The Showtime televised event featured a dual-title headliner, featuring middleweight Ronaldo ‘Jacare’ Souza successfully defending his title against veteran Robbie Lawler with a third-round rear-naked choke, as well as Nick Diaz dominating a game Evangelista “Cyborg” Santos en route to a second-round arm bar win.

And for their efforts, these men took home some of the evenings largest paydays, with the Stockton native taking a large portion of the $463,500 payroll.

MMAJunkie.com has reported the following figures which it had successfully obtained from the governing bodies of the California State Athletic Commission, who oversaw the event which was held at the HP Pavilion in San Jose, Cali.

Champ Nick Diaz: $150,000 (no win bonus)
def. Evangelista “Cyborg” Santos: $20,000

Champ Ronaldo “Jacare” Souza: $85,000 ($15,000 win bonus)
def. Robbie Lawler : $65,000

Herschel Walker: $5,000 (no win bonus)
def. Scott Carson: $5,000

Roger Gracie: $75,000 (no win bonus)
def. Trevor Prangley: $30,000

Nate Moore: $4,000 ($2,000 win bonus)
def. Nathan Coy: $3,000

Isaiah Hill: $3,000 ($1,500 win bonus)
def. Bobby Stack: $1,500

Ron Keslar: $3,000 ($1,500 win bonus)
def. Eric Lawson: $1,500

Germaine de Randamie: $3,000 ($1,000 win bonus)
def. Stephanie Webber: $1,000

James Terry: $3,000 ($1,500 win bonus)
def. Lucas Gamaza: $1,500

Jenna Castillo: $3,000 ($1,500 win bonus)
def. Charlene Gellner: $1,000

So, MMA peeps, any surprises here from the figures? Anybody gaining more or less than what you expected? Sound off in the comment section below.

It was recently announced that a previously planned middleweight affair pitting former title challengers Tim Kennedy and Jason “Mayhem” Miller has since been scrapped. Kennedy remains on the card, “Strikeforce: Columbus” which takes place on March 5, however he will now be taking on budding contender Luke Rockhold in a pivotal 185-pound match-up.

However for Miller, now word has been made just yet on his next bout, but all signs are pointing to a third-meeting with Strikeforce champion Ronaldo Souza, much to the dismay of the Brazilian.

Souza recently explained his displeasure in competing with Miller once again, when the topic came up during the post-fight press conference last Saturday following the submission specialist’s win over five-time middleweight titleholder Robbie Lawler.

“You kidding me? I beat this guy two times, man,” said Jacare. “No more.”

However, the promotion has left no explanation as to Miller’s reason for removal from the planned Ohio event, leading to believe that Jason could next be facing ‘Jacare’, since outside of Rockhold, he is the only visible contender in the once-stacked middleweight class.

Strikeforce CEO Scott Coker explained during the presser that the bout with Souza and Miller could be inevitable, depending on how both men perform in the future.

Miller is recently riding a two-fight win streak, with a win in his last Strikeforce appearance in April of last year when he defeated local favorite Tim Stout when the men met at the Nashville, Tennessee event, where Jason successfully recorded the TKO win inside of the first-round. Miller followed up the performance when he took on mixed martial arts legend Kazushi Sakuraba in his native Japan, submitting his idol inside of the first-round. Jason remains the first and only man to submit ‘The Gracie Hunter’ in his professional career.

With Scott Smith‘s inception to the 170-pound fold, Cung Le‘s continued movie success, Kennedy’s last fight which ended in a loss to Souza, it looks like Miller is the next logical step for the Brazilian, especially since the champ added during the presser that he wants to return to action immediately.

So, MMA peeps, what do you think of the fight that could be? Does Miller get it down this time around? He has since been training full time with Kings MMA, with the likes of Fabricio Werdum, Renato “Babalu” Sobral and head trainer Rafael Cordeiro (formely of Chute Boxe)–will any of this make a difference? Sound off in the comment section below.

Now that both men find themselves under the Strikeforce banner, with Ronaldo sitting atop the division as the reigning and defending middleweight champion, it would seem inevitable that the two dynamic fighters would eventually meet again somewhere down the line.

However, if the Brazilian had it his way, Souza would never like to step inside the cage with the “clown” ever again. Ever.

“You kidding me man? I beat this guy two times. No more!”, exclaimed a usually reserved ‘Jacare’ (during the post-fight press conference following his win over Robbie Lawler this past Saturday), who responded to the question of the potential on the third-meeting with Miller.

Scott Coker seemed a little more optimistic about the idea, stating that it would be something that they would most likely have to revisit somewhere down the line should both men continue on their winning ways. In fact, Miller is currently riding a two-fight win streak since a decision loss to Jake Shields when the two battled for the vacant middleweight title in November of 2009. Jason has since defeated Tim Stout in his last Strikeforce appearance in April of last year, via TKO inside of the first-round of their 185-pound fight, and he followed up the finish with an equally impressive submission win over mixed martial arts legend Kazushi Sakuraba in Japan last September.

Luke Rockhold still seems like a feesable opponent, however since he’s coming off of a shoulder injury, the promotion will likely not throw him into a title fight just yet, especially since he hasn’t recorded a signature win since his inception into the San Jose based promotion. Guys like Tim Kennedy and even Robbie Lawler will always be in the title mix, however both men have since come off losses to the champ and will need to rebuild their careers before garnering another shot at the belt. And don’t even get me started on Matt Lindland.

So, MMA peeps, what do you make of Souza’s comments? It would seem a little redundant for the two fighters to meet in the immediate future, both truth be told, who else cloud step in right now and face Souza for the title? The champ has stated he would like to return to action ASAP, and although Cung Le now comes to mind, it looks like he may be entangled in the movie business yet again. Sound off in the comment section below.

I’ll start off with the obvious: there’s a large section of the fanbase that thinks that Nick Diaz had the best performance at this show. Aside from eating a few leg kicks, Diaz showed nearly no weaknesses and submitted his opponent with ease. Meanwhile, Souza had to recover from some big shots, had to fend off some near-calls, and was unable to lock in several submission attempts before finally getting one to stick.

To which I say: Souza had to work harder against a better opponent in order to get his win, and I think thriving under pressure is more noteworthy than dominating against an opponent many people thought you would dominate.

That’s what this all boils down to in the end, that’s why I’m talking about Souza and not Diaz in this piece: Evangelista Santos wasn’t as big of a threat to Nick Diaz as Robbie Lawler was to Ronaldo Souza. Lawler is a former champion, and possesses vicious knockout power no matter who he’s facing. Santos was an easy pitch for Diaz to nail a home-run with, Lawler was a curveball that could and did cause “Jacare” some problems.

This is why I was so impressed by Souza’s performance. The true measure of a champion is his ability to thrive against top-level competition, and aside from a few other stars, Robbie Lawler is indeed one of the best Middleweight fighters Strikeforce has to offer. Lawler put a lot of pressure on Souza, he even almost turned out Souza’s lights at one point in their bout.

But Souza proved he was a true champion by staying calm, recuperating, and continuing to work his gameplan. The second Souza took Lawler’s back and locked in a body triangle, I knew the fight was as good as over. A few seconds later, Souza fully lived up to that expectation.

Strikeforce has had a bit of a tough time figuring out what to do with their champions. Both Gilbert Melendez and Nick Diaz are so dominant that the promotion is running out of legitimate challengers to either of their belts. Jake Shields defected to the UFC in a very high-profile fashion, while Alistair Overeem just got back to defending his Heavyweight Championship. And to top it all off, the Strikeforce Light Heavyweight Championship is ricocheting from one champion to the next, with no one holding the belt for long. In short, Strikeforce could use a little stability.

And that’s exactly what Souza brings to the table.

Souza is a good fighter, his stand-up is improving on a fight-by-fight basis and his submission skills are at a master level. He’s also a humble champion, although he’s not afraid to be a showman when the time calls for it, what with his signature “Jacare” dance and such. With hard-fought victories like the one he had over Tim Kennedy to win the belt and the one he now has over Robbie Lawler to keep the belt, the sky’s the limit for Ronaldo Souza. Both Souza and his championship were put on a new level of credibility following this big win over Lawler, so without a doubt in my mind, Ronaldo Souza fully deserves “Best Performance of the Night”.

And what about you, fans and friends? What fighter do you think put on the best performance at Strikeforce “Diaz vs. Cyborg”?

5. Herschel Walker steamrolling Scott Carson.

Say what you want about Herschel Walker’s skill level and the skill level of his opponents, but a dominant win is a dominant win. Walker’s performance was one of the best of the night simply because Walker continues to defy people’s expectations. He’s a physical marvel, incredibly humble, and decidedly vicious when it comes time to step into the cage and go to work. Against all odds and despite the harshest cries of his cynics, Walker continues to walk through opponents like it was easy, and that definitely made for a highlight of the night.

4. Souza’s constant submission attempts and Lawler’s uncanny ability to stave them off.

Ronaldo Souza defending his Strikeforce Middleweight Championship against Robbie Lawler was a great fight in general, but one of its best moments came late in the fight. Souza flawlessly and expertly applied a series of submission attempts, transitioning from one to the next with a speed that can only be described as lightning-fast. Somehow, someway, Lawler found a way to get out of each and every one. It made for some incredibly tense moments, and it was definitely a highlight of the night.

3. Roger Gracie giving the Gracie name hope for a new generation.

When was the last time you could truly consider a Gracie fighter as a top-ranked Mixed Martial Artist? The pioneers of the sport haven’t had a lot of luck adapting to the new generation: some have been successful only to falter in the end, others have had outright embarrassing performances before vanishing from the major MMA landscape entirely. Not true for Roger Gracie. Despite my early protests, Gracie is giving the family name hope for a new generation as he continues to face and defeat some of Strikeforce’s best mid-level Light Heavyweights. Gracie made it look almost too easy when he submitted Trevor Prangley. We may finally be seeing the rebirth of the Gracie name, and that definitely made for one of the best moments of the night.

2. Ronaldo Souza becoming a true Strikeforce champion.

I think Souza’s performance against Lawler was so great that he deserves two spots on this list. This performance signaled a change in my outlook on “Jacare”: I’ve gone from a respectful middle-of-the-road semi-follower to an outright fan of the man. Souza showed incredible heart and fortitude  when he staved off a Lawler blitzkrieg, he remained calm and collected throughout the bout and even kept the fight standing for awhile after coming so close to going out. Then to top it all off, he snatches up another submission victory. Souza is a true champion, and I’m proud to say that his fantastic performance at “Diaz vs. Cyborg” won me over as a fan.

And my top best moment of Strikeforce “Diaz vs. Cyborg” is…

1. This is why you don’t take Nick Diaz to the ground.

The official time of this bout’s end was listed at 4:50 of Round 2, meaning that Nick Diaz and Evangelista Santos had officially fought for nine minutes and fifty seconds. I want to say that roughly 9:40 of that 9:50 was fought standing up, with Diaz more-or-less dominating even though Santos threw up some good leg kicks. Then the fight went to the ground and it was over almost before I could blink. Everyone, including me, always talks about how Diaz is evolving into one of the best strikers in the game. This fight reminded us that Diaz’s submission skills have been and always will be as sharp or even sharper than his stand-up. It was a classic Nick Diaz performance, and it easily takes the top spot.

And what about you, fans and friends? What were your top 5 moments of the night for “Diaz vs. Cyborg”?

Next for Roger Gracie: Gracie isn’t ready for top-tier competition just yet, but he might be before 2011 is through. Gracie ran through a pretty talented veteran in the form of Trevor Prangley, I think Gracie should now take on a Light Heavyweight that, like himself, is a fast-rising relative newcomer that is on a good win-streak. In that regard, Ovince St. Preux fits the bill quite nicely. I think this would be an excellent test for both men and would truly test how multidimensional both men are. Even if it’s not OSP, I think big things are in store for Roger Gracie in 2011.

Next for Herschel Walker: Walker will fight at least one more time, you don’t completely run through two opponents just to call it quits no matter how old you are. Furthermore, Walker’s competitive nature will get the better of him once again: he’s had a taste, he wants more, and he’ll be back. For Walker’s third fight, Strikeforce may finally give him a somewhat-credible opponent. I’m a fan of the man and even I can admit that his name value has got him on Strikeforce shows, not the quality of the opposition he’s faced. In 2011, Walker will continue to be an interesting double-edged sword: many MMA diehards will still consider him a joke, but those willing to give him a chance will take what he’s done in stride and warm up to the idea of Walker being a great ambassador for the sport.

Next for Robbie Lawler: Lawler will bounce back from this as he so often has bounced back from other deflating losses. Strikeforce knows what they have in Robbie Lawler: an entertaining striker that’s not afraid to engage and enters the cage with the sole intention of either finishing or being finished. Even though he may never reach the top of anyone’s rankings, Lawler is an effective tool in Strikeforce’s arsenal and I see Strikeforce letting Lawler fight as many times as he wants to in 2011. Look for Lawler’s next fight to be against another heavy-handed striker, though, that’s usually where he shines brightest and that’s the kind of fight Strikeforce will use to help rebuild his reputation following his deflating loss to Ronaldo Souza.

Next for Ronaldo Souza: With this victory over Lawler, Souza is now a reigning and defending champion. “Jacare” proved that he can swim and not sink when Strikeforce throws their best Middleweights at him, so expect Souza to continue to be matched up in interesting fights against worthwhile competition. Maybe even a high-profile Light Heavyweight will drop down to challenge Souza. No matter who he faces next, look for Souza to continue to build his credibility with exciting fights which will one day help transform him into a real Strikeforce star.

Next for Evangelista Santos: I really hate to say this, but I think it’s my obligation to say what I mean and mean what I say. Santos never deserved a shot at the championship in the first place, and he’ll continue to plod along at or around the middle of the division for the foreseeable future. Santos is a good fighter overall and can look dominating at times, but he’s simply not at a high enough level to ever pose a serious threat to a top-ranked opponent. It’s all downhill from here for Evangelista Santos in 2011.

Next for Nick Diaz: Most likely it’ll be Paul Daley, which should be an amazing match-up so long as it stays standing. It’ll certainly be an incredibly short one if Diaz is able to take Daley to the ground. As I’ve so often been saying, Nick Diaz once again proved he’s one of the best Welterweights in the world. His reign as champion won’t be ending anytime soon, and look for 2011 to be The Year of Diaz. It’s Nick’s time now, and all Strikeforce welterweights need to know that the King isn’t going anywhere anytime soon.

