’s Short List…

Strikeforce Light Heavyweight Champion Bobby Southworth (9-5) will defend his belt from “Babalu” Renato Sobral (30-7) in San Jose 21 November.

Strikeforce Lightweight Champion “Punk” Josh Thomson (16-2) will also defend his title versus an opponent yet to be named.

Before his last “W” over “Archer” Ashe Bowman (9-5) in Beverly Hills, north of Los Angeles, 20 September, Thomson expressed interest in fighting “Endless Fighter” Mitsuhiro Ishida (17-4-1).  After the fight, Thomson also hoped to defend his title from Fighters.com’s fourth-ranked lightweight and DREAM champ “Hellboy” Joachim Hansen (19-7-1).

After knocking off former Strikeforce champ “El Nino” Gilbert Melendez (14-2) in San Jose 27 June, Thomson has been desperate for an opponent who’d help him crack the top ten.

Southworth versus “Babalu” was originally scheduled for the 20 September card at the Playboy Mansion, but both fighters pulled up lame and spent the night chasing bunnies into the grotto (I assume).

Read More About Strikeforce Tries Again: Southworth v Babalu in San Jose, Thomson to Defend Title…

Fighters.com checked-in with “GameBred” Jorge Masvidal (14-3) after he quickly dispatched former IFL Lightweight Champion “Lion” Ryan Schultz (20-11-1) in Tokyo Sunday.

Fighters.com: You took care of Schultz in under two minutes.  How much of that was blowing off steam from the loss to Rodrigo Damm (8-2) in Saitama, north of Tokyo, 8 June?

Jorge Masvidal: First of all, I never lost to Rodrigo Damm.  Anyone who looks at the fight will agree with me.  The only steam I was blowing off was towards the referee who called my last fight!

Read More About Masvidal: “Josh Thomson’s hairdo reminds me of a drag queen.”…

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…