For preliminary action you can check out HdNet at 7:30pm EST, and for the main-card fighters, tune into Showtime, beginning at 10pm EST.

Preliminary fights (HdNet):

-Jason McLean vs. Kevin Roddy (145-pounds)

Round 1: Kevin Roddy gets brownie points from me by coming out to Korn. Don’t judge me. Inside low kicks traded by both men in early action. Low kicks are landing for McLean. Uppercut misses for Roddy. Kevin catches a kick and works McLean to the cage, then breaks away. Roddy continuing to paw away with the jab. Tentative first few moments of action here. And just as I say that Roddy storms through with a flurry and throws a high kick, though it’s deflected. McLean lands a solid takedown in the final moments of the round. 10-9 for Roddy based on aggressiveness.

Round 2: High kick again for Roddy deflected. A four punch combo lands for Kevin, however Jason takes it well. It looks like McLean is having a hard time with the reach advantage, with Roddy continuing to extend the jab and land some solid low kicks. McLean answer with a flurry, though there’s little there. Roddy catches the shorter fight with a kick to the boys and the action is halted temporarily. “Oh’s” resonate in the arena once the replay airs. McLean drops Roddy with a stunning right hook. Kevin regains his composure and scrambles to get back to his feet. Straight to the body lands for McLean, followed by an overhand right. McLean catches another low kick at the bell, however takes the round 10-9.

Round 3: Anybody’s fight at this point. High kick misses again for Roddy who’s missing the shorter McLean. He should abandon them at this point. Right hook lands for Jason, who goes for a takedown. In a scramble, Roddy lands on top in half-guard. Roddy mounts and unleashes some great ground and pound. Roddy takes his back and is fishing for a rear-naked choke. Jason is defending well. McLean rolls him over and Roddy quickly throws up an arm bar, though he doesn’t have enough time. Fighters.com scores the round for Roddy 10-9, and 29-28 for the fight.

Official Result: Jason McLean takes a split-decision (29-28, 28-29, and 29-28)

-Josh LaBerge vs. Anthony Leone (145-pounds)

Round 1: Again, brownie points are awarded to Leone for his choice of the classic “Notorious B.I.G” as his walkout anthem. Anthony feeling the love from the crowd here, as the New York native. Hard low kick lands for LaBerge. Another one catches Leone’s attention. Both men jockey for position against the cage, and eventually break away. Boo’s from the crowd wake up these featherweights, as they exchange in a quick flurry. Leone beginning to work in low kicks. Anthony initiates a takedown and catches a nice kneefollowed up by some hard hammer fists from Laberge. Leone is bleeding bad, however secures LaBerge’s back and scores the takedown. He settles in half-guard and eventually works to side-mount. Looks like he’s just holding for position here so far. Fighters.com scores the first round to Laberge, 10-9, based on damage.

Round 2: Doctor’s are taking a good look at Leone and his nasty cut, which appears to be on the bridge of his nose. Could be broken, and they stop the fight.

Official Result: Rd. 1 at 5:00 TKO/Doctors Stoppage, winner LaBerge.

-Don Carlo-Clauss vs. Sam Oropeza (155-pounds)

Round 1: Don Carlo extremely reminiscent of UFC fighter Clay Guida with his robust mane of hair. “The Carpenter” would be proud. Oropeza the crowd favorite here. Sam works Carlo to the cage and works in some short punches to the body and knees as well before breaking away. Spinning back fist BARELY misses for Oropeza. Sam looking much more fluid on his feet, looking to pick his spots and bouncing around on his toes. Solid hook to the body lands for Sam. Don Carlo continues to trudge in with hooks though nothing lands. A high kick from Orpeza catches Carlo with his knee as he’s diving on a takedown. Sam follows him to the ground, takes his back and unleashes a heavy dose of ground-and-pound. Referee has seen enough and calls a halt to the bout.

Official Result: Sam Orpeza defeats Carlo via TKO at 4:10 of the opening round.