So that’s what I think, fans and friends. What about you? What do you think the future holds for the big winners and losers of Strikeforce “Diaz vs. Cyborg”?

Nick Diaz defeats Evangelista Santos by Submission (Armbar) at 4:50 of Round 2. Ronaldo “Jacare” Souza defeats Robbie Lawler by Submission (Rear Naked Choke) at 2:00 of Round 3. Herschel Walker defeats Scott Caron by TKO (Strikes) at 3:13 of Round 1. Roger Gracie defeats Trevor Prangley by Submission (Rear Naked Choke) at 4:19 of Round 1. Nate Moore defeats Nathan Coy by TKO (Strikes) at 0:25 of Round 2. Isaiah Hill defeats Bobby Stack by Submission (Triangle Choke) at 1:02 of Round 1. Ron Keslar defeats Eric Lawson by Submission (Triangle/Armbar) at 1:57 of Round 1. Germaine De Randamie defeats Stephanie Webber by KO (Knees) at 4:25 of Round 1. James Terry defeats Lucas Gamaza by TKO (Strikes) at 3:26 of Round 1. Jenna Castillo defeats Charlene Gellner by KO (Knees) at 3:57 of Round 2.

I’ll start out by admitting that I was wrong in thinking that Trevor Prangley would beat Roger Gracie. It’s not the first time I was wrong, it certainly wasn’t the most high-profile time I was wrong, but I’ll eat my humble pie nonetheless and I have no problem admitting that Gracie obliterated my preconceived notions. I look forward to seeing what’s next for Roger Gracie, he seems to be a new Gracie for a new generation and I think that’s been a long time coming in modern-day Mixed Martial Arts.

I’m very glad Herschel Walker won again, and I hope he continues to fight for as long as he considers himself healthy enough to do so. I don’t know what the future holds for Walker, but I certainly wish him nothing but the best and I sincerely hope that this second fight was enough to change some of the naysayer’s opinions. Herschel Walker is the real deal, and while he may never hold a championship, tonight he fully and wholly earned the right to call himself a Mixed Martial Artist.

I’m very happy that Ronaldo Souza won, I think he’s a perfect fit for the Strikeforce Middleweight division and I think he’s definitely a worthy champion. A true champion doesn’t just survive under pressure, he thrives, and Souza came back from a Robbie Lawler blitzkrieg that has stopped so many of Lawler’s previous opponents. “Jacare” is much more than just submissions, even if he keeps living up to his “Alligator” nickname. With a tremendous amount of heart, a tough chin, some constantly-improving stand-up and some incredibly deadly submission skills, Souza has all the makings of a dominant champion.

The night ended with Nick Diaz proving once again why I think he’ll rule the Strikeforce Welterweight roster for years to come. There seemed to be very few holes in Diaz’s gameplan, he did eat some good leg kicks but he always answered back with punches. His ducking and dodging has never been better, and it was Diaz who had “Cyborg” backing up with those patented “punches in bunches” fists that hurt far more than they look. Diaz finishing the fight by submission was just icing on the cake, it proved that Diaz hasn’t forgotten his expert ground game in the midst of this new resurgence that’s seen him evolve into one of the best strikers in the game. If you’ll allow me one simple moment of fanboy bliss… I believe the saying goes “WAR DIAZ”, fans and friends.

As a Strikeforce fan, I really enjoyed this show. Every single fight ended with a finish! Fans were in for a real treat with this show, and Strikeforce is off to an awesome 2011. With the Grand Prix soon upon us, I think Strikeforce will have a banner year in 2011. It’s going to be an amazing ride, fans and friends. I’m certain of it.

And what about you? What did you think of “Cyborg vs. Diaz”?

However, the multiple-time Jiu-Jitsu world champion was able to retain his title where he used a stifling ground game en route to a third-round submission win over the former three-time middleweight titleholder.

In the first-round of the middleweight title fight, Souza’s game plan was evident early on. Use kicks to keep the distance, close the gap quickly and bring the fight to the mat. And how could blame the Brazilian, who was pitted against one of the best pound-for-pound punchers in the sport in Lawler. Ronaldo worked the fight to the ground early, however Lawler remained patient on the ground and eventually worked his way back to the feet.

A flying knee followed up by hooks in succession had rattled the Brazilian who was on survival mode for the remainder of the round. Lawler settled in “Jacare’s” guard, peppering the champion with short punches, claiming the round for the H.I.T Squad co-founder.

The second round however, was a wash for “Ruthless”, as Souza was able to control the entire fight on the ground. Multiple submission attempts from Ronaldo were stifled by the savvy Lawler, who due to his last few opponents has trained plenty of ground-skills (Jake Shields, Renato Sobral, and Matt Lindland are just three of his last four opponents).

However, those valuable experiences were not enough, as a fatigued Lawler came out for the third-round with a defeated stare on his face. Robbie was laboring kicks early on, and the athlete that Ronaldo is, he capitalized on the opportunity and took Lawler to the mat yet again. This time was different, as the Jiu-Jitsu black belt and product of the famed Black House team, was able to latch onto the 28-year-old American’s back early. It was just a matter of time, as Ronaldo slithered his body into position, secured a body-triangle, and then sneaked in the rear-naked choke, which Robbie submitted to at two-minutes in the third round.

The win extends Souza’s streak to now four in a row, and remains undefeated under the Strikeforce banner. Lawler now falls to 2-3 over his last five outings.

So, MMA peeps, who do you think is next for the middleweight champ? The bout pitting Tim Kennedy and Jason “Mayhem” Miller against one another next March should provide a clearer picture for the number one contender’s spot. Sound off in the comment section below.

Nick Diaz will be defending his welterweight crown against the resurgent Evangelista “Cyborg” Santos while Ronaldo “Jacare” Souza takes on former 3-time middleweight champion “Ruthless” Robbie Lawler.

All participants for tonight’s Saturday event, which takes place at the HP Pavilion in San Jose, California, all successfully made weight–but it wasn’t without it’s problems.

The weigh-ins ceremony, as far as the main-card is concerned, went off without a hitch. Both Diaz and “Cyborg” came in under the required welterweight limit, both weighing in at a svelte 169.5-pounds. Both men gave an intense stare down, which helped solidify that the main-event of the evening will be fireworks as these two-dynamic strikers enter the cage.

Much like his usually stoic self, Lawler offered up a subdued stare down with his Brazilian foe, as the H.I.T Squad co-founder weighed in at 184-pounds while the Jiu-Jitsu specialist came in at 184.25 for the middleweight title affair.

Both Nate Coy and Jenna Castillo came in just over their respective weigh-limit, however had the chance to retry and just a few hours later hit their marks.

The rest of the weigh-ins are as follows, courtesy of MMAJunkie.com:

MAIN CARD

* Champ Nick Diaz (169.5) vs. Evangelista “Cyborg” Santos (169.5)
* Champ Ronaldo “Jacare” Souza (184.25) vs. Robbie Lawler (184)
* Herschel Walker (220.75) vs. Scott Carson (214)
* Roger Gracie (206) vs. Trevor Prangley (205.25)

PRELIMINARY CARD

* Nate Coy (170.5)* vs. Nate Moore (171)
* Isaiah Hill (155.5) vs. Bobby Stack (154.75)
* Ron Keslar (179.5) vs. Eric Lawson (180)
* Germaine de Randamie (135.5) vs. Stephanie Webber (135.75)
* Lucas Gamaza (171) vs. James Terry (170.5)
* Jenna Castillo (121) vs. Charlene Gellner (118)^
* Anthony Dariano (149.5) vs. Alan Perez (151) (a)
* Niko Jackson (166) vs. Ricky Jackson (164.5) (a)
* Sam Bracamonte (168) vs. Armin Safiari (169.5) (a)

* – Coy made weight on his second attempt after initially weighing one-quarter pound heavy
* – Castillo made weight on her second attempt after initially weighing one-half pound heavy

(a) – Amaetur bout

Nick Diaz vs. Evangelista Santos: The best thing I can say about Evangelista Santos is that he’s the husband of my favorite female fighter, Cristiane Santos, who is also one of my favorite fighters period. Without an ounce of hyperbole on my part, I truly believe that Nick Diaz has Evangelista Santos beat in all facets of the game. From striking to tactics to pacing to cardio to ground prowess to everything in-between, this will be a classic Nick Diaz performance and the bad-boy we all either love or love to hate will give us another reason to keep actively discussing him. Diaz wins by second-round TKO.

Ronaldo Souza vs. Robbie Lawler: I think both men pose some very interesting threats to each other, which is why I gave this fight the “5 Reasons Why” treatment. Check out part 1 here and part 2 here. Now that I have to make an official prediction, here’s what I think will happen: I think Lawler will come out guns blazing and he may even score a big shot or two, but Souza will survive, take this fight to the ground, and work his game. That’s what I see this entire fight boiling down to: Souza will be able to survive Lawler’s onslaughts, but Lawler won’t be able to survive on the ground with “Jacare”. Ronaldo Souza wins by submission in the second, maybe third round.

Roger Gracie vs. Trevor Prangley: I think Gracie only has a passing interest in MMA, his flirtation with the sport seems to come and go. Trevor Prangley, meanwhile, is a very active veteran MMA fighter who’s coming off of a big win over former UFC star Keith Jardine. While Gracie will always hold the advantage on the ground, Prangley is too skilled in all major areas of the game. He won’t finish Gracie, and he may lose a round, but I see Trevor Prangley fighting a smart fight and winning via Split Decision.

Herschel Walker vs. Scott Carson: I’ve got a lot of respect for Herschel Walker, and I honestly think everyone else should too. He’s the first one to admit how inexperienced he is, but he trains like an animal and he trains at one of the best MMA camps on the planet. Walker will never be a big MMA superstar, and he knows it. Beneath all that humble attitude lies an MMA fighter with some rough edges, but with the raw power and surprising speed to overcome his hindrances. It wouldn’t surprise me if Walker was still greener than a forest when he steps into the Strikeforce cage for the second time, but it also wouldn’t surprise me to see the man win again. I’m picking Herschel Walker by first-round TKO.

And there you have it, fans and friends: what I think will happen (and why) for all the big fights of Strikeforce “Diaz vs. Cyborg”. But what about you? Who do you think will win at the event, and why?

5. Lawler has made a habit out of proving people wrong.

The cynics didn’t think Lawler stood a chance against Murilo Rua… then Lawler KO’d “Ninja”, brother to current UFC Light Heavyweight Champion Mauricio Rua, to claim the EliteXC Middleweight Championship. The cynics also believed that Lawler was going to be reduced to a walking punching bag when it was announced that he would fight Melvin Manhoef… and while he was reduced to just that during the beginning minutes of the fight, the end result saw Lawler KO Manhoef in the first round. Lawler likes to prove people wrong, he practically thrives on it. And that confidence will play a key part in his fight against Souza.

4. Lawler knows what it takes to be a champion and stay champion.

It wasn’t that long ago that Robbie Lawler headlined the second CBS outing of the now-defunct EliteXC promotion. Lawler was the reigning and defending EliteXC Middleweight Champion up until the promotion’s close, and he was also an ICON Sport Middleweight Champion. Lawler knows what it’s like to hold gold around his waist, and he’ll need that kind of championship drive against a competitor the caliber of Ronaldo Souza.

3. Even though it’s a cliché… every fight starts standing.

This is also known as the “puncher’s chance”. The advocates of the ground game scoff at this term, and I can admit that its effectiveness and usefulness is sketchy at best. But the simple fact of the matter is that every fight starts standing, and it’s Souza that will be the one leaving himself open when he shoots for the takedown. Will Lawler be able to land a significant strike or strikes before he’s inevitably taken down? Can he catch Souza with a big shot when “Jacare” shoots in? These are two important questions centered around an equally important fact: when you’ve got the kind of power that Robbie Lawler has, all you need is one opening. If Lawler can find that opening and exploit it to its fullest, we may have a new champion on our hands.

2. Lawler is riding into this fight on the heels of one of the strongest performances of his career.

Lawler has arguably never looked more dominant than he did in his recent fight with Matt Lindland. Lawler practically steamrolled the wily MMA veteran and left him in a broken heap in such a heinous fashion that many of us felt outright concern for Lindland’s well-being. It was exactly the kind of fighter Lawler needed, and as he heads into this fight with “Jacare”, he’s riding a huge wave of momentum from a fight whose outcome will most likely remain on his highlight reel for the rest of his career. And not only is that a big confidence booster, it’s also proof positive that no one should take Robbie Lawler lightly.

And the number one reason Robbie Lawler could beat Ronaldo Souza and become the new Strikeforce Middleweight Champion is…

1. You don’t get the nickname “Ruthless” without reason, and Lawler has fully earned it.

Robbie Lawler has won an overwhelming majority of his fights by (T)KO. You can literally count on one hand the times he hasn’t finished someone in debilitating fashion. A remarkable seventeen of his twenty career wins have come by way of (T)KO, in fact, the last time Robbie Lawler didn’t win a fight by (T)KO was in 2005. Lawler is by far one of the best strikers in the Strikeforce Middleweight division, and his fists are a threat that no serious champion should take lightly. Even though Souza has a tough chin, he’ll go down and stay down if he’s not fully prepared for Lawler’s massive punching power.

And that wraps up today’s “5 Reasons Why”, fans and friends. So, did you agree or disagree? Who do you think wins this match-up, and why?

5. Souza trains at Black House, so he learns from the masters.

Robbie Lawler is a great striker, but Ronaldo Souza trains at the same gym as Anderson Silva and Lyoto Machida, two masters of elusiveness. With sparring partners like Junior dos Santos, Souza’s striking continues to improve. Souza’s ground game has always been good, but he still finds ways of improving it too, thanks in no small part to the guidance of the Nogueira brothers. Putting it plainly: Black House has nearly every single championship-caliber Brazilian in the UFC and in Strikeforce on lockdown, and as we all know, steel sharpens steel. Souza’s best can always be better, and it’s that kind of drive that has kept Black House and its fighters in such prominent positions.

4. Souza has become increasingly comfortable against top-level competition.

Strikeforce seems to have a problem with young champions that probably aren’t ready for the burdens that comes with being a champion. Both Gegard Mousasi and Muhammed Lawal stand out as the clearest examples: both men won their championships with dominating victories, only to be humbled in their first defense of the belt. While this could prove to be the case for Souza, it remains unlikely. “Jacare” has hit the ground running and emerged as a legitimate top-level athlete in Strikeforce, and he’s never once cracked under the pressure despite high-profile runs in both Strikeforce and the Japanese-based DREAM. Confidence is key when you’re a defending champion, and Souza has a lot of it.

