Strikeforce "Heavy Artillary" Card Updates!

[keithlewis]

World Heavyweight Champion Alistair “The Demolition Man” Overeem (32-11) will make his highly anticipated return to action against heavy-handed knockout artist Brett “The Grim” Rogers (10-1) in the main event of a STRIKEFORCE mixed martial arts (MMA) extravaganza at Scottrade Center in St. Louis, Mo., on Saturday, May 15.

In another heavyweight confrontation, Andrei “The Pitbull” Arlovski (15-7) will clash with Antonio “Big Foot” Silva (13-2).

An exclusive special pre-sale ticket purchase opportunity for STRIKEFORCE St. Louis: Heavy Artillery will take place for “STRIKEFORCE Insider” e-newsletter subscribers (http://strikeforce.com/insider.html) from 10 a.m. CT on Tuesday, March 23, until 10 p.m. CT on Thursday, March 25. STRIKEFORCE Insiders will receive a special e-newsletter on Monday with the pre-sale code.

All fans that purchase tickets to the event during the pre-sale will receive a limited edition, 17” x 23” high gloss STRIKEFORCE collectible poster.

Tickets go on sale to the general public at 10 a.m. CT on Friday, March 26 at Scottrade Center ticket office, all Ticketmaster locations (800) 745-3000, Ticketmaster online (http://www.ticketmaster.com) and STRIKEFORCE’S official website (http://www.strikeforce.com).

Since being crowned the first heavyweight champion in STRIKEFORCE history after he caved in Paul “The Headhunter” Buentello with a series of knee strikes in the second round (3:42) at HP Pavilion in San Jose, Calif. on Nov. 16, 2007, the 29-year-old Overeem, of The Netherlands, has been demolishing foes, finishing seven of eight opponents inside of one round.

The only bout that did not finish in this fashion was a matchup on Sept. 23, 2008 with MMA legend Mirko “Cro Cop” Filipovic that was declared a no contest after the 6-foot-5 inch, 260-pound Overeem accidentally struck his opponent with a knee to the groin.

Rogers, a resident of Minneapolis, Minn., who also stands 6-feet-5, and weighs 265 pounds, will attempt to return to his winning ways after an admirable effort against the No. 1 heavyweight in the world – Fedor Emelianenko — in the main event on The CBS television Network on Nov. 7, 2009, from Centre Arena in Hoffman Estates, Ill. on Nov. 7, 2009. The dangerous-hitting Rogers had Emelianenko in trouble in the early going, opening a cut around the eye and putting continuous pressure on the heavily favored Russian.

Emelianenko, who has met and defeated nearly every great heavyweight rival of this era, turned the tides on the American in the second round, putting Rogers on the canvas with a series of punches to earn a TKO at the 1:48 mark of the round. Prior to the exciting matchup, Rogers had earned his most impressive victory to date by crushing Arlovski in just 22 seconds with an onslaught of heavy punches at Scottrade Center on June 6, 2009.

The 31-year-old Arlovski’s start will be his first since an upset defeat to Rogers. A former UFC heavyweight champion, Arlovski had won five-in-a-row in the UFC before suffering back-to-back losses to Emelianenko and Rogers. The 6-foot-4, 240-pound native of Minsk, Belarus, Arlovski captured the UFC belt on Feb. 5, 2005 by submitting (Achilles lock) Tim Sylvia in 47 seconds.

Also a former world heavyweight champion, the 6-foot-4 inch, 260-pound Silva, of Brazil, initiated a six-fight winning streak with a first round (3:49) TKO (strikes) over dangerous brawler Wesley “Cabbage” Correira in Southaven, Mississippi on Feb. 10, 2007. Silva is unbeaten (4-0) in competition in Japan, winning two fights in K-1 and a pair of bouts in Sengoku.

Shamrock Promotions will assist STRIKEFORCE with local marketing for the event on May 15.

[ArmyofDarkness]

IS THIS SHIT FOR THE HW BELT

[NWOWolfpack]

ROGER GRACIE TO MAKE STRIKEFORCE DEBUT AGAINST TWO-TIME NCAA AND FORMER MMA CHAMPION KEVIN RANDLEMAN, "JACARE" SOUZA TO BATTLE JOEY VILLASENOR MAY 15 AT SCOTTRADE CENTER IN ST. LOUIS


Unbeaten Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu sensation Roger Gracie (2-0) will make his long-awaited STRIKEFORCE and United States Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) debut when he squares off with two-time NCAA National Wrestling Champion and former UFC Heavyweight Champion Kevin "The Monster" Randleman (17-14) in a featured light heavyweight (205 pound) contest at STRIKEFORCE St. Louis: Heavy Artillery at Scottrade Center in St. Louis, Mo. on Saturday, May 15.

Middleweight (185 pound) superstar and 2008 DREAM Grand Prix tournament runner up "Jacare" Souza (11-2) will collide with hard-hitting sensation Joey Villasenor (27-6) in another featured bout.

The winner of the coveted ADCC Submission Wrestling World Championship in 2005, the 28-year-old Gracie, a second degree Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu black belt under Carlos Gracie, Jr, made history by submitting all eight of his opponents during the tournament, a feat that had never previously been achieved.

