Strikeforce - Fedor Returns

This Saturday we will see another installment of the epic career of the greatest fighter who ever lived, Fedor Emelianenko, in his quest to defeat BJJ ace Fabricio Werdum. The event will take place this Saturday, June 26th, and air live on Showtime from the HP Pavilion in San Jose, California.

Strikeforce will try to recreate the magic of the last card Fedor was on, featuring supporting bouts of Cung Le v. Scott Smith, Josh Thomson v. Pat Healy and Cris Cyborg v. Jan Finney. Here is a look at the bouts:

Fedor Emelianenko v. Fabricio Werdum- This is the first bout for Fedor (31-1) since his knockout win over Brett Rogers at Strikeforce - Chicago. Fedor has been training in his native Russia in anticipation of this bout against Werdum (13-4-1), a 2X ADCC heavyweight champion and Brazilian national champion.

Fedor will be looking to keep this fight standing, unloading his trademark overhand punches that seem to topple the largest foe imaginable. While some critics decry the level of competition Fedor has faced lately, all of his past opponents, Tim Sylvia, Andrei Arlovski and Brett Rogers have been legit top ten heavyweights when they fought.

(Fedor KO's Arlovski)

Fabricio Werdum will be looking to get the fight to the ground early and often to utilize his world renown jiu-jitsu skills. The task will be difficult, but Werdum has defeated many top fighters, including Brandon Vera, Junior Silva, Gabriel Gonzaga and Fedor's own brother, Aleks.

Cristiane "Cyborg" Santos v. Jan Finney- This women's middleweight title fight will seems quite mismatched on paper. Cyborg (9-1) has destroyed everyone in her wake since coming to America. The slugger has worked over former Elite XC champ Gina Carano, submission wizard Marloes Coenen and Shayna Bazler all via TKO.

(Cris Cyborg Pictured)

Jan Finney (8-7) will have her hands full with the Brazilian bomber, but since a decision loss to Erin Toughill, has managed to rattle off four consecutive victories. Look for Finney to keep her distance before using strikes to set up a takedown. However, that is easier said than done against Cyborg.

Cung Le v. Scott Smith- This fight is a rematch of their bout from 12/19/09. In the first fight, Cung Le (6-1) peppered Smith (17-6) with kicks and long range manuevers for 2 and a half rounds, dominating the fight. Midway through the third, the tide turned, as Smith was able to connect with big punches, eventually KO'ing Le.

Look for Le to use his trademark spinning back kick to set up a high kick, in an effort to end the fight. Look for the heavy-handed Smith will look to get inside, taking the bout to the floor, or working power punches from the inside.

(Cung Le spinning back kick)

UNDER CARD

Pat Healy v. Josh Thomson
Brett Bergmark v. Vagner Rocha
Valdir Araujo v. Yancey Medeiros
Derrick Burnsed v. Bobby Stack

Strikeforce Preview - Cung Le Returns

This Saturday Strikeforce will take place at the HP Arena in San Jose, California. The main event will see the return of the extremely entertaining Cung Le as he tangles with powerful brawler Scott Smith. Expect Le to throw kicks from distance to keep Smith at bay.

In a lightweight title fight, Josh Thomson will fight Gilbert Melendez in a rematch of a June 08 match won by Thomson. Josh Thomson hasn't fought since September 2008, and has not defended his title. Gilbert Melendez has stayed active since dropping a decision to Thomson, defeating Mitsuhiro Ishida and Rodrigo Damm via knockout earning an interim 155 pound belt.

In other action, uber grappler and athlete King Mo Lawal will be fighting TUF 2 veteran Mike Whitehead. A win by Lawal could propel him into a fight with Gegard Mousasi or another big name.

FULL CARD:

Cung Le vs. Scott Smith
Josh Thomson vs. Gilbert Melendez
Matt Lindland vs. Ronald "Jacare" Souza
Muhammed "King Mo" Lawal vs. Mike Whitehead
Antwain Britt vs. Scott Lighty
Daisuke Nakamura vs. Justin Wilcox
Bobby Stack vs. Alex Trevino
Alex Crispim vs. A.J. Fonseca


(Cung Le Highlights)

Elite XC CBS Style

Elite XC on CBS got off to a bang, and then lingered for the rest of the night. Suprisingly, Elite XC was able to stuff more filler in their broadcast than a UFC Fight Night. The first two fights were over in the first minute, yet no undercard fights were broadcast.

Brett Rogers def. Jon Murphy via. KO (Punch) R1 1:01- This fight was the debut of mma on CBS. Rogers and Murphy threw some sloppy punches before the clinch. Then Rogers wailed Murphy with a knee and two rights. Murphy dropped to his knees like a sack of bricks. Rogers, with Big Black from "Rob and Big" in tow, let everyone know that he had just "did work." Later, Rogers called out Kimbo Slice.