3. Jacare’s chin is pretty solid.

Souza has faced a varied cast of strikers in his sixteen professional MMA fights, and while he’s lost twice by KO, once was at the beginning of his career (his very first pro MMA fight, in fact) and the other was over two years ago. And it took a lot for that KO to happen: Gegard Mousasi delivered a full-force upkick at the exact moment Souza was diving in for a punch. It was one of those blows where anyone would have been KO’d by it. Lawler has a lot of power in his hands, but Souza absolutely does not have a glass chin.

2. Souza has shown noticeable improvement in his stand-up.

Now, let’s not get ahead of ourselves and think that Souza is a better striker than Lawler. I’ve got no problem admitting that the stand-up game is Lawler’s domain. But Souza is prepared now more than ever for a brawl, and his recent fight with Tim Kennedy, the one where he won the Strikeforce Middleweight Championship, was won primarily through his improved striking. Tim Kennedy does not have the KO power of Robbie Lawler, but Souza hung with Kennedy for five whole rounds and won the fight in the area he’s admittedly weakest in. Souza may be at a disadvantage standing up, but he’s definitely not being fed to the wolves like Matt Lindland was.

And the number one reason why Ronaldo Souza could beat Robbie Lawler and retain his Strikeforce Middleweight Championship is…

1. You don’t get the nickname “Alligator” without reason, and Souza has fully earned it.

An overwhelming majority of Souza’s wins are by submission: ten of his thirteen victories. He’s a highly-established Brazilian Jui Jitsu competitor, taking first place in countless BJJ competitions. To make matters worse, four of Lawler’s six losses have been by submission. While I do respect Robbie Lawler, I’m not lying or embellishing when I say the following: the second this thing gets to the ground, it’s Souza’s fight for the taking.

So there you have it, fans and friends: five reasons why Ronaldo Souza could beat Robbie Lawler. What about you? What’s your opinion on this fight and who do you see winning it?

The Event: Strikeforce “Diaz vs. Cyborg”, scheduled for January 29, 2011 at the HP Pavilion in San Jose, California. The four-fight main card will be broadcast live on the Showtime network starting at 10PM ET/PT.

Why You Should Care: Two championships will be on the line during the main televised broadcast, both the Strikeforce Middleweight and Welterweight Championships will be defended. The always-controversial Nick Diaz defends his 170-pound strap, while Ronaldo Souza defends his 185-pound belt against the hard-hitting Robbie Lawler. Former NFL great Herschel Walker will also make an appearance on the card, fighting in his second professional MMA bout.

What to Look Forward to in the Main Event: Look for leather to start flying the second the first bell rings. Both men are technically brawlers, although their styles and methods of inflicting damage are vastly different. Nevertheless, both men are going to come out swinging, hoping to influence the pace of the fight and force their opponent into their world. It may not be long, but it’ll probably be bloody, and it’ll certainly be exciting.

What to Look Forward to in the Co-Main Event: Although Strikeforce Middleweight Champion Ronaldo Souza is primarily famous as a submission expert, his stand-up has shown some good improvement in his recent fights. But has it improved enough to where he can hang with a dangerous striker with vicious one-hit KO power? Robbie Lawler finds himself in a similar dilemma: does he go in throwing wildly, hoping that something hits? Is it worth it to risk being taken down if it means throwing with the reckless abandon that got him this title shot in the first place? There are several different ways this match could turn out, but since both men are high-level fighters, we’re practically guaranteed an interesting fight.

Why You Should Watch This Card: It’s two title fights, plus Herschel Walker, plus Roger Gracie. Both championship fights have the potential to last five rounds or five minutes, and that always makes for edge-of-your-seat television. Strikeforce seems to be amping up for a major 2011 in general, and this card should be a great indicator on what the future holds for the surging MMA promotion.

Why You Shouldn’t Watch This Card: It’s a pretty solid card for Strikeforce, but it’s clear that the A-Game is being reserved for the upcoming Heavyweight Grand Prix. If you wanted to, you could make a case that neither Evangelista Santos nor Robbie Lawler have done enough and beaten enough quality competition to deserve a shot at the title. And of course, many MMA fans still have their doubts and prejudices towards Herschel Walker. Those that do intend to watch the show will most likely be entertained, but I’ll be frank and admit that the show doesn’t have the kind of universal appeal that fuels a “must-watch” event.

Closing Thoughts: As a huge fan of Nick Diaz, I’ll tune in to watch him no matter who he’s fighting. I’m also a moderate fan of Ronaldo Souza, who I think has a tremendous ground game and has shown a lot of improvement in his stand-up recently. I also like Herschel Walker, so that’s another reason to tune in. This show probably won’t capture my imagination or dazzle my senses like the upcoming cards booked around the amazing Strikeforce Heavyweight Grand Prix, but it looks like a solid event from top to bottom and, at the end of the day, I’ve got a good feeling about this card.

And what about you, fans and friends? What are your thoughts on “Diaz vs. Cyborg”?

5. The continued push to legitimize the various Strikeforce championships.

Strikeforce needs to find its footing in several of its major divisions, and I think 2011 will see a considerable amount of prestige added to a lot of Strikeforce’s championships. Now that Alistair Overeem has lived his dream and became a K-1 champion, he should be back in Strikeforce full-force in 2011. Ronaldo Souza will face Robbie Lawler in what should be an excellent striker vs. grappler match-up. Rafael Cavalcante will have a lot to prove but plenty of time to prove it as he eyes potential fights with Dan Henderson and several other high-profile Strikeforce Light Heavyweights. Then you’ve got Cristiane Santos dominating as always and Marloes Coenen realizing her full potential as a 135-pounder. It’ll be a great year for champions and championship defenses.

4. The continually improving quality of the “Strikeforce Challengers” series of shows.

I need a new underdog, fans and friends. Now that the WEC, my “little promotion that could”, has been folded into the UFC, I’m left without one. Heading into 2011, I think “Strikeforce Challengers” will fill that role quite nicely. The per-fight quality of these events keeps increasing, and the shows continue to showcase entertaining fights featuring up-and-coming fighters. 2011 has a great chance of seeing “Strikeforce Challengers” emerge as the show that everyone loves and not nearly enough people watch. And if they do fill that role, you can definitely expect to see me right back up on the soapbox and urging fans to give them a watch, vocally supporting them just as loudly as I did the WEC.

3. The return of Alistair Overeem.

Overeem has spent the last several years chasing a dream that’s kept him away from MMA for a considerable length of time, and now he’s finally lived that dream. Alistair Overeem is a K-1 champion, and now that he’s knocked that off of his bucket list, it’s very likely that we’ll see him fight a lot more often in Strikeforce. I’ve always been a gargantuan fan of “The Reem”, so his 2011 return to dominance is one thing I can’t wait to watch unfold.

2. The return of Fedor Emelianenko.

The only thing that really comes close to my excitement surrounding the return of Alistair is my excitement over the return of Fedor. I know how just saying the man’s name invites controversy and intense debate, but in the spirit of Christmas, I’m going to say the following: love him or hate him, people want to see Fedor return. I personally can’t wait to see him back in action, and I can guarantee that I’ll be glued to my TV screen from the moment I first hear his entrance music.

And my #1 spot goes to…

1. Several epic match-ups at Heavyweight, with or without the rumored Grand Prix.

This is not to say that I don’t want a Grand Prix, oh no. Rest assured: I want that Strikeforce Heavyweight Grand Prix. I want it bad. How could I not? Fighters like the aforementioned Alistair and Fedor, as well as Antonio Silva, Andrei Arlovski, Josh Barnett, Fabricio Werdum, and Brett Rogers could all end up competing against each other. But my point is this: even if the Grand Prix doesn’t happen, we’ve got an incredible amount of amazing Heavyweight fights to look forward to in 2011.

So there you have it, fans and friends: part 3 is over and done with. Stay tuned for the finale of “All I Want for Christmas”, and until then, what about you? What are you looking forward to for Strikeforce in 2011?

A few days ago MMA Junkie reported on the possibility that Jason Miller could meet Tim Kennedy at Strikeforce’s January event. This would be the third time that these two have fought, Kennedy defeated “Mayhem” back in 2003 and Miller avenged that loss in 2007. Jason Miller is currently on a two-fight win-streak, but hasn’t competed in Strikeforce in over eight months. In that time, he’s continued to host the popular MTV show “Bully Beatdown” while starting up and actively engaging in an intense verbal war with current Strikeforce Welterweight Champion Nick Diaz. Tim Kennedy most recently lost a hard-fought five-round war to Ronaldo Souza in a fight that saw Souza claim the vacant Strikeforce Middleweight Championship. Many fighters.com fans and readers would go on to agree with me in my sentiment that Kennedy did more than enough in the Souza fight to earn an immediate rematch.

And speaking of “Jacare”, MMA Weekly recently revealed that it’s looking more and more likely that Ronaldo Souza will be making the first defense of his championship at the January 29 show. His opponent is rumored to be Robbie Lawler. Lawler just got done sending MMA veteran Matt Lindland into a near-catatonic state at the recent Strikeforce: “Henderson vs. Babalu 2” event. The dramatic, thundering knockout will almost certainly remain on Lawler’s highlight reel for the rest of his career. Meanwhile, Ronaldo Souza is on a three-fight win-streak and hasn’t lost in over two years.

I hope both of these fights do indeed happen, because I think there’s a lot to look forward to in both bouts. I think Tim Kennedy has progressed by leaps and bounds lately, and is undoubtedly one of Strikeforce’s top middleweights. Jason Miller has an excellent shot at also achieving top-division status, he just needs to stay active, even if it means prolonging his feud with Nick Diaz and Diaz’s camp. As much as I like Jason Miller, I’ve said several times that I agree with Diaz’s camp: Nick gains nothing from a fight with “Mayhem” because Jason Miller hasn’t beaten anybody in Strikeforce. Beating Tim Kenney would be a gigantic step in the right direction.

In regards to Lawler/Souza, this is going to be a great grappler vs. striker fight. It’s true that Souza has relied on his much-improved striking to win some of his recent fights, but the fact of the matter is that none of Souza’s recent opponents have had the kind of crushing one-hit KO power that Robbie Lawler has. Some of them come close, sure. But none of them can rock Souza the way Lawler can rock Souza. Look for the “Alligator” to make his return against Lawler, Souza is going to try to keep this one on the ground while Lawler goes headhunting from the first second to the last. It has all the makings of an awesome fight.

And what about you, fans and friends? What do you think about these two match-ups?

“I think everything about this fight is going to be challenging.  Robbie is a talented, well rounded fighter.  I don’t see a ton of holes in his game.  I just have to go out and impose my strength in the weaker parts of his game.  That is really all it is, and I think there are going to be no surprises in this fight.  It will just come down to who can impose their will.  I don’t think anything about fighting Robbie will be easy, and that is why I have prepared hard and trained great.  Going into this fight I have no excuses, but I am not overlooking any aspect of Robbie’s game.”

After losing to Ronaldo Souza at the end of 2009, Lindland was in the midst of a longer than expected layoff when he agreed to drop down to the Strikeforce Challengers series to fight Kevin Casey in order to stay sharp.

“It has been a little disappointing that I have not been able to compete as much and as frequently as I have in the past.  It’s a change in companies and the irregularity, and there are a lot of fighters on the STRIKEFORCE roster. I have not gotten as many opportunities that I would have liked.  I think that has contributed a lot to me taking the fight in the Challengers show, because there wasn’t a fight in the immediate future. So, I wanted to get back in the ring and compete.”

The third round TKO of Casey was exactly what the doctor ordered and moved Lindland’s career record to 22-7.  It sets up a world class struggle between Lawler’s fists and Lindland’s Olympic level wrestling.

“It is whoever can impose their will.  If I had my way, I would put Robbie on his back and pound a hole in his head and I’m sure Robbie would like to try to keep it on his feet and put me to sleep standing up.  I think it’s really about who can impose their will.”

Lindland went 9-3 in the UFC between 2000 and 2008 and was clearly regarded as one of the best pound for pound players in the game. Post UFC, he has bounced around MMA organizations from the IFL to Affliction to Strikeforce.  If any Strikeforce match-up  would announce he is still right at the top of the sport, it would be a win over the younger Lawler.

“I think I am still one of the top contenders in this sport, a top 10 guy and of course I lost to a champion, Jacare, and I think this is a great path back to that title contention.  A win against Robbie certainly solidifies me in that top 10.  I just need to focus on this fight.  I have been working on all aspects of my game, the standup, the ground, the wrestling, the submissions. Every bit of it.  Robbie is a well-rounded fighter and people categorize him as a big striker and a brawler, he knows how to fight on his feet. But, he knows how to wrestle and he knows how to fight on the ground. So, I have to be prepared for all aspects of the sport.  Right now, I am just focusing on coming in the best shape and being healthy.  I have zero injuries, so no excuses going into this fight. I’m looking forward to it. I am very excited about this opportunity.”

Here are some highlights from a recent interview Sherdog conducted with Lindland: “Robbie is a well-rounded fighter… I’ve never seen Robbie in a fight that wasn’t exciting. I’m looking forward not just to performing, but also to kicking the **** out of Robbie… I think I’m still one of the top contenders. I lost to ‘Jacare,’ who is the champion, and I think this is a great path back to title contention… I’m healthier than I’ve ever been. I’ve had zero injuries, and I have no excuses. I’m looking forward to it.”

I’ve got a ton of respect for Matt Lindland. He’s faced some amazing competition, and even though he’s lost to a lot of them, his wins still hold a commanding lead when compared to his losses, and for the most part he’s remained an explosive, entertaining, and dangerous fighter throughout all the long years he’s spent mixing it up in cages and rings across the world. Lindland/Lawler is some very smart booking and should be an amazing fight, and I recently talked at length about it in a previous article.

In regards to what the future holds for “The Law”, now more and more I think that Lindland may have it in him to finally capture the gold that he’s been chasing for so very long. If he can get past Robbie Lawler, he’ll have a firm leg to stand on in Strikeforce’s growing (but, let’s be honest, not exactly star-studded) Middleweight division. If he wins in a big way, Lindland may find himself challenging for the championship outright. He’ll have his hands full against current champion Ronaldo Souza, however.