-Igor Gracie vs. John Salgado (170-pounds)

Round 1: These fighters are on the money tonight. Salgado walks out to Rage Against the Machine, my man. Igor gets a load ovation from the crowd. Igor presses Salgado against the cage, eats a knee however takes John’s back and hoists him for a ride, slamming him to the canvas. Igor immediately works to the back and searches for a rear-naked choke. Salgado defending well so far, and the Brazilian has a body triangle cinched up. Igor still hunting for that neck, though Salgado will not let up. The crowd boos the inactivity. Round ends with the Gracie fighter mounted and landing a few blows, though none of them “telling”. 10-9 for Igor.

Round 2: Low kicks traded early before Igor takes Salgado back to the ground with ease. Igor jockeys for position on the ground before transitioning to full mount very smoothly. Short punches to the body land for the New Yorker. Salgado scrambles and is in half-guard, however only momentarily before the Igor has him mounted yet again. He’s looking for an arm-triangle choke from the mount, before transitioning to side-mount to tighten the hold. Looks deep. And before you know it, Salgado is left unconscious on the mat. Fight’s over.

Official Result: Igor Gracie submits Salgado with an arm-triangle choke in Round 2, at 3:04.

-John Cholish vs. Marc Stevens (155-pounds)

Round 1: Stevens gets a warm reception from a responsive New York supportive crowd. This marks his first apperance inside the cage since his stint on “The Ultimate Fighter”. His opponent Cholish earns my respect with his Beastie Boys walkout tunes. John has the crowd on his side, as he is a product of the Renzo Gracie academy. A knee to the head prompts Stevens to shoot in, however is out muscled to the ground by Cholish, who settles in full guard. Cholish fishes for a guillotine choke early, the crowd roars as we all know Stevens’ problems with the particular submission in the past. John pushes away and lands some good strikes on the ground before Marc stand back to his feet. Cholish has Marc in a Muay Thai plumb, landing knees to the body, though Marc deflects most of them. Back in the center, Stevens looks for a high kick, but nothing there. John takes Marc down again, and this time ends up in side mount. Stevens regains half-guard, however Cholish is out working him on top with short punches and superior position. 10-9 Cholish, handily at that.

Round 2: A low kick early from Stevens is answered by another takedown by the Renzo Gracie protege. Short hooks on top from Cholish. Stevens looks for a triangle, though John shrugs it off and settles in half-guard. Cholish brings Marc’s head against the cage, and begins opening up with hooks to the head. Pace slows and the Referee stands them up. Kick to the body lands for Cholish. Marc catches a leg and takes Cholish down. In a scramble, John secures a leg and quickly forces a tap from a knee bar. Good stuff from Cholish, looking super impressive in his organizational debut.

Official Result: Second round Knee Bar submission 3:57

-Ray Sefo vs. Valentijn Overeem (heavyweight reserve bout)

Round 1: Round 1: Over hand right from Overeem countered by quick right hand from Sefo. Ray quick with the jab early on, keeping Valentijn at bay for the time being. Valentijn shoots and scores a takedown and has him pinned against the cage in side mount. Overeem immediately begins working Sefo’s neck, and with more brute strength then technique submits the Xtreme Couture product with a neck-crank in less than two-minutes in.

Official Result: Valentijn submits Sefo at 1:37 of the opening round with a neck-crank.

-Chad Griggs vs. Gian Villante (heavyweight reserve bout)

Round 1: Yves Lavigne the third man in the cage as the next heavyweight contest is underway. Clinch early with Griggs getting the better of the exchange with some sharp hooks on the inside. Gian answers with knees to the body. Fast pace early on from the heavyweight, who would have known? Both men throwing everything but the kitchen sink at each other. Griggs drops Villante with a right hook swung from the hip. Gian works back to his feet and is dropped again with a right hand. Some more punches follow, but it’s all academic. Extremely exciting performance turned in by Chad.

Official Result: Chad Griggs earns the TKO win at 2:49 of the opening round.