Joey Villasenor def. Phil Baroni via. TKO (Punches) R1 1:11- These two did what everyone thought, stood and traded punches. Baroni took too many shots to the face and eventually went down. Villasenor has three wins in a row now, and will more than likely be a challenger for the MW belt soon.

Gina Carano def. Kaitlin Young via. TKO (Doctor Stoppage) R2 3:00- Carano and Young traded some big shots in the first and Young looked as though she had a chance to pull of the victory as the round was pretty even. In the second, Carano began to find her mark with punches and clinch work. After fighting off a rear naked choke attempt after a kick, Young's eye was too swollen for the Doctor to allow the bout to continue.

Robbie Lawler and Scott Smith No Contest (Thumb in the eye) R3 3:26- The first round saw Lawler getting the most of the combinations and Smith backing up. The second was pretty even as both fighters let everything hang out. Both got bloodied up and the war was on. Unfortunately, as Smith threw a punch in the third, Lawler accidently put a finger in Smith's eye. Smith wanted to continue after a minute or so, but the fight didn't continue.

Kevin Ferguson def. James Thompson via. TKO (punches) R3 0:38- This fight was ugly. The ref was horrible. Thompson for some reason didn't think his massive swollen ear would be a problem in the fight. In the third, Kimbo punches it and it exploded. The ref stopped the bout after that. The ref had absolutely horrendous stand-ups in this fight, some when Thompson was in side control dropping elbows on Kimbo. Kimbo may or may not have tapped to a guillotine choke as well. The stoppage was also not good.

Online Fights-
Joe Sampieri def. Mike Groves via. TKO (Strikes) R1 4:58
Zach Makovsky def. Andres Soares via. Decision (Unanimous) R3 5:00
James Jones def. Calvin Kattar via. Sub (Rear Naked Choke) R1 4:49
Wilson Reis def. Justin Robbins via. Sub (Rear Naked Choke) R1 4:06
Matt Makowski def. Nick Serra DQ (Wouldn't Get Up From Butt Scoot) R2 3:57
Carlton Haselrig def. Carlos Moreno via. TKO (Corner Stoppage) R1 5:00
Chris Liguori def. Jim Bova via. TKO (Cut) R1 4:31

Elite XC - CBS Style Preview

Elite XC will debut Saturday May 31st on CBS. The fights will be taking place in Newark, New Jersey. Promoter Gary Shaw expects a sellout. He better also help for weather that keeps people indoors on a Saturday night.

Champ Robbie Lawler (16-4) vs. Scott Smith (13-4)- This Middleweight championship fight will most likely be another stand-up brawl. Both guys are known for standing and trading. Lawler's background in Miletich Fighting would lead you to believe he may try to bring the fight to the ground.

*Promo pic of Robbie Lawler

Kimbo Slice (2-0) v. James Thompson (14-8)- Kimbo and Thompson will more than likely stand and trade punches. The fighter that is able to land more will win, and from what we have seen of Thompson there is a good chance he is the one going down. He has lost his last two fights by way of KO. Kimbo is coming off KO wins of Bo Cantrell and Tank Abbott.


Gina Carano (5-0) vs. Kaitlin Young (4-1)- Gina Carano hasn't fought since September of 2007 and has done two seasons of American Gladiators since. Carano will be cutting to make 140 and Young normally fights at 135, so Carano will probably have a strenght advantage. Carano will likely impose her will and utilize her muay thai background. In her last fight, Young lost in BoDog to Sara Schneider. Carano has beaten four quality opponents in a row in Rosi Sexton, Elaina Maxwell, Julie Kedzie and Tonya Evinger.

*MMA Blaster supports women's mma, and is happy to see women on the main card. I do think that Elite XC should try to get some talent from Japan and have a 140 class and a 120 class. Megumi Fugii and Satoko Shinashi are solid, as well as Tara LaRosa.

Jon Murphy (4-2) vs. Brett Rogers (6-0)- Brett "Grim" Rogers will look to stand and drop bombs on Murphy. Rogers stands 6'5" and just makes th 265 pound cutoff. Murphy will probably give up two to three inches and 20 to thirty pounds to Rogers. The fight will probably result in a KO if Murphy cant take down Grim. In his last fight Rogers knocked out Kimbo's opponent, James Thompson.

Phil Baroni (10-9) vs. Joey Villasenor (25-6)- The ever confident Baroni has predicted a knock out victory in the first round. That shouldn't come to a surprise with anyone that is familiar with the New York Bad Ass. Villasenor recently won in Strikeforce against Ryan Jensen (11-4).

