Popular west coast promotion Strikeforce is looking to expand its footprint and will take its show to Denver on Oct. 3. The main event features popular local fighter Duane “Bang” Ludwig and “Ultimate Fighter” alumnus Sammy Morgan.
In addition to the main event, three more UFC veterans – Phil Baroni, Frank Trigg, and Pete Spratt – will be featured on the fight card, though no opponents have been named for any of the three.
The main event will be a rematch as Ludwig and Morgan faced each other in the “Ring of Fire” promotion in 2005. Morgan won that fight by knockout in only 52 seconds.
Ludwig last competed in March suffering a first round TKO loss to former top lightweight competitor Takanori Gomi in World Victory Road’s Sengoku show.
His opponent, Sammy Morgan, is actually fighting on Aug. 15 for ShoXC against up and coming Brazilian fighter Fabricio Camoes. Because of the timing, Morgan should be able to fight in October, barring any unforeseen injuries between now and then.
The addition of Trigg, Baroni, and Spratt also adds some name recognition to the card that will be another sign of Strikeforce expanding beyond their roots in San Jose, Calif., as they have recently traveled to the Seattle area and are in preparations for their second show at the Playboy Mansion in Beverly Hills, Calif.
“That’s been our plan the whole time,” Strikeforce vice president Mike Afromowitz said, commenting on expanding the promotion’s reach to new locations. “We just have to make sure that it makes sense.”
Although a live television broadcast is “in the works, but nothing definite” according to Afromowitz, he did confirm that the Denver event “will definitely air in one or more parts on ‘Strikeforce on NBC.’”
“Strikeforce on NBC” airs in the late night time-slot on Saturday nights on NBC. The promotion also has a broadcast partnership with HDNet to air events on the Mark Cuban-owned subscription based high-definition television network.
More information about the event will be announced in the coming days.
