“I’ve got to thank Sam, man,” said a gracious and elated Ludwig who avenged a 2005 knockout with the win.  “He came in and did his job last time.  But, much respect to that warrrior because he gave me a second shot.”

Ludwig staggered Morgan with an uppercut to the body and followed with a right hook that dropped Morgan.

“I’m such a technical striker,” Ludwig said.  “I finally let it go.”

Ludwig hammered strikes until Morgan tapped in pain from the initial body shot.

Fighters.com: What are your thoughts as you prepare to step into the cage for the second time against Sam Morgan?

Duane Ludwig: Mostly I’m looking at this as my chance at redemption.

Fighters.com: Does that mean that Strikeforce: Payback is going to live up to its name?

Duane Ludwig: Yeah, hopefully that’s how it turns out.

Fighters.com: You’ve had knockouts against formidable strikers like Jonathan Goulet (22-9) and “Lil Evil” Jens Pulver (22-9-1), are you looking to take out your revenge in the form of a knockout?

Duane Ludwig: No, I’m just looking for a win.  I don’t care how it happens, I’m just want to get the win back.

Fighters.com: Having fought Morgan before, what aspects of your training have changed for this fight?

Duane Ludwig: I’m more well-rounded now.  We work a lot more ground and a lot more wrestling, but it’s not because of Sam.  I’m looking to become a better fighter all around.

Fighters.com: You are coming off a tough loss to [fighters.com's second ranked lightweight "The Fireball Kid" Takanori Gomi (28-3-1)] while Morgan has lost his last three fights, however, Morgan still doesn’t feel as though he is the underdog in this fight.  Do you feel like an underdog coming into this fight?

Duane Ludwig: No, no I don’t think I’m an underdog, but whatever, its fine.

Fighters.com: Morgan commented on his motivation by saying that he fights to live, he doesn’t live to fight. What drives you to fight?

Duane Ludwig: I’m just wired that way I guess.

When Fighters.com spoke to him at Team Bison’s Brunette’s Gym in Minneapolis-St. Paul Friday, Morgan had just returned from a training trip at Fighters.com’s seventh-ranked welterweight Matt Hughes’s (41-7) new H.I.T. Squad Gym in Granite City, northeast of St. Louis.

“I’ve been saying that I would go down there and train with him for the longest time, since I was on The Ultimate Fighter.  So, I was finally able to make it down there.  I thought, ‘No better time than now to go down there and train for a fight that I have coming up against Duane Ludwig.’   And, uh, you know, I was keeping a promise to an old friend.”

Morgan first met Hughes as a fighter on the second season of The Ultimate Fighter.

“He has a lot of 155 and 170 pounders, like Robbie Lawler, a lot of good guys around the weight I’m at that can push me.”

This additional preparation comes at a crucial point in Morgan’s career.  Morgan has lost his last three fights and is looking to start his comeback against Ludwig, whom he knocked out in 2005.

But, his recent losses aren’t on his mind.

“I’m going in hard.  I’m going in to win.  I’m definitely not going in as an underdog.  I’m going in there as a guy that knocked him out before and is going to knock him out again.”

Morgan admits that he has changed his attitude about fighting and has grown as a fighter after tasting a buffet of recent defeats.

Morgan referred to his loss to current Strikeforce Middleweight Champion Cung Le (6-0) as “a wake-up call”.

“This is the level that I’m at.  I’m going to be fighting guys that are going to be champions.  That’s the level that I fight at.  I’m not going to expect an easy fight.  It was a wake-up call.  Hey, these are the big dogs that I run with.”

Amidst it all, Morgan has kept his head about him and realizes that this isn’t just about fighting.

“This fight is big because I’m a fighter.  This is how I live.  It is another fight; but, I’m going in as a professional fighter to do my job and live.  It’s not if this fight goes well, my life depends on every fight that I have.”

Morgan thanked his sponsors: Team Bison, Full Contact Fighter, O’Brien Chiropractic, Loop Fitness, and Squeeze, Inc.

The event will feature a rematch between welterweights “Bang” Duane Ludwig and “Squeeze” Sam Morgan (19-10).

Morgan knocked out Ludwig in 52 seconds at Ring of Fire 16 in 2005.

Denver-native Ludwig lost his last fight to Fighters.com’s third-ranked lightweight “Fireball Kid” Takanori Gomi (28-3).

Morgan is coming off back-to-back TKO losses, first to current Strikeforce Middleweight Champion and April’s Fighter of the Month Cung Le (6-0) in November, then to “Semtex” Paul Daley (18-6-2) in January.

The promotion also announced Thursday that Fighters.com’s seventh-ranked middleweight “Twinkle Toes” Frank Trigg (16-6) would face “Niko” Falaniko Vitale (26-8), although Trigg refused to confirm the match-up, according to MMA Junkie.

“I plan to fight for Strikeforce on Oct. 3, but I don’t want to commit and then not be able to fight,” he said.

“I definitely want to fight, but I just don’t want to make that promise and then not be able to compete because of an injury or something from [next week's] fight in Japan…. I don’t even want to talk about the October fight.”

Trigg last fought in December, tapping “Babyface” Edwin Dewees (35-13) with a first-round kimura.

“Niko” most recently won a unanimous decision over “Coyote” Joey Guel (13-6) in January.