That may even be an understatement. Lindland and Souza certainly have enough of a rivalry to justify a rematch: Souza spoiled Lindland’s Strikeforce debut and would go on to win one single other fight before fighting for and ultimately winning the vacant Strikeforce Middleweight Championship. Souza stands poised as the best Middleweight in Strikeforce for several reasons: his ground game has always been amazing, but recently, his striking has shown noticeable improvements. Lindland would still hold the advantage in terms of pure KO power, but if Souza survived long enough in the first round of their first encounter to snatch up a submission win in the dying seconds of Round 1, he’ll likely be able to hold his own if the championship rematch heads into the later rounds.

Nevertheless, I think the future looks quite bright for Matt “The Law” Lindland. I’m eagerly looking forward to his upcoming fight, since I know it’s going to prove once and for all if Lindland is ready for championship gold. It should be a great fight and a great performance, so I wish Matt Lindland all the best.

And what about you, fans and friends? What do you think the future holds for Matt Lindland, both in the here and now as well as further on down the road?

Here’s what the soft-spoken Coker had to say over at MMA Weekly: “We were hoping it would happen, but it didn’t happen, and we’re happy with Jacare being our world champion. I think he’s a great representative and a great fighter.”

I’m honestly disappointed that this idea never saw the light of day. The tournament format represents a bygone era, but several promotions have proven recently that it can still work in today’s MMA world. Strikeforce itself has held one-night tournaments in the past, although I felt their 135-pound Women’s Tournament suffered from time constraints. The fights themselves were quite entertaining, though. Perhaps an even bigger example would be Shine Fights, who I was extremely critical of in the weeks leading up to their one-night Lightweight Grand Prix only to be pleasantly surprised at how much I enjoyed the show.

I think a Strikeforce Middleweight Tournament would have done a lot of good for the promotion. It would have given fans a lot of access to the Strikeforce talent, many of which the more-casual fans aren’t familiar with. It would have immediately established the winner and next contender/champion as a credible threat, since it takes a particular breed of athlete to fight and win twice in one night. And for the longtime MMA fans, it would have provided a rare bit of nostalgia in a sport that, for the most part, is still so relatively new. Maybe I’m looking at it with rose-tinted glasses because it happens so infrequently nowadays, but I think the tournament format is a great idea in short, controlled bursts.

But at the end of the day, I really can’t complain. Ronaldo Souza is as credible as they come, he’s a fantastic addition to the Strikeforce roster and I think he’s going to have a banner year in 2011. His standup keeps improving and his ground game is scary-good. He’s also a member of Black House, the fight camp that basically contains almost every single noteworthy Brazilian fighter currently fighting in MMA. While I would’ve liked to see him win a tournament in order to further enhance and establish his credibility, I think “Jacare” is poised to dominate the Strikeforce middleweight roster.

Looking forward, there are some huge match-ups for “Jacare” at 185. Just off the top of my head, I’d love to see Souza face Dan Henderson (if he decides to drop back down), Gegard Mousasi (he would have to drop back down too), Jason Miller, Tim Kennedy again, Cung Le, and Scott Smith. The Middleweight division clearly had enough talent for a tournament, and I think it would have benefited from a tournament, but ultimately it wasn’t in dire need of a tournament.

And what about you, fans and friends? Now that it’s finally been put to rest, what’s your opinion on the failed Strikeforce Middleweight Tournament?

Here are the highlights courtesy of two pieces posted on Sherdog.com: “I can tell you thankfully there will be a season four, five, six and beyond… A lot of people always ask the question about Fox Sports Network and about the delays of broadcasts and the preemptions and the nature of that network, and we have overcome that issue, which is great for us… I’ve said many times the opportunity for [Bellator Middleweight Champion] Hector [Lombard] to fight Jacare [Strikeforce Middleweight Champion Ronaldo Souza] would be spectacular… I’m trying desperately to not say anything that would be perceived as a barrier to making those kind of fights happen.”

I’ll be honest, fans and friends, I don’t know that much about Bellator. I don’t follow it with any real interest, in fact, I more or less give it a passing glance every now and then and that’s about as far as I go. But the more and more I hear about this promotion, the more and more I think that should change. Bellator seems to be getting better on an event-by-event basis, and now that the news has come down from on high that the WEC will be folded into the UFC, I’m going to need a new underdog to root for. I can’t say I’ll throw myself into watching Bellator with reckless abandon, but I think the promotion has done more than enough to warrant more than a passing glance.

In regards to “Champion vs. Champion” fights, I’m always a huge fan of them and I’ll always be in favor of making them happen. But I also know that, realistically, they’re incredibly hard to pull off. I think Rebney is getting way ahead of himself if he’s already looking at matches like Hector Lombard vs. Ronaldo Souza and Nick Diaz vs. Ben Askren while he can’t even get Eddie Alvarez vs. Gilbert Melendez worked out. In fact, hopes of any Strikeforce vs. Bellator fight remain bleak. Although I’ve come out in favor of a Bellator/Strikeforce co-promotion in the past, it’s looking increasingly less likely. The first-friendly rivalry between the two promotions has now taken a downturn, with the dreaded “ducking” term rearing its ugly head.

Ultimately, Bellator should focus on growing its brand and not rely on any sort of co-promotion with Strikeforce in order to explode into the mainstream. It may not be the quickest or the easiest path to success, but I believe Bellator should more or less stay the course and continue chipping away at the mainstream by putting on more great shows featuring more interesting and upcoming talent. As the promotion continues to gain respect around the underground, sooner or later the masses will begin to take notice. It may not make Bjorn Rebney a ton of money overnight, but at least Bellator seems to be far removed from the likes of EliteXC and Affliction, who fired off like rockets into the mainstream with big-name talent and huge production values, only to ultimately hemorrhage money and fall just as quickly as they had ascended.

And what about you, fans and friends? Have you given Bellator FC a look yet? And if you have, what do you think of its future?

In fact, when Santiago was up and coming on the mixed martial arts circuit, and was revered for both his Muay-Thai and exceptional Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu skills and was knocked out by Manny Gamburyan in a welterweight bout (Manny, who now fights in the featherweight division was most recently defeated by Jose Aldo at WEC 51).

So, to say that Santiago was on the cusp of greatness, is far from relevant. However, the ultra-talented American Top Team product can now call himself a top-10 middleweight in the world, who holds victories over notables Kazuo Misaki (twice), and former UFC competitors Jeremy Horn and Trevor Prangley.

What do you do when you’ve beat all the best competition that is available to you in Japan, where Jorge is crowned as the Sengoku middleweight champion… go to America and challenge your friend, of course!

“I challenge the middleweight champion here. He’s my friend, but ‘Jacare’, we have to fight, man”, said Santiago while speaking with the MiddleEasy crew, following the “Strikeforce: Diaz vs Noons II” event in San jose, Cali., just last weekend.

“I have the tournament belt, you have the middleweight belt, so let’s do it, man. Let’s make it official.”

The tournament belt that Santiago is referring to, if you don’t remember, is the 4-man one night tourney run in 2007, which featured the likes Sean Salmon, Falaniko Vitale and the aforementioned Prangley–whom Jorge met in the finals, finishing him with knees to the body for the TKO victory inside of the first round, claiming the tournament belt.

The tournament was to determine a number one contender for the 185-pound title, which was held by legend Frank Shamrock at the time. However, Santiago became impatient when it looked like Cung Le was to get the first crack at the belt, and jumped ship over to Japan to compete under the Sengoku banner, where he has recorded some of his most impressive wins to date.

Ronaldo Souza, meanwhile, has gone on to middleweight infamy, picking up the vacated middleweight title (which was relinquished by current UFC welterweight contender and former Strikeforce middleweight champion Jake Shields) with a unanimous decision victory over Tim Kennedy, last August. With the win, ‘Jacare’, a Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu world champion, extends his win streak to three in a row, and is now undefeated under the Strikeforce banner.

So, MMA peeps, what do you make of the potential match up? Who do you favor? Do you feel like other competitors should follow suit with Santiago, in being able to put friendship aside, if not for the title at least? Sound off in the comment section below.

Though a strong showing, nonetheless, the American Top Team product was bested by former Strikeforce lightweight champion Josh Thomson, though the bout wasn’t without controversy.

After a strong first round, where both fighters had their moments, it looked like “JZ” had picked up the momentum as he was able to knockdown the San Jose fighter with a thunderous right hook, following up with a tight guillotine choke, though there wasn’t anything behind the submission hold. After a second round taken by Thomson, the Brazilian came back in the third, mounting Josh, working in ground-and-pound before closing out the round, which had “The Punk” on his back for the entire round. In the end though, Josh was declared the winner.

While “JZ” might by irked by the loss nonetheless, he will still be able to find some solace in knowing there will not be any financial issues in part with Strikeforce, though he can’t say the same for the Japanese based organization, DREAM.

Before his Strikeforce bout with Thomson, Cavalcante had recently returned to winning ways after coming on the heels of a two-fight losing streak against notables Shinya Aoki and Tatsuya Kawajiri, respectively, with a victory over the heralded DEEP lightweight champion, Katsunori Kikuno at DREAM 15.

On July 10 of this year, Gesias was able to defeat the karate styled fighter by way of unanimous decision, negating the Japanese stars famed striking by working effective ground tactics, earning the nod by the judges. But, dont expect to see “JZ” in the ring in anytime soon following the win in Japan, since he has still not been paid by the promotion from a bout that took place 3 months ago.

“(Expletive) DREAM, man,” said Gesias in an interview with MMAJunkie.com. “I’m not going to say I’m done, but I need to get paid. I need people to show the respect (I) need.

Add one to the list. Bibiano Fernandes (the DREAM featherweight champion, who was only just paid a few weeks ago for his title defense against Joachim Hansen at DREAM 13 in March of this year), Ronaldo Souza (who has yet to be paid for his last bout, at DREAM 9 opposite of Miller in May of 2009), and Ralek Gracie (DREAM 14, Kazushi Sakuraba, May 2010).

So, MMA peeps, what do you make of this whole mess? Sound off in the comment section below.

“In Strikeforce? [I want to fight] Jacare (Ronaldo Souza). I hate him. I mean, I always want to fight Nick Diaz, but he ran away and beat up [KJ] Noons, who’s a blown-up 170-pounder. [A shot at the Strikeforce Middleweight Championship is] what I want. Will they give it to me? I don’t know. I want millions of dollars, but I fight Mixed Martial Arts. It’s very difficult to do.”

I’ll always be a fan of Jason Miller, although I wouldn’t call myself a “Mayhem Monkey”. I get a kick out of his shtick, if you will. Miller is just so entertaining that it’s impossible not to take notice of him. It’s also pretty hard not to like the guy, he’s incredibly charismatic and usually has amazing fight entrances. But most importantly of all, Jason Miller is a legitimate athlete with a lot of skill. The man is not a flash in the pan, he became popular through his crazed antics but he became respectable by consistently trying to fight the best and challenging for a championship on more than one occasion.

I’m really looking forward to Jacare/Mayhem 3 if that is indeed what’s next in store for newly-minted Strikeforce Middleweight Champion Ronaldo Souza. I think this is a rivalry that deserves the main stage, it’s become incredibly heated and decidedly bitter. Both men bring out the best in each other whenever they mix it up, they deserve to have that highlighted on a major Strikeforce show. I still think Miller can finally beat Souza, even though it will likely be the hardest thing he’ll ever have to do in his MMA career.

But as much as I enjoy “Mayhem”, I don’t see how he beats Nick Diaz unless Diaz moves up to Middleweight and gasses due to putting on fifteen pounds of fat. If Miller drops down to 170 or if the bout is a catchweight, Diaz crushes Miller each and every time. There’s no way that Miller has a striking advantage, not when Diaz throws hundreds of strikes per fight and lands a large percentage of them, not when he’s dislocating jaws with those fists, not when he just got done out-boxing a fighter that’s actually spent time as a professional boxer. Miller’s best chances lie on the ground, and even then I’d pick Nick Diaz to win by submission. Diaz has Miller beat in every facet of the game, and this is coming from someone who routinely enjoys watching Jason Miller perform.

But at the end of the day, I think Miller deserves his shot at revenge, both against Jacare and against Diaz. I think he’ll win the first one and lose the second one, but he’s earned the right to try. Those two fights could easily headline their own card or be a worthy co-main event to a CBS card (if a card on CBS ever becomes a reality again). All in all, the future is still quite bright for “Mayhem”. I’m looking forward to seeing what’s next for him.

And what about you, fans and friends? How do you think “Mayhem” would do against Ronaldo Souza and Nick Diaz?

After rating dips, fall out from sponsors, and constant financial woes, it appears that paying fighters in an effective and timely matter is their next area of least-expertise.

The most notable case, current DREAM featherweight champion Bibiano Fernandes has only just been paid for his last outing, a successful title defense against former DREAM lightweight champion Joachim Hansen. The bout took place in March of this year–almost 7 months ago.

The norm, as far as compensation goes which is detailed in their contracts, is for said fighter to be paid within 30 days post-fight.

Among other fighters, which also includes current Strikeforce middleweight champion Ronaldo Souza whom has vied for DREAM’s middleweight title on two separate occasions, Ralek Gracie (who last competed against Kazushia Sakuraba, taking home a unanimous decision victory over the legend at DREAM 14) has now become the most notable encounter of the financial debacle that the promotion has set precedent against their fighters.

“I fought [Sakuraba] on May 29 and under my contract I was supposed to be paid 30 days after my fight, in full, and I haven’t been paid yet,” Gracie said in an interview with MMAFighting.com. “The Dream organization puts on a wonderful show. They’re, in my opinion, the top show in terms of production, but on the back end, as far as handling the finances, they haven’t really taken care of me in a way that I expected and a way I feel is honorable and a way they should.”

You know you messed up when you’ve angered a Gracie, whom historically have had strong ties with the Japanese promotion–which is currently ran by the former execs heading the PRIDE promotion. Renzo, Royce, Royler, Daniel, Ralph, Ryan, and Rickson (to name a few) have all called Japan home at one point or another, however that tradition may find itself wanting.

So, MMA peeps, what do you think of DREAM and their difficulties paying their fighters? Should fighters continue signing contract with DREAM, with prior knowledge of such mishaps? Sound off in the comments section below.

Strikeforce is again abandoning from the game plan of viable contender’s for it’s titles, and instead will go with their popular stars, over those who most likely deserve a legitimate shot at the organization’s titles.

The San Jose based promotion is continuing to recycle it’s fighters like refried beans on the cafeteria’s lunch special. While both match ups, which will concievably pit Dan Henderson against the newly crowned middleweight champion Ronaldo “Jacare” Souza–who claimed the vacant title with a win over top contender Tim Kennedy just last month–and Gegard Mousasi, the former Strikeforce light heavyweight champion, will try to reclaim the title when he faces newly minted champ Rafael “Feijao”.