-Lavar Johsnon vs. Shane Del Rosario (heavyweight reserve bout)

Round 1: Snoop Dogg and Dr. Dre for Johnson, good on you, sir. Punches traded early and Del Rosario clinches quickly and presses Johnson against the cage. Johnson scores the trip takedown and Rosario is on his back. They work back up the feet and Shane fires off a high kick. Johnson lands a good knee to the head followed by a strong hook to the body. Back against the cage, Shane is landing short hooks to the body then a knee high, though it misses the mark. High kick rocks Johnson and he clinches with Shane who later works the American Kickboxing Academy product to the mat, and quickly mounts. Ground and pound from up top scores for Del Rosario. Shane works for an arm bar from mount, locks it up and forces the tap.

Official Result: Del Rosario submits Johnson via arm bar at 4:31 of the first-round, keeping his undefeated record intact.

-Andrei Arlovski vs. Sergei Kharitonov (heavyweight grand prix quarter-final match)

Round 1: Russians flags galore as Sergei makes his way to the cage. Arlovski has the loudest applause this evening, with nearly everyone applauding him with a standing ovation. When you have your own walk out song dedicated to you, you know you’ve made it (Arlovski). Andrei looks extremely focused, but only time will tell if his demeanor will hold up. A high kick from Arlovski and a quick right hand land flush. Short uppercuts on the inside from “The Pitbull”. Sergei stalking the Belorussian, though has only landed some punches to the body. And just like that, Sergei lands a vicious combination against the cage, rocking Arlovski with a right hook. He’s relentless. He follows up with a barrage of strikes eventually dropping the former heavyweight champion. Additional blows leave Andrei out cold. Sergei makes an impressive Strikeforce debut with the vicious knockout, and hands Arlovski his fourth straight loss.

Official Result: Sergei defeats Andrei 2:49 of the first-round via knockout. With the win, Kharitonov now moves onto the semi-finals of the tournament and will face the winner of Josh Barnett/Brett Rogers.

-Antontio Silva vs. Fedor Emelianenko (heavyweight grand prix quarter-final bout)

Round 1: Scratch that. Fedor receives a ruckus ovation from the crowd here in East Rutherford. It’s obvious here who the crowd favorite is. Dan Margliotta is the third man in the cage, and he’ll need to be against these two hard hitting bruisers. Silva pawing away with a jab while Fedor wades in with hooks. Antonio tests the chin early with a big right hand, but Emelianeko is un-phased. Another right hand lands for “The Last Emperor” and he clinches, though Silva muscles him against the cage. Referee separates them and they meet back in the center. Both men winging punches, and Fedor doing his best Anderson Silva impression by bobbing and weaving out of the way. Antonio presses Fedor against the cage. Fedor holds on to a guillotine choke, and “Big Foot” pulls him to the ground. Fedor in half-guard searches for a kimura, though Silva uses the momentum to work back to his feet where he meets the Russian with a big right hand. Slugging against the cage, Silva eventually works the former PRIDE champion to the ground. Round ends with the Brazilian on top with a late takedown. Silva 10-9.

Round 2: Silva scores a takedown early and immediately settles into half-guard. Like a blanket the Brazilian is smothering Emelianenko. You can really see the size difference when both men are locked up on the ground togethor. Silva works to side mount, and eventually mounts the Russian. He takes his back briefly, but Fedor is surviving. Heavy ground and pound on top and it looks like Margliotta could be close to stopping this. Fedor surviving and Silva locks up an arm triangle choke. It looks deep, but the Russian survives. He’s still in this, and is looking to ride out the clock as Silva settles in half-guard again. Silva drops back for a knee bar, Fedor escapes and looks for one of his own, and the Brazilian reminds everyone he’s okay as he waves “no” to the crowd. Fight’s over. Fedor took some serious damage in that second-round and his right eye is swollen shut.

Official Result: Silva wins via TKO/Doctors Stoppage at 5:00 in the second-round. Antonio will now move on to the semi-finals and will face the winner between Alistair Overeem/Fabricio Werdum.

