Keith Jardine vs. Gegard Mousasi Set for Strikeforce April 9

by Michael David SmithKeith JardineKeith Jardine is returning to the big leagues of mixed martial arts, taking a tough fight on short notice against Gegard Mousasi on the April 9 Strikeforce event.

Jardine, who was once among the UFC's light heavyweight rising stars, was cut by that promotion last year when he lost his fourth straight fight. He then signed with Shark Fights and lost a fifth consecutive fight, and it appeared that his career had been derailed.

But Jardine stayed active and has won two straight fights on small-time MMA shows, and now he's jumping at a major opportunity to fight Mousasi.

 

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Source: http://www.mmafighting.com/2011/04/01/keith-jardine-vs-gegard-mousasi-set-for-strikeforce-april-9/

Ishkhan Zakharian Roman Zentsov Nobuhiko Takada Yoshihiro Takayama

Melendez defends belt, makes case to be No. 1 lightweight

Gilbert Melendez held onto his Strikeforce lightweight championship belt with a dominating performance at Strikeforce: Diaz vs. Daley. Melendez quickly TKOed Kawajiri in San Diego on Saturday.

Melendez started aggressively in the first round, dropping Kawajiri with a right hook and then following up with a bevy of strikes. He took Kawajiri's back, and continued to land strikes even as Kawajiri struggled to his feet. When they returned to stand-up, Kawajiri, a noted wrestler, shot in for a takedown but Melendez sprawled, threw an upper cut and then followed up with strikes and elbows to finish the fight at 3:14 in the first round.

After he ran through Kawajiri, Melendez wanted to make it clear that he believes he's the best lightweight in the world, not UFC lightweight champion Frankie Edgar.

"I think it's time to unify some titles. I'm the No. 1 lightweight in the world. Let's get it done," Melendez said.

Melendez hadn't been in the cage for a year; his last win was over another Japanese fighter, Shinya Aoki. Melendez's record is now 19-2. Kawajiri, who faced numerous training difficulties because of the earthquake and tsunami in Japan, was making his American debut. He fell to 27-7-2.

Source: http://sports.yahoo.com/mma/blog/cagewriter/post/Melendez-defends-belt-makes-case-to-be-No-1-li?urn=mma-wp1074

Gilbert Aldana José Aldo John Alessio Houston Alexander

George Lucas’ daughter returns to the cage this weekend

Amanda Lucas, daughter of the famed filmmaker George Lucas, will fight again this Saturday at Freestyle Cage Fighting in Oklahoma on a card headlined by UFC veteran Matt Grice and well-known female fighter Erin Toughill.

Lucas is 1-1, winning her last fight via decision in 2009. She had been on an extended layoff from the cage while she focused on improving technically and getting married, telling MMA Fighting that she didn't want to walk down the aisle "looking like a battered woman." You would think that her father could probably connect her with a good make-up artist.

Lucas trains at Fairtex in San Francisco as well as Gilbert Melendez's Skrap Pack team and Cesar Gracie Academy. She also had a knee injury, but has spent the last six months training and rehabbing.

"I am really excited for this fight," she said. "I was originally scheduled to fight in February, but I suffered a partially torn MCL and PCL during my training camp. I have basically been either training or rehabbing my knee for the past six months. I am looking forward to fighting, taking a week off, and then getting back into the gym. I am in great shape, well prepared and am ready to test myself on Saturday."

Lucas has made cameos in her father's movies, including all three "Star Wars" prequels.

Hopefully, her father will get inspiration from her daughter's fight experiences and give MMA the cinematic treatment it deserves. MMA on the Death Star? Indiana Jones and the Octagon of Doom? Or Lucas could return to his roots and make an "American Graffiti" -eseque film about fighting. Instead of chronicling teenage boys and their last night before college -- and a bunch of boss cars -- Lucas could take a look at a day leading up to a fight.

It would be better than many of the cliche-ridden treatments Hollywood has given MMA in the past. Help us Amanda Lucas! You're our only hope!

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Source: http://sports.yahoo.com/mma/blog/cagewriter/post/George-Lucas-daughter-returns-to-the-cage-this-?urn=mma-wp1012

Tony Bonello Stephan Bonnar Lorenzo Borgomeo Kyle Bradley

Bellator 41 Results: Warren, Makovsky And Featherweight Semifinals

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MMA Fighting has Bellator results from the Cocopah Resort and Casino in Yuma, Arizona.