The news was broke by Josuel Distak, Ronaldo Souza and “Feijao’s” boxing coach, while speaking with Tatame.

“We’re preparing ourselves, setting our strategy for these belt defenses”, said Distak while speaking with the aforementioned Brazilian website/magazine.

“I think that the hardest one is on our way… I believe it’ll be against Dan Henderson or (Gegard) Mousasi. I think both of these fighters might confront us.”

Well, sort of more of an insight or opinion rather then a dead-on news breaker, but it’s something. I’m banging my head against the keyboard right now, thinking why Strikeforce will continue to disrespect it’s titles in such a way.

How can a champion be recognized as a legitimate force if he’s fighting people coming off of losses? It just doesn’t make any sense. The only case that can be made is if said fighter was coming off of a CLOSE loss, i.e: Chael Sonnen versus Anderson Silva–which looks like they will rematch according to Dana White, and Mauricio Rua in his rematch against Lyoto Machida after a hotly debated first fight, where in the second bout he was able to knockout his fellow countryman in the first round.

So what do you guys think? Are the sanctity of these belt’s being tarnished? Henderson would be coming off of a lopsided decision loss to a welterweight, and Mousasi meanwhile is coming off a win–but an uninspired one at that, against UFC veteran Jake O’Brien at DREAM 15 last July, where the Armenian submitted the American wrestler with a guillotine choke, just 31 seconds into the first round. Not much of a fight.

Do Henderson and Mousasi deserve their title shots? Or how should get the next crack at the belts? Mike Kyle has the only definitive win over “Feijao” and is coming off a win in his last bout inside Strikeforce, which improved an overall 4-fight win streak (with a no-contest muttled in there). You be the judge. Let your opinions known below.

5. Marius Zaromskis vs. Dan Hardy

It’s a shame that people have mostly forgotten about Marius Zaromskis, since I became a huge fan of his due to his destruction of several people in the Japanese-based DREAM. Zaromskis hasn’t been heard of since he was TKO’d at the hands of Evangelista Santos, but he’s still a very tough fighter with incredibly powerful high kicks. Against Dan Hardy he’d face another strong-willed power-striker, and this one would likely see both men absorb a lot of damage before somebody gets knocked out.

4. Ronaldo Souza vs. Chael Sonnen

Now this is a fight that fans can really sink their teeth into. Souza fights out of the same camp as UFC Middleweight Champion Anderson Silva, so you have a guaranteed rivalry right there. Both men have good-but-not-great striking, but since they’re evenly matched, it would be pretty entertaining to see them trade blows. If it goes to the ground, Souza is nicknamed “Jacare” (Alligator) for a reason, while Chael Sonnen’s ability to dominate on the ground needs no introduction, based on his near-total shutout of Anderson Silva at UFC 117. It would simply be a highly, highly competitive match.

3. Shinya Aoki vs. George Sotiropoulos

This one would have to take place in Japan, though, so both men could utilize their magic submission pants. There’s no doubt that George would have the advantage striking, since Aoki’s stand-up has always been atrocious. But if/when it goes to the ground, this has the potential to be one of the most entertaining ground battles in years.

2. Junior dos Santos vs. Antonio Silva

It’s the technical striking of JDS going up against the power of “Bigfoot”, and I think both men would turn in a great performance. Antonio Silva wants to be taken seriously so badly that I think he would show up in great shape and with a great gameplan for this fight, while Junior Dos Santos has quickly become the best pure striker in the Heavyweight division of MMA as a whole, not just the UFC. Someone is going to sleep in this fight, and it would be quite a spectacle to see the super-fast and super-slick JDS trying to cope with Silva’s massive frame, long reach, and serious punching power.

And the #1 spot goes to…

1. Muhammed Lawal vs. Rashad Evans

Both men have awesome wrestling skills, with striking that is good for the most part and great on occasion. As talented as both men are on the ground, I have a feeling that their impressive wrestling backgrounds would basically cancel each other out and force this into a stand-up brawl. Both Lawal and Evans have a lot of power in their hands, and I can see this one getting quite vicious before all is said and done. And if someone does get an advantage on the ground, look for some very harsh Ground and Pound. It’s not a traditional choice by any stretch of the imagination, but I would love to see this fight.

So that’s what I think, fans and friends. What about you? Other than the obvious, what are some UFC vs. Strikeforce fights you’d like to see?

On September 25, Jason Miller will make his return to the Japanese-based DREAM, the spiritual successor to the legendary PRIDE FC promotion, at the “DREAM.16” event. The card was already set to be one of DREAM’s strongest showings since their formation in 2008, with a list of confirmed and rumored fighters like Gegard Mousasi, Shinya Aoki, Caol Uno, Norifumi Yamamoto, and others. Miller had previously competed at DREAM’s third, fourth, and ninth events, gaining notoriety for his heated rivalry with the man who is now the Strikeforce Middleweight Champion, Ronaldo Souza. Standing across the DREAM ring will be one of the greatest MMA fighters to ever compete in this sport: Kazushi Sakuraba.

If there’s one person that embodies PRIDE FC moreso than all the other greats that came and went through that historic promotion, it’s Kazushi Sakuraba. He was never the most imposing physical specimen, and he was never that good of a striker. But his wrestling was unparalleled for his time, and he possessed and still possesses more heart than almost any other fighter walking the planet. Sakuraba has fallen on hard times since his glory days of being the “Gracie Hunter” and a cultural icon in Japan, but a fourteen-year veteran still consistently trying to fight the best, even if he loses, just to prove that he still can? How can you not respect and admire someone like that?

And the crazy thing of it is, Sakuraba may have it in him to beat Jason Miller. I think “Mayhem” is a lot more likely to win, but you can never count out Sakuraba. He’s pulled out some amazing victories out of seemingly nowhere, and I think that the possibility exists that he could catch Miller unawares and slap on a kimura or armbar. Miller’s ground game has failed him in the past, as his one-sided losses to Georges St. Pierre and Jake Shields can attest to. I don’t think Sakuraba will go on some sort of Couture-esque rebirth and find himself back atop the rankings, but I’m pulling for him.

Then again, the heart says “Saku” but the brain thinks “Miller”. Miller has faced some greats in the past, he may have never really beaten any of them, but he won’t be star struck against a living legend like Sakuraba. Miller’s ground game may not be world-class, but it’d be wrong to call it horrible. It’s served him well for the most part. I mean, he has a majority of his wins by submission, after all. It may not be on the level of GSP or Shields, but it does get the job done. And he does have six (T)KO’s on his record.

When it comes right down to it, this will be a fight between a declining legend and a nine-year veteran that still hasn’t realized his full potential. A world with Jason Miller as the Strikeforce Middleweight Champion sounds entirely plausible if he can get string some wins together, and I think the road back to title contention leads through Kazushi Sakuraba.

But what do you think, fans and friends? How do you see this fight going down?

DREAM, one of the more popular Japan based organizations following the demise of Pride, is holding an event for September 25th in Nagoya, Japan–a card that was intended to be headlined by current featherweight (139 pounds) champion, Bibiano Fernandes.

According to MMAFighting.com, Fernandes was intended to make a title defense against Michihiro Omigawa, however declined to fight when he was still yet to be paid his purse from his last fight, a successful title defense against former DREAM lightweight champion Joachim Hansen.

The bout took place in March, and according to an interview the Brazilian had done with Tatame (a Brazilian based website and magazine covering mixed martial arts) Fernandes hasn’t seen one dime yet. The promotion has had many issues in regards to paying their fighters accordingly, or even in a timely matter. Ronaldo “Jacare” Souza has yet to see his compensation after his last match with Jason Miller in May of 2009, and neither has veteran Gary Goodridge since his drubbing defeat against former DREAM middleweight champion Gegard Mousasi in late 2009.

And while the obvious approach for the promotion would be “cut and run” should they not be able to come up with the money, Fernandes can hold one thing over DREAM exec’s heads: one more fight, which he is contractually obligated to, since earning the featherweight title following the tournament’s end in October of last year where he was crowned champion, after an 8-man tournament concluded when Bibiano defeated Japan’s own Hiroyuki Takaya, via split decision.

“Dream called me two days ago to offer me a fight at September 25, but I said I won’t fight until they pay me for my last fight,” Fernandes said while speaking with TATAME. “I have family, I have a wife and I can’t work without getting paid. I’ll only fight [for DREAM] again when they pay me for my last fight.”

Here’s to another DREAM fighter moonlighting as a Japan fighter by day, and a Strikeforce debutant by night.

But first, here’s how the Middleweight roster breaks down. Looking at the title picture from left to right, the EA Sports Middleweight roster features Benji Radach, Lyman Good, Matt Lindland, Luke Rockhold, Frank Trigg, Joe Riggs, Kazuo Misaki, Scott Smith, Murilo Rua, Tim Kennedy, Pat Miletich, Jake Shields, Nick Thompson, Melvin Manhoef, Robbie Lawler, Dan Henderson, Gegard Mousasi, Jason Miller, Cung Le, Nick Diaz, Frank Shamrock, and Ronaldo Souza.

It should be noted that eight fighters in the Middleweight division are carry-overs from the already-announced Heavyweight and Light Heavyweight divisions. There’s some debate going around the internet gaming forums as to whether or not this is a cheap move in order to cut the time down on coding and creating different fighters, or a good way to ensure quality cross-division super-fights. I personally think it’s a little of both: I think the roster is a little limited, but the fact that you can play as your favorite fighter in several different weight classes mostly balances that out. Plus, with download-a-fighter being included, I think this game’s roster will be massive once people start creating famous MMA fighters are putting them online for anybody and everybody to download.

Much like the UFC including the famous Madison Square Garden in their “UFC Undisputed” games, it’s recently been confirmed that EA Sports MMA will have the Cowboys Stadium as an in-game venue despite the fact that a major Mixed Martial Arts event has never been booked there. An online image has already surfaced, which you can view here. Even as a huge fan of UFC Undisputed 2009, I think Madison Square Garden was really under-played in both UFC 2009 and 2010. Not so with Cowboys Stadium- the images revealed so far look downright amazing. I may actually get goosebumps when my Create-a-Fighter either defends or tries to get at the Strikeforce Championship in that mega-arena.

The last time I was this excited for a sports game, my hopes met quite the rude awakening. So, even with all the hype I’m buying into, I know that there’s still a chance for EA Sports MMA to let me down in much the same way that UFC Undisputed 2010 let me down. But until that day, I have to say…this is shaping up to be a genre-defining game. Every time I hear something new about this game, it’s something I think I could find myself enjoying immensely. When October 19 hits, I’ve got a pretty good feeling that there’s going to be a new Undisputed Champion of Mixed Martial Arts video games.

But what about you, fans and friends? How high would you rate your anticipation of “EA Sports MMA”?

Next for Chad Griggs: Even though he was the first man to ever bring Bobby Lashley down to earth, I don’t see “The Grave Digger” being anywhere close to a championship opportunity in the near-future. Lashley had been dominating on Griggs up until that point, and aside from the smartly-timed uppercut to cut Lashley open in Round 1 and the all-out flurry he closed out Round 2 with, Griggs didn’t show that much in the way of offense. Chad Griggs is the next Seth Petruzelli, basically. He may have a few decent undercard/lower-card fights in him, but I see him having major trouble with any of Strikeforce’s elite.

Next for Bobby Lashley: Relative obscurity, plain and simple. Now that the hype train has derailed, Lashley is just another jacked-up Heavyweight that has above-average looks and below-average fighting skills. Lashley looks awesome on a poster due to his hulking physique, but as well all know, and as Lashley learned in his fight with Griggs, that physique comes at a price. Lashley needs better cardio, better striking, any sort of submission offense…he’s a work in progress and there’s a lot of work to be done. In the here and now, I see the Strikeforce promoters as well as his management trying to play damage-control and giving Lashley more cans, and unfortunately for Lashley, I see them beating him just like Griggs beat him.

Next for KJ Noons: A shot at Strikeforce Lightweight Champion Gilbert Melendez. Noons has serious boxing skill and has no love for Team Cesar Gracie. With Strikeforce’s relatively weak Lightweight division, Noons/Melendez is one of the few matches I’m actually looking forward to in the near future. A rematch with arch-rival Nick Diaz will happen eventually, but only after either Noons beats Melendez or Diaz loses his Welterweight Championship.

Next for Jorge Gurgel: Not a whole lot. Gurgel has stated that he’s only in it to have fun nowadays, meaning that he wants to stand and trade rather than fall back on his extensive Brazilian Jui Jitsu credentials. Unless he goes back to what made him a player in the game in the first place, he’ll continue to get (T)KO’d. If he does switch back to being a predominantly ground-based fighter, he’ll hover around the mid-level.

Next for Ronaldo Souza: Dan Henderson, Jason Miller, or Cung Le. Souza needs a tough test to prove that he’s a legitimate champion, which I personally think he is, and all three men pose some very interesting threats to “Jacare”. It’s also very possible that he’ll be faced with an immediate rematch with Tim Kennedy.

Next for Tim Kennedy: If it’s not an immediate rematch with Souza, Kennedy will get fights with people like Robbie Lawler, Scott Smith, or maybe even Melvin Manhoef: all good strikers that Kennedy could either strike or grapple with. And while none are at championship-level, a string of victories over mid-level opponents is really all you need in Strikeforce’s generally-limited weight divisions in order to get a shot at the title.

Next for Muhammed Lawal: A rematch with Gegard Mousasi. Mo looked excellent against Mousasi but floundered against “Feijaio”. Mo would prove that he’s here to stay with another victory over the man people were calling the future of the business up until Mo defeated him.

Next for Rafael Cavalcante: Most likely Renato Sobral, maybe Dan Henderson. It’s too soon for Gegard Mousasi or a rematch with King Mo, so it’ll be slim pickings for Cavalcante unless Strikeforce signs away a big-name star. Look for “Feijao” to continue his winning ways regardless.

And what do you think, fans and friends? What does the future hold for these fighters?

I’ll start with something all of us have had to unfortunately get used to in today’s MMA world: there are some truly brain-dead judges out there. It’s hard to figure out why, and every decision is open for debate, but poor judging has become such a sticking point in this sport that everyone from the announcers to the fighters to even the promoters stress time and time again that you can’t leave it in the hands of the judges if you want to be successful. Even if you agree with giving the fight to “Jacare”, and trust me I do, I think the fight was so close that an immediate rematch in order to have a definitive outcome would be very welcome as Strikeforce continues to find stars for its ailing divisions.