The main event of the evening will pit for PRIDE heavyweight champion and all around mixed martial arts legend Fedor Emelianenko as he takes on former EliteXC titleholder Antonio Silva.

Along with heavy-handed stars, Strikeforce has now released the full-main card lineup with six additional fighters set to be featured on the Showtime broadcast.

The quarter-finals are set to begin first at the IZOD center on Feb. 12 first with former UFC champion Andrei Arlovski taking on PRIDE and K-1 veteran Sergei Kharitonov, with Emelianenko and Silva set to headline the N.J. event.

Additional heavyweight’s will be featured on the Showtime broadcast, though not officially part of the stellar Grand Prix, they may have a chance to vie for a spot in the tournament should a fighter fall out due to injury.

Chad Griggs who defeated Bobby Lashley in his last appearance in Strikeforce will be featured in a special reserve match with 7-1 Gian Villante.

An Overeem–not the Overeem–will be making his debut inside the cage as Valentijn will take on former kickboxing world champion Ray Sefo in a reserve match as well. Valentijn was scheduled to make his debut in the organization last December against Antonio Silva however bowed out due to injury and Mike Kyle stepped up to the plate. Overeem counts Randy Couture amongst his 16 career submission victories. Sefo is a perfect 2-0 since transitioning to MMA.

Finally a special attraction which will pit two stars from the Strikeforce Challenger Series will also go down at the IZOD center as Lavar Johnson takes on Shane Del Rosario. Johnson survived a brutal shooting in 2009 and was left in critical condition however survived to fight another day, and has gone 2-0 in 2010, both knockouts. Del Rosario remains undefeated in his career, and is currently 5-0 with the San Jose based promotion and is coming off of an impressive first-round TKO over Hawaiian striker Lolohea Mahe last July.

The full lineup in it’s order is as follows:

Fedor Emelianenko vs. Antonio Silva (quarter-final)
Andrei Arlovski vs. Sergei Kharitonov (quarter-final)
Shane Del Rosario vs. Lavar Johnson (reserve match)
Valentijn Overeem vs. Ray Sefo (reserve match)
Chad Griggs vs. Gian Villante (reserve match)

So, MMA peeps, what do you think of the full lineup? East coast, buy your tickets. Sound off in the comment section below.

I’ll give him this: Chad Griggs may be the toughest test Lashley has faced so far. Griggs is 8-1, has seven (T)KO’s to his name, he’s never once been to a decision, and all but two of his wins have occurred before the end of the first round of action. He’s on a three-fight first-round TKO streak. I admit that I haven’t seen all that much of him, but his status as an unknown may work in his favor. If Bobby Lashley underestimates and/or overlooks Chad Griggs, which Griggs himself claims Lashley will do, it’s quite possible that Griggs could land a good, clean shot that knocks Lashley out.

So fans may be wondering why Strikeforce and Lashley’s management team, both of whom have grown increasingly notorious due to their insistent need to coddle Lashley, would agree to a fight with a heavy-handed striker with undeniable KO power. The reasoning is simple: it’s all smoke and mirrors. If Lashley beats Griggs, it will give his team somebody to point to as a legitimate opponent, a knockout artist that couldn’t stand up against the man known as “The Dominator”. It will certainly look like Lashley is finally ready to step it up and become a serious threat in Strikeforce. If you dig just an inch below the surface, however, that reasoning begins to fall apart. Chad Griggs is not world-tested, he’s not elite-caliber. He’s 8-1 with seven knockouts, but he’s not a battle-scarred veteran used to the spotlight. If nerves don’t get the better of Griggs, his undoing will be due to the simple fact that he hasn’t competed in a professional Mixed Martial Arts fight in over a year.