Bellator 41 features two featherweight tournament semifinal bouts, as well as a pair of superfights, one featuring featherweight champ Joe Warren, and another with bantamweight kingpin Zach Makovsky.

Bellator 41 results are below.

Source: http://www.mmafighting.com/2011/04/16/bellator-41-results-featherweight-semifinals-and-two-superfight/

José Aldo John Alessio Houston Alexander Ricardo Almeida

Joe Warren: ?My #1 objective in this fight with Galvao is to make sure that he experiences a tremendous amount of pain.?

Bellator featherweight champ Joe Warren may not be the biggest, strongest, or fastest fighter on Earth but, according to him, he is definitely the baddest man out there. And, if record and performance are indicators of the validity of his statement, he may be onto something. With a 6-1 record highlighted by displays of pure [...]

Source: http://fiveouncesofpain.com/2011/04/16/joe-warren-%e2%80%9cmy-number-one-objective-in-this-fight-with-marcos-galvao-is-to-make-sure-that-he-experiences-a-tremendous-amount-of-pain-%e2%80%9d/

Gilbert Aldana José Aldo John Alessio Houston Alexander

Tyson Griffin Moves to Featherweight, Will Fight Manny Gamburyan

by Michael David SmithMired in a three-fight losing streak, Tyson Griffin is in danger of losing his job in the UFC. But Griffin will get one more chance to try to turn things around, as the UFC has announced that he'll move down to featherweight to take on Manny Gamburyan at UFC on Versus 4.

For Griffin, the move down to featherweight makes a lot of sense. He has had a great deal of success at 145 pounds in the past (he beat Urijah Faber to win the Gladiator Challenge featherweight title in 2005), and he probably would have stayed at 145 all along if the UFC had had a 145-pound division. In that sense, he's a lot like Gamburyan, who left the UFC's lightweight division for the WEC's featherweight division in 2009.

 

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Source: http://www.mmafighting.com/2011/04/05/tyson-griffin-moves-to-featherweight-will-fight-manny-gamburyan/

Marvin Eastman Stav Crazy Bear Economou Yves Edwards Justin Eilers

Riki Fukuda vs. Rafael Natal reportedly on tap for UFC 133 in August

By: Jamie Penick, MMATorch Editor-in-Chief

LogoUFC_150_882.jpg

A middleweight bout between Riki Fukuda and Rafael Natal is coming to UFC 133 in August, according to a report from MMAFighting.com.

Fukuda, the former DEEP Middleweight Champion in Japan, made his UFC debut in February in Australia at UFC 127. Taking on The Ultimate Fighter 11's Nick Ring, Fukuda looked to have done enough in the fight to earn a decision victory, but the judges saw the fight for Ring, snapping a seven fight win streak.

Natal's UFC career hasn't gotten off to a great start. After a decision loss to Rich Attonito in his UFC debut last September, Natal went to a draw with Jesse Bongfeldt in his last fight at UFC 124 in December. Of his 12 career victories, Natal has finished all but two of them, and will look to get his first win since a knockout of Travis Lutter last May.

UFC 133 is expected to take place in Philadelphia this August, though the date and location has not yet been revealed.

Link to Original Source Article

Penick's Analysis: This should be a good matchup for the card. Fukuda got screwed out of a decision against Ring. He won that fight and it was not a good decision on the part of the judges in Australia. That said, he'll have a good chance to erase the memory of that fight with a good performance here, though Natal will surely be doing everything in his power to win this fight, as a loss may lead to his release being winless in three fights. But it should make for a good matchup in August.

Source: http://www.mmatorch.com/artman2/publish/UFC_2/article_9073.shtml

Daiju Takase Oleg Taktarov Akitoshi Tamura Kiyoshi Tamura

Rematch between Forrest Griffin and Mauricio Rua planned for UFC Rio

The UFC?s return to Brazil after a decade-plus gap between visits has taken another step towards becoming one of the more memorable cards in recent history, as it appears Mauricio ?Shogun? Rua (19-5) will face Forrest Griffin (18-6) at the August event in a rematch of a 2007 pairing where Griffin eventually emerged victorious by [...]

Source: http://fiveouncesofpain.com/2011/04/15/rematch-between-forrest-griffin-and-mauricio-rua-planned-for-ufc-rio/

Randy Couture Chuck Liddell Quinton Jackson Forrest Griffin