Which brings me to my next point: Ronaldo Souza only has a couple of big-money fights open for him in Strikeforce, since Strikeforce simply doesn’t have that many big-money Middleweights. If Tim Kennedy were to lose and lose big in his next several fights, his status as a contender would be in doubt and it would severely devalue the drawing power of a Kennedy/Souza rematch. Likewise, if Souza loses and lose big in his next few fights, it will diminish Souza’s accomplishment of winning the hard-fought war that was their first fight, which also devalues the appeal of giving it another go-round. If not because the fight was so close, the inherent marketability of rematches should give Strikeforce a good enough reason to strike while the iron is hot and book an immediate rematch.

Usually, I’m against immediate rematches. Unless the fight ended in some extenuating circumstance, such as a fighter injuring himself or a fighter accidentally getting himself disqualified, I think a former contender has to work his way back up to contention with at least a couple of fights. But then there are those rare occasions where a fight is so comparatively close that you just know that the fighters involved didn’t prove who was the best, just who was the best on that particular day in time. I think Tim Kennedy could both beat and finish Ronaldo Souza, just like I think Ronaldo Souza could once again defeat and this time finish Tim Kennedy. But no one will know until we get the rematch, and as I said before, having an immediate rematch would help prevent any loss of marketability if the rematch was made further down the road. If for no other reason than the fact that it would be an entertaining and marketable fight in the limited division of a promotion that is always searching for the next big entertaining and marketable fight within their limited divisions, I think Tim Kennedy should get an immediate rematch with Ronaldo “Jacare” Souza.

And what do you think, fans and friends? Would you be excited to see these two give it another go, or should Kennedy work his way back up first?

In his fight with Tim Kennedy, the man who got the nickname “Alligator” due to his penchant for trapping opponents in unbreakable submission holds found himself unable to get his opponent to the ground. In fact, it was Kennedy who landed the takedowns and scored the Ground and Pound, however brief it was. For nearly five full rounds, Souza had nothing to fall back on except his ever-improving stand-up game. While it’s true that Kennedy landed more strikes throughout their five-round war, it was very apparent that Souza hit harder and did more damage. At least, that must have been how the judges saw it, since Jacare clinched a Unanimous Decision victory.

Against King Mo, Rafael Cavalcante would do everything in his power not to let his fight go to the judges. The first round was a back-and-forth affair that saw Cavalcante get the better of Mo in the stand-up, and all but completely avoid Mo’s takedowns. Aside from a few impressive slams that Feijaio immediately got up from, the man lauded as one of the most decorated collegiate wrestlers to ever transition to MMA seemed unable to implement his ground game on the Brazilian Jui Jitsu black belt. The second round saw Mo get the better of Cavalcante utilizing some very powerful body punches. Heading into the third round, Mo’s renewed sense of confidence proved to be his undoing, as Cavalcante was able to nail a mammoth knee from the Muay Thai clinch position, which was followed up by a barrage of strikes that ultimately led to King Mo being dead on his feet, prompting famous MMA referee “Big” John McCarthy to step in and save Mo from any more punishment.

Looking forward, both men have several good fights lined up for them. Souza could take his rivalry with the enigmatic Jason Miller to new heights with a third fight, this time with the Strikeforce Light Heavyweight Championship on the line. After promising to make several changes, King Mo could find himself in a position to rematch Rafael Cavalcante very soon. Fights with Dan Henderson and Gegard Mousasi would also be great fights I’d love to see.

But no matter what happens next, these two wins give Strikeforce two champions that they can be very proud of. Even though he struggled with Tim Kennedy, Ronaldo Souza is still a wizard on the ground, and his stand-up is improving with every single fight. Rafael Cavalcante was once thought of as a sure-fire prodigy, and despite having a few setbacks that he has now overcome, the impossibility of taking him down combined with his very powerful striking should be enough for him to break the chain of Strikeforce Light Heavyweight champions losing their belt in their first few fights. Both men are humble fighters with loads of skill, and their future in Strikeforce has never looked brighter. “Houston” was a night for new beginnings, and I can’t wait to see what the future holds.

And how about you, fans and friends? How impressed were you by Ronaldo Souza and Rafael Cavalcante? What (or more likely who) do you think is next for the two new champions?

Muhammed “King Mo” Lawal (203.75) vs. Rafael Cavalcante (203.5)

Tim Kennedy (185) vs. Ronaldo Souza (184.75)

Karl James Noons (156.25) vs. Jorge Gurgel (154.75)

Bobby Lashley (246) vs. Chad Griggs (228.5)

Daniel Cormier (249) vs. Jason Riley (256.5)

Andre Galvao (170.75) vs. Jorge Patino (170.8)

Rocky Long (146.25) vs. Vinicius Magalhaes (144.5)

Kier Gooch (155.5) vs. Adam Schindler (155.5)

Jose Santibanez (154.25) vs. Reynaldo Trujillo (155.25)

Humberto DeLeon (127.25) vs. Chad Robichaux (131)

Chad Cook (205.25) vs. Arteneus Young (204)

As you can see, many fighters took generous use of the one-pound-over allowance given to non-title fights. And still, several fighters couldn’t make the weight. To his credit, Gurgel immediately forfeited his right to decline the match after “KJ” Noons weighed in over the weight limit; the fight will go on as planned. Vinicius Magalhaes also accepted a fight with his opponent that also weighed in over the weight-limit, except his bout with Rocky Long has now been changed to a catchweight fight. Chad Robichaux also missed the mark the first time around, but he was given an extra hour to cut the weight and allowed to try again. He did manage to make the weight the second time around, so his fight with Humberto DeLeon will go forward as planned.

In regards to three Strikeforce fighters missing weight, I don’t think this is all that abnormal, or that it paints Strikeforce in a negative light. MMA fighters seem to miss weight more and more often nowadays. For whatever reason, more and more people are struggling to make their weight class, and the only thing that’s saving them is the one-pound-over rule. I’m not criticizing Strikeforce in particular, but the MMA band of brothers as a whole. Fight in your natural weight class, guys.

Considering all of that, I’m still looking forward to “Houston”. King Mo and Cavalcante should put on a great match. King Mo has some awesome wrestling, but “Feijao” belongs to the prestigious Black House team, home to the Nogueira brothers, two of the best ground wizards you could ever hope to have as training partners. Both Mo and Cavalcante have serious punching power, too, so this one might end early and end brutally.

I’m also excited for the Middleweight Championship fight, even though I generally think that just throwing two guys into a title fight devalues the significance of the championship. However, I think you couldn’t ask for a better Middleweight Champion than Ronaldo Souza. He’s very energetic, has a great ground game, and his striking continues to improve. Plus, he could always face Jason Miller again, the two have quite a rivalry going ever since Souza beat Miller at DREAM 4 and Miller cracked Souza’s skull open at DREAM 9 with an illegal (though inadvertent) soccer kick to the dome. I’m even excited to see Bobby Lashley, on the off chance that Chad Griggs will beat him or, at the very least, make the fight competitive.

And what about you, fans and friends? Now that the fights are official and there’s nothing holding this card back, how excited are you for Strikeforce: “Houston”?

That sums it.

Until last year, UFC President Dana White boasted that his top-down authority over MMA led to matchups between the two best fighters in any division, unlike boxing where fighters were matched according to marketability wich has led to the unmarketability of boxing.  And, until November 2008 White was right.  But, in the past year-and-a-half or so, the matchups in the UFC have been determined by market more than sport.

The top challenger to Fighters.com and UFC Middleweight Champion “Spider” Anderson Silva (25-4) is second-ranked Strikeforce champion Jake Shields (24-4-1).  And, it’s a good matchup on paper too, Silva being the best striker in the sport and Shields being at the top of his grappling game.

But, I understand the business and give White a pass for not collaborating on big fights with competing promotions.  So, the next best matchup for Silva in the UFC was third-ranked “Hollywood” Dan Henderson (25-7).  But, White wouldn’t pony up the cash to keep Hendo in the Octagon to make the fight.  Henderson abandoned White and the UFC and signed with Strikeforce.

It happens.  Then, the next best matchup for Silva is fourth-ranked “Great” Nate Marquardt (29-8-2), whom Silva himself calls the next king of the division.  But, Marquardt was passed over.

Instead, eighth-ranked “Phenom” Vitor Belfort (18-8) will challenge Silva at UFC 112 in Abu Dhabi April 10 in a more marketing stand-up war between two big names.  But, Marquardt is right.  Belfort has been in and out of the middlweight division and his most recent TKO of “Ace” Rich Franklin (26-5) at UFC 103 in Dallas September 19 was at 195 pounds.

But, as the hype behind Silva-Belfort barely simmers, a better matchup between Shields and Henderson at Strikeforce boils hot.

Shields is expected defend his Strikeforce title from newly-signed Henderson on CBS in April.  That’s the biggest fight in the division, bigger than the UFC’s title fight the same month.

The champion, Shields, is a long-time holdout from the UFC who has managed nonetheless to put together an outstanding record versus established talent.  Henderson was to be Silva’s next challenger in the UFC and, therefore, even White can’t talk-down Henderson’s ranking.  So, whichever fighter leaves the cage with the Strikeforce title in April is the legitimate world’s top contender to Silva.  And, he’s not in the UFC.  It’s a better matchup on paper, it’s a better matchup in the division rankings, and there’s a lot more on the line.

Fighters.com’s January Middleweight Top Ten

1. “Spider” Anderson Silva (25-4)

2. Jake Shields (24-4-1)

3. “Hollywood” Dan Henderson (25-7)

4. “Great” Nate Marquardt (29-8-2)

5. “Dreamcatcher” Gegard Mousasi (23-2-1)

6. Demian Maia (10-1)

7. Chael Sonnen (23-10-1)

8. “Phenom” Vitor Belfort (18-8)

9. “Jacare” Ronaldo Souza (9-2)

10. “Ely” Paulo Filho (16-1)

This fighter grappled to a draw with former UFC two division champion “The Natural” Randy Couture (16-8) in a 2006 submission grappling contest and has only lost to fifth-ranked “Dreamcatcher” Gegard Mousasi (23-2-1) in MMA since 2003.

Souza’s climb up the ranks, second-ranked Jake Shields‘s (24-4-1) hold on the top contender spot, and Strikeforce’s signing of third-ranked “Hollywood” Dan Henderson (25-7) gives Strikeforce four fighters in the 185-pound top ten.  (Of course, Mousasi has abandoned the division to take the Strikeforce 205-pound title.)

It’s likely Shields and Hendo’ will settle the top contender spot and fight for Strikeforce’s title in April, with the winner legitimately claiming the rank of best matchup for Fighters.com and UFC Middleweight Champion “Spider” Anderson Silva (25-4).

Silva will fight tenth-ranked “Phenom” Vitor Belfort (18-8) at UFC 109 in Las Vegas February 6.  Belfort can’t be overlooked at 185 pounds with Silva coming off of elbow surgery and five months hiatus.

Fourth-ranked “Great” Nate Marquardt (29-8-2) and seventh-ranked Chael Sonnen (23-10-1) will battle the same night for the next title shot.

And sixth-ranked Demian Maia (10-1) will test strong prospect Dan Miller (11-2), making a trio of UFC 109 fights with maximum impact on the division rankings.

Also in December, ninth-ranked “Ely” Paulo Filho (16-1) submitted Tatsuhiko Nishizaka (3-5-1) at Bitetti Combat 5 in São Paulo December 12.  If Filho can get his act together, Fighters.com wouldn’t be surprised to see him in Strikeforce soon.

Fighters.com’s December Middleweight Rankings

1. “Spider” Anderson Silva (25-4)

2. Jake Shields (24-4-1)

3. “Hollywood” Dan Henderson (25-7)

4. “Great” Nate Marquardt (29-8-2)

5. “Dreamcatcher” Gegard Mousasi (23-2-1)

6. Demian Maia (10-1)

7. Chael Sonnen (23-10-1)

8. “Jacare” Ronaldo Souza (9-2)

9. “Ely” Paulo Filho (16-1)

10. “Phenom” Vitor Belfort (18-8)

Shields reminded Fighters.com of Welterweight Champion “Rush” Georges St. Pierre (19-2) during his relentless press on the mat versus Miller.  Of course, Shields doesn’t have St. Pierre’s striking skills, and no one is in Silva’s striking league.  But, Shields shows no pretense of fancying himself a striker either.

At the opening bell Saturday night, Shields put Miller right on his back.  Both fighters were working their game plan.  Shields is going to put every opponent on their back.  Knowing that, Miller relented and hoped to wear Shields out by going rag-doll while defending Shields’s submission attempts.  But, Shields never wore down Saturday night and walked away with a UD and the Strikeforce title.

Now, if Silva has an exploitable weakness, it’s been on his back.  Versus “Serial Killer” Travis Lutter (10-5) at UFC 67 in Las Vegas in February 2007, Lutter briefly took control of the fight from top position before wearing down and succumbing to Silva’s barrage of elbows.  Third-ranked “Hollywood” Dan Henderson (24-7) was the first UFC fighter to win a round versus Silva and he did it from top position in the first round at UFC 82 in Columbus in March 2008, before fancying himself a striker and getting knocked silly and choked out in the second round.  That mistake still stings Henderson to no end.

But, Shields wouldn’t make the mistake Henderson made versus Silva.  Nor would he be so intimidated to shoot like former UFC title challenger Thales Leites (14-3) was at UFC 97 in Montreal April 18 that he’d just lay down and invite Silva into his guard.  Shields would take the fight to Silva and put him on his back.

Obviously, that guarantees nothing at all.  Despite looking beatable on his back at times, Silva has always regained his superiority and won in the UFC.  However, it’s interesting to note that two of Silva’s losses in the mysterious time before he emerged as the greatest middleweight in MMA history were by triangle choke to Daiju Takase (7-12-1) at PRIDE 26 in Yokohama in June 2003 and by flying scissor heel hook to “Piranha” Ryo Chonan (16-10) at PRIDE Shockwave 2004 in Tokyo on New Year’s Eve 2004.

I’m not ready to predict that Shields would beat Silva.  Only that Shields has the best shot at beating Silva among the current field of top ten middleweights.