It’s been proven time and time again that ring rust is very real and very prevalent in MMA fighters that take prolonged absences from the sport. It’s become the exception, not the rule, for a fighter to win his first fight back after a prolonged period of inactivity. And despite all the crap I give him, Lashley is a tough opponent even on a fighter’s best day. His power is undeniable and he has very prestigious amateur wrestling credentials. Ring rust has affected some of the biggest names in this sport: Randy Couture, Tito Ortiz, Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira…the list goes on. Chad Griggs won’t be immune to it, and Lashley will have no problem taking him out. That’s why Lashley defeating Chad Griggs won’t raise his status one single iota in my book.

If Lashley really wants to prove himself as an MMA fighter, I think the time is right to throw him to the sharks and see if he survives or gets eaten alive. Give him Shane Del Rosario and see which one is really ready for Strikeforce’s Heavyweight elite. Put him against Antonio “Bigfoot” Silva and let’s see just how far Silva has come from his freakshow beginnings. Hell, give him Andrei Arlovski and let’s see if “The Pitbull” can prove once and for all that he still deserves a place among the elite-level Heavyweights. But give him somebody of actual worth. Anybody.

And what do you think, fans and friends? How successful do you think Bobby Lashley has been and will be in Strikeforce?

The fighters exchanged punches from the opening of round one before Evangelista suddenly took Gurgel to the ground. In response during the final seconds of round two, Gurgel landed a powerful left kick sending Evangelista to the mat. Gurgel almost landed a guillotine choke on Evangelista, but the local favorite escaped during the remaining seconds.

The final round was a back-and-forth affair, but Evangelista pulled through and earned a lightweight title shot.

Following the fight, a disappointed Gurgel stated, “The guy is tough. I have to take my hat off to him.”

In another exciting fight, heavyweight Shane Del Rosario (7-0) defeated local fighter “Cash Money” Brandon Cash (4-1) with a first round submission.

During the third televised fight on Showtime, middleweight Luke Rockhold (6-1) defeated Jesse Taylor (9-4) with a rear naked choke in the first round. The referee called the fight at 3:42 of the round one.

Merritt Warren (2-4) defeated Thomas Diagne (0-1) via heel hook in a lightning fast affair. Warren quickly caught Diagne in the submission forcing the French San Shou champion to tap at 3:49 of the opening round.

Del Rosario, who drew eyeballs in ’07/’08 with three stoppages on ShoXC’s Challenger Series, disposed of Maksim Grishin (1-2) in 21 seconds. Del Rosario has won all of his fights by stoppage.

Jansen took just a second longer to stop Amirkhan Mazihov (0-1) in a guillotine choke.

“Nagao” Fabio Nasciemento (17-8), who lost a grueling decision to Jansen’s mentor, “The Law” Matt Lindland (21-6), last year, found himself teamed with Jansen on USA West. He tapped Marat Ilaev (0-1) at 2:13 of round two in a welterweight match, helping USA West sweep the Russian Imperial Team.

Light heavyweight Tony Lopez (12-3) tapped Victor Nemkov (1-1) in a rear naked choke at 3:06 of round two.

Middleweight Giva Santana (3-1) tapped Radmir Gabdullin (1-1) in an arm triangle at 3:47 of round one.

Middleweight Rosen Dimitrov (2-2) eeked out a majority decision over Mikko Suvanto (7-3), who was a late replacement from Lucio Linhares (10-3), team Finland’s star. However, Suvanto’s was Finland’s only loss in Seoul.

Popular Finnish lightweight Niko Puhakka (11-7) stepped up to TKO rising Bulgarian Yanko Yanev (4-1) at 2:16 of round one.

Heavyweight Toni Valtonen (15-7) tapped Nikola Dipchkov (0-1) in a triangle at 4:49 of round one.

Light heavyweight Marcus Vanttinen (9-1) forced Emil Samoilov (0-1) to verbally submit at 3:42 of the third round.

Welterweight Janne Tulirinta improved to 10-3 with a first round TKO of Ivan Ivanov (3-2).

Korean heavyweight Hae Joon Yang (2-0) devastated Brazillian grappler “Mamute” Joaquim Ferrera (2-3) with KO 14 seconds from the opening bell.