Online Fights - proelite.com
Wilson Reis vs. Justin Robbins
Matt Makowski vs. Nick Serra
Carlton Haselrig vs. Carlos Moreno
Jim Bova vs. Chris Liguori
James "Binky" Jones vs. Calvin Kattar

Elite XC "Street Certified" Results

I have yet to see all the fights from Elite XC's biggest event to date. Apparently they had a sell out crowd present in Miami. The Kimbo v. Tank fight went exactly as how I thought it would with Tank gassed and knocked out in the first. There were two strange stoppages, one because of strikes to the back of the head when Tank was on all fours and another when something made its way into the arena. After being saved, Tank took a big shot to the face and was dropped like a sack of potatoes.

If you haven't already, watch the Yves Edwards v. Edson Berto fight. While Edson Berto had a deep single leg in, Yves clobbered Berto with his opposite knee. One of the most athletic KO's I have seen. I wouldn't call it a flying knee like I have seen listed, but it was awesome.



James Thompson's game plan of pushing Brett Rodgers around didn't work. After being taken down and let up, Rodgers smashed Thompson right on the chin and got the KO. Thompson tried to grapple with the ref afterwards and had no idea what planet he was on.

Undercard
Moyses Gabin def Jirka Hlavati via TKO R1, 2:32
Lorenzo Borgomeo def Mike Bernhard via Sub(triangle) R2, 4:11
Eric Bradley def Mikey Gomez via Unanimous Decision
Dave "Pee Wee" Herman def Mario Rinaldi via (TKO) R3, :33
Yosmany Cabezas def Jon Kirk via Sub (RNC) R2, :58
Rafael Feijao def John Doyle via TKO (knee) R1, 2:17

Main Card
Brett Rogers def James Thompson via TKO (punches) R1, 2:24
Yves Edwards def Edson Berto via KO (knee KO) R1. 4:56
Scott Smith def Kyle Noke via KO (punch) R2, :07
Antonio Silva def Ricco Rodriguez via Split Dec
Kimbo Slice def Tank Abbott via KO (punch) R1, :43

EliteXC "Street Certified" Card Announced

Elite XC Review - This fight card will take place on February 16, at the Bank United Center in Miami, Florida.

Tank Abbott (9-13) vs. Kimbo Slice (1-0)- Look for this fight to be over by the three minute mark with one of these two seeing stars. Kimbo has been training for this fight with MMA legend Bas Rutten. Kimbo looked imposing in his win over an intimidatd Bo Cantrell.

Tank will not be scared and come out guns blazing like he always does, swinging for the fences. Tank was actually winning in his last bout against Gary Turner (4-0) landing punches and getting a takedown. But, when they got on their feet at the 2 minute mark Tank was completely gassed and basically gave up.
*Prediction- Kimbo via KO R1.



Ricco Rodriguez (27-7) vs. Antonio Silva (9-1)- This fight should be the main event, but Tank and Kimbo have more reckognizable names than these two. Antonio Silva is an absolute massive opponent who has beaten down his two opponents in Elite XC. Former UFC Heavyweight Champ Rodriguez is looking for his second victory in a row since his loss to Ben Rothwell (29-5).
*Prediction Antonio Silva via TKO R3

Kyle Noke (14-3-1) vs. Scott Smith (12-5)- The Aussie Kyle Noke is looking for his second straight victory in Elite XC. Former UFC competetior and TUF 4 contestant Scott Smith is looking for his second win in a row. Smith will stand and trade, while Noke will probably look to take the fight to the ground.
*Prediction Kyle Noke via submission R2

Yves Edwards (32-13-1) vs. Edson Berto (13-4-1)- The creator of Thugjitsu Yves Edwards is looking for his third win in a row and second at Elite XC. Yves has the experience edge and a better resume, but anything can happen. Berto is also looking for his second victory in a row. In Berto's previous Elite XC bout he lost to 160 pound champ KJ Noons.
*Prediction Yves Edwards via KO R2

Brett Rogers (5-0) vs. James Thompson (14-7)- Rogers is looking to keep his undefeated streak alive against Englishman James "Colossus" Thompson. Rodgers sported a mohawk in his previous Elite XC win over Ralph Kelly (3-4) and is largely untested. Thompson will come in with more fights in bigger venues. This will be a slugfest.
*Prediction Thompson via KO R1

PRELIMINARY CARD

Dave "Pee Wee" Herman (9-0) vs. Mario Rinaldi (6-2)- Pee Wee is an interesting heavyweight prospect with 9 straight stoppages. He is 6'5" and 250 pounds, we will see how he does as this is his first fight on a big stage.

Rafael Feijao (4-1) vs. John Doyle (6-2)
Jon Kirk (10-2) vs. Yosmany Cabezas (4-0)
Eric Bradley (2-1) vs. Mikey Gomez (6-3)
Mike Berhard (3-0) vs. Lorenzo Borgameo (2-0)


*Gif of Edwards KO high kick of Josh Thomson at UFC 49.