And that field thinned in November as previously ninth-ranked “Ace” Rich Franklin (26-5) dropped out of the top ten for the first time since Fighters.com began ranking divisions. In his place, and the place of previous perenial top tenner “Sexyama” Yoshihiro Akiyama (14-2) who also fell out of the rankings this month, “Ely” Paulo Filho (15-1) skipped up to the eighth spot, “Jacare” Ronaldo Souza (8-2) moved into number nine, and “Phenom” Vitor Belfort (18-8) claimed the final position.

Third-ranked “Hollywood” Dan Henderson (25-7), fourth-ranked “Great” Nate Marquardt (29-8-2), fifth-ranked “Dreamcatcher” Gegard Mousasi (23-2-1), sixth-ranked Demian Maia (10-1), and seventh-ranked Chael Sonnen (23-10-1) all held steady.

Fighters.com’s November Middleweight Rankings

1. “Spider” Anderson Silva (25-4)

2. Jake Shields (24-4-1)

3. “Hollywood” Dan Henderson (25-7)

4. “Great” Nate Marquardt (29-8-2)

5. “Dreamcatcher” Gegard Mousasi (23-2-1)

6. Demian Maia (10-1)

7. Chael Sonnen (23-10-1)

8. “Ely” Paulo Filho (15-1)

9. “Jacare” Ronaldo Souza (8-2)

10. “Phenom” Vitor Belfort (18-8)

Lindland and Souza are set to clash, while Lawal will make his Strikeforce debut versus an opponent to be determined.

Lindland signed a three-fight deal with Strikeforce in August on the heels of Affliction’s announcement to close-up shop. The former Olympian is coming back from a brutal knockout at the hands of UFC middleweight title challenger “Phenom” Vitor Belfort (18-8) at Affliction in Anaheim in January 2009.

Souza, the 2005 Abu Dhabi submission grappling champ, signed with Strikeforce at the same time as Lindland following a five-fight run in Japan’s DREAM promotion.  Similar to Lindland, Souza is also coming off a September 2008 knockout loss to Strikeforce light heavyweight champion Gegard Mousasi (23-2-1). Most recently, Souza experienced a no contest against “Mayhem” Jason Miller (22-7) in May 2009 at DREAM.

Lawal experienced success within the Japanese Sengoku promotion following a respectable collegiate wrestling career. A former NCAA Division II champion, “King Mo” was in consideration to fight Mousasi at Strikeforce in Chicago Friday, but chose to make his debut later in December.

“I am very excited that I will have the opportunity to fight in Strikeforce amongst many of the world’s best middleweight fighters,” said the 29-year-old Souza. “Strikeforce has an extremely deep roster of top middleweight fighters. I am looking forward to the challenge and to taking my career to the next level.”

After a brilliant run in the DREAM Middleweight Grand Prix in Tokyo last year, Souza was knocked out by Strikeforce 205er, then middleweight and eventual tourney champ Gegard Mousasi (21-2-1) in the finals. Souza had left “Mayhem” Jason Miller (22-7) and Zelg Galesic (7-3) in his wake to the final showdown versus Mousasi.

Though Mousasi is now also signed by Strikeforce, doubtful there’ll be a rematch unless Souza decides to bulk up since Mousasi has indicated he won’t be slimming down to 185 pounds again.

In 2006, Souza tangled to a draw with Fighters.com’s eighth-ranked heavyweight “The Natural” Randy Couture (16-9) in the Professional Submission League.

Strikeforce’s middleweight division includes Jake Shields (23-4-1), Cung Le (6-0), “Ruthless” Robbie Lawler (16-5), sometimes Nick Diaz (20-8), and Frank Shamrock (23-10-2). Souza will debut in the autumn.

It was Sousa who put the fight on the mat with a double-leg takedown at the opening; and, Mousasi fought like it was a prison rape to get the BJJ world champion off of him.

Mousasi finally created distance; and, Sousa leapt back into Mousasi’s guard when he absorbed the upkick full-on to his jaw.

Lights out!  “Jacare” went limp; and, Mousasi rolled from beneath him.

Mousasi, a 23-year old phenom, won the first DREAM Middleweight Grand Prix Championship with the KO.

On his way to the title, Mousasi took out former top ten Canadian Denis Kang (30-10-1), world champion judoka Dong Sik Yoon (4-6), and, Tuesday night in Saitama, both aggressive kickboxer “Marvelous” Melvin Manhoef (22-5-1) and two-time World Jiu-Jitsu Champion Souza in the same night.  It was an impressive run through a gauntlet of styles chronicled by Fighters.com in interviews with Mousasi after defeating Kang and Yoon.

The fight got underway quickly as Jacare slammed Galesic to the mat and controlled from the side until he was able to mount.

“I went for a kick, missed it, and found myself on my back,” said Galesic.

Galesic reversed positions; but, “Jacare” caught him in an armbar and Galesic was forced to tap.

Galesic explained, “He done some sort of leg triangle mount and my arm popped out.”

If Mousasi defeats the Dutchman, he’ll move into the final the same night versus the winner of Fighters.com’s eighth-ranked middleweight “Jacare” Ronaldo Souza (9-1) and “Benkei” Zelg Galesic (9-3).

Fighters.com: After defeating Denis Kang (29-10-1) at DREAM.2 in 29 April, you called out “Marvelous” Melvin Manhoef (22-4-1) for your next fight and had called him out even before then.  Why has Manhoef been on your hit list?

Gegard Mousasi: I consider myself a young, up-and-coming fighter, who has to fight the strongest opponents.  Besides that, it was also a personal thing for me to get more exposure in Holland.  In Holland, most of the people only know “Hurricane” Gilbert Yvel (33-12-1), “Demolition Man” Alistair Overeem (28-11), and Melvin Manhoef, all of whom I very much respect and with some of them I have had regular trainings.  By fighting Melvin , the people in Holland (and, of course, the rest of the world) will recognize that Holland has a new kid on the block.  I need to prove something in Holland!

Fighters.com: Manhoef comes out aggressively at the bell.  Does he leave himself open at his initial charge?

Gegard Mousasi: I agree that he is very aggressive when he comes out.  Every fighter will have his weakness; but, I consider Melvin as one of the best strikers in the 185-pound category.  But, that makes it more exciting to take the challenge.  I know I can fight him standing up.  He will have problems with my reach.

Fighters.com: How will you use your extra four inches over Manhoef as an advantage?

Gegard Mousasi: Just by using it. big smile  Surprise, surprise!  It’s all in the gameplan. baby!

Fighters.com: Is Manhoef the most dangerous striker you’ve ever fought under MMA rules?

Gegard Mousasi: Yes, but the challenge is good for me.  It makes me train harder.  As I already said, he is one of the best strikers in MMA.  Once again, I like the challenge.

Fighters.com: You’ve never been knocked out.  Manhoef has been submitted in half of his losses.  Is the fight as simple as that?

Gegard Mousasi:  I have never been kayoed.  I know that [Manhoef] has been training with the American Top Team and got special training with one of Holland’s best MMA trainers, “Grizzly” Remco Pardoel (9-6-1).  So, it gives me more motivation to train harder and concentrate more on my game plan.  Actually, I also invested in extra training.  So, I trained several times with Jerrel Venetiaan (4-3), who also trained with “Last Emperorer” Fedor Emelianenko (28-1) for his fight agains “Cro Cop” Mirko Filipovic (23-6-2).  The team I train with gives me so much confidence and supports me really professionally.  I also plan to go over to the Red Devil school in St. Petersburg to train with Fedor and his fighters from the M-1 team challenge.  Also, that gives me much mental support perhaps mostly through the fact that Fedor never allows foreign fighters.  But, I ain’t planning to submit him.  I’m ready for 15 minutes of fight.

Fighters.com: You split time between Holland and Armenia?  How do people in both nations react to you?  Are you recognized on the street in Holland or Armenia?

Gegard Mousasi: I live in Holland; and, now some people know who I am in my city.

Fighters.com: Who’s your pick to win the other semi-final: Souza or Galesic?

Gegard Mousasi: I think “Jacare”; but, Zelg is always dangerous.  In the end, it doesn’t matter.  The final is the final.  I won’t withhold anything!  So, when the bell rings, I will give all my effort to win.  I really respect “Jacare” as well as Zelg; but, since the last grand prix I won versus Hector Lombard at the age of 20, I’ve trained for three years and my only goal is to be the best in my weight category.

Fighters.com: You’ve previously stated that you want to be a restaurateur. It would serve Armenian food?  Do you cook yourself?

Gegard Mousasi: No.  Fast food, MacDonlads. Ha ha!

Read Fighters.com’s original interview with Mousasi to learn more about MMA’s fast-rising middleweight.

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.

Seventh-ranked “Jacare” Ronaldo Souza (9-1) will fight “Benkei” Zelg Galesic in DREAM’s Middleweight GP semi-final in Saitama 23 September, then, if Souza wins, the winner of Gegard Mousasi (22-2-1) versus “Marvelous” Melvin Manhoef (22-4-1) in the final the same night.

Ninth-ranked “Grabaka Hitman” Kazuo Misaki (20-8-2) will fight “Diesel” Joe Riggs (28-10) in Beverly Hills, north of Los Angeles, 20 September.

Fifth-ranked Yoshihiro Akiyama (11-1), sixth-ranked “Thunder” Yushin Okami (22-4), nor tenth-ranked “Mayhem” Jason Miller (20-5) have fights on their dockets.

September Middleweight Rankings

1. “Spider” Anderson Silva (22-4)

“Spider” fights like he’s hacked the matrix, making top-tier opponents look like they’re clumsily swatting at a web. In March he choked out former PRIDE champ Hendo’. His two-year record has both volume and quality with a “W” next to each challenger.

2. “Ace” Rich Franklin (23-3)

Despite two stoppages to Silva, Franklin is still the best of the rest, even according to Silva himself. “Ace” finessed from a Travis Lutter armbar to pick the TUF champ apart in April and outwrestled notoriously powerful Okami for a decision last year.

3. “Ely” Paulo Filho (16-0)

Filho’s perfect rap sheet lists solid foes, but only an ’06 KO of Misaki among top-tenners. Chael Sonnen gave him hell in a controversial stoppage, but Filho missed the March rematch. A strong comeback in the November rematch will solidify Filho’s ranking.

4. “Ruthless” Robbie Lawler (16-4)

“Ruthless” rides a five-fight “W” streak since being choked out by Miller in ’06, including a KO of Trigg and stoppages of solid fighters Scott Smith, Murilo Rua, and Joey Villasenor.

5. Yoshihiro Akiyama (11-1)

The Zainichi judoka ran the gauntlet of weight-mismatched spectacles before bursting into 185-pound contention with a KO of Denis Kang. Akiyama drew Misaki on NYE, but the the result was a NC. He choked out Katsuyori Shibata in his July comeback.

6. “Thunder” Yushin Okami (22-4)

Okamihas been most active among the top ten in the last two years and comes off a knockout of former UFC champ, the late Evan Tanner.  His only UFC loss was to Franklin, but could’ve conceivably been a “W” had he went after “Ace” before the final two minutes.

7. “Twinkle Toes” Frank Trigg (17-6)

With all Trigg does, you may have missed his comeback at middleweight the last two years, starting with a TKO of Miller and a UD over Misaki. Lawler iced him at Icon, but he’s returned with a quick stoppage of Edwin Dewees and UD of Makoto Takimoto.

8. “Jacare” Ronaldo Souza (9-1)

“Jacare” finally fulfilled the hype surrounding the BJJ world champion by overwhelming Miller on the way to a UD in June, but besides “Mayhem” his record needs bolstered with two big wins to take the DREAM GP.

9. “Grabaka Hitman” Kazuo Misaki (20-8-2)

Misaki has made successful hits on Denis Kang and Hendo’, but also dropped decisions to Trigg and Hendo’ and a stoppage to Filho. Regardless, he’s won and lost among the division’s best, and may have added a “W” versus Akiyama if PRIDE rules ruled K-1.

10. “Mayhem” Jason Miller (20-5)

Always entertaining “Mayhem” has thrown in a stoppage over Lawler, a stoppage by Trigg, and a lost decision to Souza into a mixed bag of competition the last two years.

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.

Okami, who holds a DQ “W” over Silva from 2006, dropped a rank for August on the ascension of fourth-ranked EliteXC Middleweight Champion “Ruthless” Robbie Lawler (16-4).

In Stockton, east of San Francisco, 26 July, Lawler erased the ellipsis left at the end of his May No Contest with “Hands of Steel” Scott Smith (13-5) and etched in a exclamatory second-round TKO over Smith.

To make the scattering of middleweights across promotions more frustrating, the entire top three – Silva, second-ranked “Ace” Rich Franklin (23-3), and third-ranked “Ely” Paulo Filho (16-0) – are throwing their hats into 205-pound bull ring.

Filho, who announced in February that he intends to move to 205-pounds, will rematch Chael Sonnen (20-9-1) in Hollywood, north of Miami, 10 September.

Perhaps Filho’s announcement was amidst his mysterious malaise, for which he’s been successfully treated; but, the WEC will shit-can their middleweight division before the end of 2008 and Filho, who signed with the WEC to avoid a confrontation with his pal Silva, will have to make a decision about which UFC weight class to compete in: the middleweight division Silva rules or the light heavyweight division Silva’s getting his kicks in.

Fifth-ranked Yoshihiro Akiyama (11-1) returned from an eight-month holiday to tap woefully mismatched Katsuyori Shibata (2-5) in Osaka 21 July.

Sixth-ranked “Twinkle Toes” Frank Trigg (16-6) will return from a nine-month holiday to fight Olympic judoka Makoto Takimoto (4-4) at Sengoku in Saitama, north of Tokyo, 24 August.

Trigg’s deal with Sengoku could lead to a rematch versus eighth-ranked “Grabaka Hitman” Kazuo Misaki (20-8-2), but not before Misaki makes his North American debut versus a yet-to-be-named opponent at Strikeforce 19 September in Los Angeles.

Ninth-ranked “Jacare” Ronaldo Souza (9-1) has drawn legit kickboxer “Benkei” Zelg Galesic (9-3) in DREAM’s Middleweight GP, to be fought in Saitama 23 September.

“Mayhem” Jason Miller (21-6) holds steady at tenth without any announced or rumoured bouts.

August Middleweight Rankings

1. “Spider” Anderson Silva (22-4)

“Spider” fights like he’s hacked the matrix, making top-tier opponents look like they’re clumsily swatting at a web. In March he choked out former PRIDE champ Hendo’. His two-year record has both volume and quality with a “W” next to each challenger.