Light heavyweight Alexander Machado (1-0) tapped Dool Hee Lee (2-4) in a rear naked choke at 3:26 of round two.

Middleweight Daniel Acacio (14-5) pulled off a two-round majority decision victory over Jae Young Kim (10-9).

Welterweight Eduardo Pamplona (9-2) won a UD over Do Hyung Kim (11-7).

Debuting Korean lightweight Nam Yui Chul won a UD over Hacran Dias (6-2).

A winner of three in a row, the popular, extremely charismatic Malaipet will be making his MMA main event debut in a fight that will headline a five-bout ShoXC: Elite Challenger Series telecast on Showtime that begins at 23:00 ET/PT (delayed on the west coast of the U.S.).

It is the fifth ShoXC cage fight card, which is patterned after the popular Showtime boxing series ShoBox: The New Generation, which has been a springboard for many, young future champions.

“Like I’ve said, there are a lot of  promising MMA fighters thirsting for an opportunity to show their stuff and make a name for themselves on the worldwide stage,” EliteXC Live Events President Gary Shaw said.  “This [ShoXC] is the place where they can do it.   The Malaipet-Denny matchup is a great one.

“Malaipet is a legend in kickboxing, but I think a lot of us are anxious to see how he does as he continues to step up.  For sure, he could turn out to be special, but Denny is one tough vet.  I love to watch the progress of all young athletes as they develop.  The response to this series has been incredible.”

Few, if any, world champions in other sports have made a successful cross over to MMA; but, Malaipet, a decorated 17-year pro with reportedly more than 300 Muay Thai bouts, could be an exception.
 
A Lumpinee champ in Thailand, Malaipet has a very Thai style of movement, which he exhibited in his ShoXC debut, an impressive, dominant performance against Kaleo Kwan (5-8) en route to winning a three-round standup war by 30-26 and 30-27 twice.  He was calm, relaxed, punched in combination and displayed the kind of stalking footwork that lets him carefully pick his shots and his opponent apart.
 
“I started watching MMA when I got to the U.S. and liked what I saw,” he said.  “I respect both Muay Thai and MMA.  I am still learning, but I feel I have what it takes to make it in MMA.”

So, can Malaipet make up ground, and learn a ground game, so he doesn’t get tossed to the mat and, possibly, get submitted?  For sure, the more experienced, determined Denny will try and find out.

A former King of the Cage champion who recently signed with EliteXC, the 5-foot-10-inch Denny has fought the likes of “Daddy” Joe Stevenson (28-8), “Bang” Duane Ludwig (16-8), and Yves Edwards (33-13-1).

A colorful fighter known for wild and crazy hairstyles, Denny specializes in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, wrestling, and Muay Thai kickboxing.  His self-proclaimed signature moves are “knees and elbows.”  But, mostly Denny likes to “give pain.  I like to make my opponent suffer.

“Malaipet is untested on the ground.  Well, I am going to test him,” Denny said.  “I always like to do the opposite of whatever my opponent is doing anyway, and everyone knows Malaipet wants to stand up.”

In other bouts on the telecast, Marlon Matias (5-1) of Brazil faces Conor Huen (6-2) of Los Angeles at 160 pounds; Shane Del Rosario (3-0) of Irvine, California meets Analu Brash (1-1) of Kula, Maui at 265 pounds; and Mark Oshiro (9-1) of Honolulu clashes with Chris Caraiso (6-0) of California at 140 pounds.

Non-televised bouts include: Devin Howard (debut) of La Habra, California versus Mark Kempthorne (1-4) of Vandenberg, California at 170 pounds; Amadeo Viola (0-1) of San Bernardino, California versus Jason Williams (debut) of Vandenberg, California at 265 pounds; Luke Riddering (debut) of San Luis Obispo, California versus TBA at 170 pounds; and Kenny Johnson (debut) of Los Angeles versus TBA at 170 pounds.