The 6-foot-4 Gracie's submission skills have, thus far, proven their worth in MMA competition. In his pro debut on Dec. 2, 2006, he forced Ron "H20" Waterman to tap from an armbar and, on May 18, 2008, he submitted Japan's Yuki Kondo with a rear naked choke. A native of Brazil, Gracie resides in West London, England where he owns and operates The Roger Gracie Academy.

At age 38, Randleman of Columbus, Ohio will attempt to re-enter the win column after two consecutive defeats and reclaim the glory he achieved more than a decade ago when he was crowned UFC heavyweight champion after scoring a knockout on Pete Williams at UFC 23 on November 19, 1999.

A tremendous athlete with explosive power, Randleman captured back-to-back NCAA Division I national wrestling titles in 1992 and 1993 while competing for Ohio State University. His stellar collegiate career gained him entry into the school's Hall Of Fame in 2004.

On Oct. 22, 1996, Randleman made his professional MMA debut in Brazil where he stopped Luiz Carlos Macial in the first round of action. After amassing a 6-2 record, he entered the octagon for the first time at UFC 19 on March 5, 1999 and pulled off a stunning upset of MMA and kickboxing legend Maurice Smith.

Randleman enjoyed a lengthy career with Japan's PRIDE Fighting Championships, winning his first three fights with the now-defunct promotion and stopping superstar Mirko "Cro Cop" Filipovic in one round on April 25, 2004.

The 6 foot Souza, a 30-year-old submission wizard from Brazil, made a splash debut with STRIKEFORCE on Dec.19, 2009 when he forced former Olympic wrestling silver medalist Matt "The Law" Lindland to tap out from an arm triangle choke in the first round (4:18).

Two years ago, Souza made a brilliant run to the championship round of DREAM's single-elimination middleweight tournament in Japan. After submitting Ian Murphy on April 29, 2008 with a rear naked choke in the first round (3:38) of their opening tournament round matchup, Souza went on to earn a unanimous decision over American star Jason "Mayhem" Miller on June 15, 2008 and, then, submitted Zelg Galesic with an armbar on Sept. 23, 2008.

The 35-year-old Villasenor, a seasoned striker and Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu player who hails from Albuquerque, New Mexico and is a member of the fearsome fight team led by Greg Jackson, is riding a four fight win streak. He produced his last victory, a split decision over Evangelista "Cyborg" Santos, during his STRIKEFORCE debut at ShoWare Center in Kent, Wash. on June 19, 2009.

During the first live, primetime telecast of an MMA event on network television (CBS) on May 31, 2008, Villasenor came out of the gates with guns blazing and overwhelmed notorious brawler, Phil "The New York Badass" Baroni, crushing Baroni with a barrage of punches in the first round (1:11) of their meeting.

In the main event, STRIKEFORCE World Heavyweight Champion Alistair "The Demolition Man" Overeem (32-11) will put his title on the line against heavy-handed knockout artist Brett "The Grim" Rogers (10-1).

In another heavyweight confrontation, former world champions Andrei "The Pitbull" Arlovski (15-7) and Antonio "Big Foot" Silva (13-2) will face off with each other.

Shamrock Promotions is assisting STRIKEFORCE with local marketing for the event.

[keithlewis]

Updated Card:

Main Card (Showtime):

Strikeforce Heavyweight Championship:
Alistair Overeem vs. Brett Rogers

Andrei Arlovski vs. Antonio Silva
Kevin Randleman vs. Roger Gracie
"Jacare" Souza vs. Joey Villasenor
Rafael “Feijao” Cavalcante vs. Antwain Britt


Preliminary Card:

Norifumi “Kid” Yamamoto vs. Federico Lopez
Justin DeMoney vs. Jesse Finney
Vitor Ribeiro vs. Lyle Beerbohm
Lee Brousseau vs. Francisco France
Michael Chandler vs. Sal Woods
Pat Benson vs. Eric Steenberg
Thomas Aaron vs. Matt Ricehouse
Darryl Cobb vs. Booker DeRousse

[ArmyofDarkness]

KID ON THE UNDERCARD IS AN INSULT TO HIS CAREER.

[NWOWolfpack]

This card should be filled with knockouts.........................

[NWOWolfpack]

http://www.mmaweekly.com/absolutenm/tem ... &zoneid=13

The upcoming Strikeforce show in St. Louis will not include former top ranked fighter Norifumi "Kid" Yamamoto as originally planned according to president Scott Coker.

Yamamoto was scheduled for the May 15 card, but Coker said changes to the recent Dream show, which included the cancelation of their light heavyweight tournament, resulted in his fight being moved.

"We had received a request from Dream to put Kid on the fight card, and at that time we felt we should oblige, but I think they had some changes in Japan with the format for May 29, and so I think he'll be fighting in Japan on May 29," said Coker.

Originally, Yamamoto was scheduled to face Federico Lopez on the card, but the changes to the Dream schedule forced his fight off the Strikeforce show.

The Showtime card scheduled for May 15 will include 5 televised fights, and several undercard fights according to Coker, but Yamamoto will not be among them.

It was not disclosed if Yamamoto's fight in Japan will be against Lopez or another opponent instead.

[broncofan]

KID ON THE UNDERCARD IS AN INSULT TO HIS CAREER.

Probably 1 of the reasons he is going back to Japan.