2. “Ace” Rich Franklin (22-3)

Despite two stoppages to Silva, Franklin is still the best of the rest, even according to Silva himself. “Ace” finessed from a Travis Lutter armbar to pick the TUF champ apart in April and outwrestled notoriously powerful Okami for a decision last year.

3. “Ely” Paulo Filho (16-0)

Filho’s perfect rap sheet lists solid foes, but only an ’06 KO of Misaki among top-tenners. Chael Sonnen gave him hell in a controversial stoppage, but Filho missed the March rematch. A strong comeback in the September rematch will solidify Filho’s ranking.

4. “Ruthless” Robbie Lawler (16-4)

“Ruthless” rides a five-fight “W” streak since being choked out by Miller in ’06, including a KO of Trigg and stoppages of solid fighters Scott Smith, Murilo Rua, and Joey Villasenor.

5. Yoshihiro Akiyama (11-1)

The Zainichi judoka ran the gauntlet of weight-mismatched spectacles before bursting into 185-pound contention with a KO of Denis Kang. Akiyama drew Misaki on NYE, but the the result was a NC. He choked out Katsuyori Shibata in his July comeback.

6. “Thunder” Yushin Okami (22-4)

Okami has been most active among the top ten in the last two years and comes off a knockout of former UFC champ Evan Tanner.  His only UFC loss was to Franklin, but could’ve conceivably been a “W” had he went after “Ace” before the final two minutes.

7. “Twinkle Toes” Frank Trigg (16-6)

With all Trigg does, you may have missed his comeback at middleweight the last two years, starting with a TKO of Miller and a UD over Misaki. Lawler iced him at Icon, but he’s returned with a quick stoppage of Edwin Dewees. He’s my division wildcard to watch.

8. “Grabaka Hitman” Kazuo Misaki (20-8-2)

Misaki has made successful hits on Denis Kang and Hendo’, but also dropped decisions to Trigg and Hendo’ and a stoppage to Filho. Regardless, he’s won and lost among the division’s best, and may have added a “W” versus Akiyama if PRIDE rules ruled K-1.

9. “Jacare” Ronaldo Souza (9-1)

“Jacare” finally fulfilled the hype surrounding the BJJ world champion by overwhelming Miller on the way to a UD in June, but besides “Mayhem” his record needs bolstered with better opponents.

10. “Mayhem” Jason Miller (20-5)

Always entertaining “Mayhem” has thrown in a stoppage over Lawler and a stoppage by Trigg into a mixed bag of competition the last two years.

“Jacare” Ronaldo Souza (9-1) and “Benkei” Zelg Galesic (9-3) will take part in the Middleweight Grand Prix, as will “Marvelous” Melvin Manhoef (22-4-1) and Gegard Mousasi (22-2-1), who all fought at DREAM.4 in June.

Also announced is a featherweight match-up between Hideo Tokoro (21-13-1) and Atsushi Yamamoto (11-5-1).

“Jacare” defeated “Mayhem” Jason Miller (21-6) via unanimous decision at DREAM.4.

Galesic got a TKO victory over Taiei Kin (3-3) when Kin injured his elbow.

Manhoef TKO’d “Gracie Hunter” Kazushi Sakuraba (24-11-1) in the first round in July.

Mousasi most recently won a unanimous decision over Dong Sik Yoon.

Tokoro fought at DREAM.4 and DREAM.5, earning unanimous decision victories over Darren Uyenoyama (4-2) and Takeshi Yamazaki (14-8-2).

Yamamoto, a Pancrase and Shooto veteran, lost his last fight unanimous decision to Masakatsu Ueda (8-0-1) in March.

But, the cold, hard ledger reveals Hendo’ hasn’t had a win at 185-pounds in two years.

Hendo’s previous rank was filled by tenth-ranked “Mayhem” Jason Miller (20-6), falling a notch to newly ninth-ranked “Jacare” Ronaldo Souza (9-1).

Souza debuted in the top ten after pulling off a tight two-round unanimous decision over Miller in DREAM’s Middleweight Grand Prix 15 June.

Also in June Japanese action, “Grabaka Hitman” Kazuo Misaki (20-8-2) cemented his seventh ranking with a UD over “Pink Pounder” Logan Clark at Sengoku.

Misaki now seeks revenge over new Sengoku add-on, seventh-ranked “Twinkle Toes” Frank Trigg (16-6).

No Sengoku match-up has been announced for Trigg; but, one would assume Misaki’s home nation promotion wants to match the old enemies as soon as Trigg is ready.

Sixth-ranked “Ruthless” Robbie Lawler (15-4) was pulling away from “Hands of Stone” Scott Smith (13-4) in the third round of their EliteXC title fight 31 May in Newark, west of New York City, when a thumb to Smith’s eye rendered the result a No Contest.

Lawler held steady in June, as did the entire middleweight top five.

Fighters.com’s Middleweight Champion “Spider” Anderson Silva (21-4) wisely avoided a move to 205-pounds to fight fourth-ranked light heavyweight “Iceman” Chuck Liddell (21-5) in September.

The UFC’s July match-up between “Predator” Patrick Cote (12-4) and “Cachorrao” Ricardo Almeida (9-2) is being marketed as winner-get-Silva.

Baffling, since the UFC’s obvious top contender is fifth-ranked “Thunder” Yushin Okami (22-4), who seems to be lingering in limbo after knocking out former UFC Champion Evan Tanner (32-7) in March.

Fighters.com predicts Okami will draw “Hitman” Martin Kampmann (16-2).

Fourth-ranked Yoshihiro Akiyama (10-1) continues to flirt with DREAM and will probably be the Middleweight GP champion’s first mandatory.

Third-ranked “Ely” Paulo Filho (16-0) is out of rehab and training for a September WEC title defense rematch versus Chael Sonnen (20-9-1).

Second-ranked “Ace” Rich Franklin (22-3) is being pressured by the UFC to move to 205-pounds to clarify their middleweight rankings, but Franklin is resisting.

June Middleweight Rankings

1. “Spider” Anderson Silva (21-4)

“Spider” fights like he’s hacked the matrix, making top-tier opponents look like they’re clumsily swatting at a web. In March he choked out former PRIDE champ Hendo’. His two-year record has both volume and quality with a “W” next to each challenger.

2. “Ace” Rich Franklin (22-3)

Despite two stoppages to Silva, Franklin is still the best of the rest, even according to Silva himself. “Ace” finessed from a Travis Lutter armbar to pick the TUF champ apart in April and outwrestled notoriously powerful Okami for a decision last July.

3. “Ely” Paulo Filho (16-0)

Filho’s perfect rap sheet lists solid foes, but only an ’06 KO of Misaki among top-tenners. Chael Sonnen gave him hell in a controversial stoppage, but Filho missed the March rematch. A strong comeback in the September rematch will solidify Filho’s ranking.

4. Yoshihiro Akiyama (10-1)

The Zainichi judoka ran the K-1 gauntlet of weight-mismatched spectacles before bursting into 185-pound contention with a KO of Denis Kang. Akiyama drew Misaki on NYE, but the end was deemed illegal and the result a NC. He also needs a strong comeback.

5. “Thunder” Yushin Okami (22-4)

Okami has been most active among the top ten in the last two years and comes off a knockout of former UFC champ Evan Tanner.  His only UFC loss was to Franklin, but could’ve conceivably been a “W” had he went after “Ace” before the final two minutes.

6. “Ruthless” Robbie Lawler (15-4)

“Ruthless” rides a four-fight “W” streak since being choked out by Miller in ’06, including a KO of Trigg and stoppages of solid fighters Murilo Rua and Joey Villasenor. Upcoming versus Scott Smith won’t prove much unless he loses.

7. “Twinkle Toes” Frank Trigg (16-6)

With all Trigg does, you may have missed his comeback at middleweight the last two years, starting with a TKO of Miller and a UD over Misaki. Lawler iced him at Icon, but he’s returned with a quick stoppage of Edwin Dewees. He’s my division wildcard to watch.

8. “Grabaka Hitman” Kazuo Misaki (19-8-2)

Misaki has made successful hits on Denis Kang and Hendo’, but also dropped decisions to Trigg and Hendo’ and a stoppage to Filho. Regardless, he’s won and lost among the division’s best, and may have added a “W” versus Akiyama if PRIDE rules ruled K-1.

9. “Jacare” Ronaldo Souza (9-1)

“Jacare” finally fulfilled the hype surrounding the BJJ world champion by overwhelming Miller on the way to a UD in June, but his besides “Mayhem” his record needs bolstered with better opponents.

10. “Mayhem” Jason Miller (20-5)

Always entertaining “Mayhem” has thrown in a stoppage over Lawler and a stoppage by Trigg into a mixed bag of competition the last two years.

Adorning his sprayed-on, gaudy long johns, Aoki scored two takedowns, mounting Nagata on the second.  Aoki pounded his victim as Nagata bucked.

Aoki wasn’t going anywhere!

He smothered Nagata and slipped his foot out of nowhere into the pretzel that ended the fight, advancing Aoki to the Lightweight Grand Prix semi-finals.

“If you want to be the legend, you have to kill the legend,” “Marvelous” Melvin Manhoef (22-4-1) said after slaying “Gracie Hunter” Kazushi Sakuraba (24-11-1) with a kick in the first round and advancing to the Middleweight Grand Prix semi-finals.

“That’s what I did today.”

Manhoef finished the Japanese legend with a knee to Sakuraba’s head from side control followed by hammerfists to his face before the referee ended the fight.

Hideo Tokoro (20-13-1) and American Olympic grappler Darren Uyenoyama (4-2) battled the most exciting fight on the card in a bantamweight match-up

The fight spanned all ranges and levels as the two fighters rolled and stood, attacked with strikes and tried submissions, defended and reversed, and recovered.

But, it was Tokoro’s consistent knee strikes that won him the two-round UD.

Ninth-ranked middleweight “Mayhem” Jason Miller (21-6) pulled one Houdini escape after another in a two-round UD loss to “Jacare” Ronaldo Souza (9-1).

Souzadictated the mat match and consistently mounted “Mayhem”, but couldn’t submit the slippery Miller.  Nonetheless, Souza advanced into the Middleweight GP semis.

The uneven match-up between Gegard Mousasi (22-2-1) and Dong Sik Yoon (4-5) lasted longer than it should’ve.

Yoon shot for an ever-elusive takedown most of the fight, while Mousasi worked Yoon’s bandaged leg like a soccer ball.

In the first round, Yoon freed one of Mousasi’s arm for a joint lock; but, Mousasi rolled free.

Mousasi put Yoon on his back in round two, hammering fists as the clock counted down to the UD for Mousasi, who advances in the Middleweight GP semis.

“Demolition Man” Alistair Overeem (27-11) demolished Tae Hyun Lee (1-2) in 36 seconds with left hook-right hook-left uppercut combo followed by a knee that left Lee on the mat.

Overeem added his name to “Cro Cop” Mirko Filipovic‘s (26-3-2) dance card after his DREAM debut.  “Demolition Man” has accused Filipovic of ducking him.

Ralek Gracie (2-0) wants “Cro Cop” too.  He challenged DREAM’s premier heavyweight after tapping Alavutdin Gadzhiyev (7-2) in an armbar at 3:02 of the first round.

Gracie was originally scheduledto grapple with the Croatian kickboxer.

An elbow injury at 1:05 of round one gift wrapped a TKO “W” for “Benkei” Zelg Galesic (9-3), sending him into the Middleweight GP semis.

The Croatian launched a high kick at Taiei Kin (3-3) before taking Kin to the mat hard and awkwardly on Kin’s right arm, buckling the Korean’s elbow.

Fighters.com’s ninth-ranked middleweight “Mayhem” Jason Miller (21-5) will fight Brazilian BJJ enigma “Jacare” Ronaldo Souza (8-1).

Fast-rising Gegard Mousasi (21-2-1) will face Korean judoka Dong Sik Yoon (4-4).

MMA legend “Gracie Hunter” Kazushi Sakuraba (24-10-1) is matched versus “Marvelous” Melvin Manhoef (21-4-1).

Finally, “Benkei” Zelg Galesic (8-3) will fight Taiei Kin (3-2).

The rest of the card were fights in the Middleweight Grand Prix.

Gegard Mousasi (21-2-1) submitted Denis Kang (29-10-1) in a triangle choke at 3:10 of round one.

Taiei Kin (3-2) won a unaninmous decision over “The Punk” Ikuhisa Minowa (39-28-8).

“Benkei” Zelg Galesic (8-3) submitted Magomed Sultanakhmedov (4-2) by armbar at 1:40 of round one.

“The Gracie Hunter” Kazushi Sakuraba (24-10-1) sumbitted Andrews Nakahara (0-1) by neck crank at 8:20 of the first round.

“Jacare” Ronaldo Souza (8-1) submitted Ian Murphy (0-1) by rear naked choke at 3:38 of the first round.

Kiyoshi Tamura (32-14-1) TKO Masakatsu Funaki (38-13-1) in 57 seconds.

Dong Sik Yoon (4-4) won a unanimous decision over Shungo Oyama (7-11).

Trigg had insisted to MMA Junkie over the weekend that he had never signed to fight on the card.

“Twinkle Toes” had been matched versus BJJ stud “Jacare” Ronaldo Souza (7-1).

Souza will now fight American amateur wrestler Ian Murphy, who has never competed in professional mixed martial arts.

Murphy wrestled collegiately at Cal State Fullerton.

Trigg was the only Fighters.com top ten ranked middleweight in the Grand Prix.

Fighters.com’s seventh-ranked middleweight “Twinkle Toes” Frank Trigg (16-6) will welcome Brazilian jiu-jitsu stud “Jacare” Ronaldo Souza (7-1) to the big leagues.

Trigg, a former WFA and Icon champion, is the favorite to win the tournament.  He comes off a 1:40 Kimura submission of former UFC tough guy “Babyface” Edwin Dewees (34-12) in December.

“Jacare” is on a seven-fight “W” streak after losing his MMA debut by KO in 2003.  The ADCC absolute division runner-up last submitted Wendell Santos (0-1) in October.  Souza has never fought competition like “Twinkle Toes”.

“The Punk” Ikuhisa Minowa (39-27-8) will stand across the DREAM ring from Taiei Kin (2-2) on the same card.

Croation “Benkei” Zelg Galesic (7-3) has been matched against Russian Magomed Sultanakhmedov (4-1).

Finalyly, veteran PRIDE and K-1 judoka Dong Sik Yoon (3-4) will fight Shungo Oyama (7-10) in the tournament’s opening round.

Three other Middleweight Grand Prix fights were announced previously.