Posts Tagged ‘Strikeforce Challengers’

American military hero and rising mixed martial arts (MMA) star Tim Kennedy (10-2) will return to the cage to battle power-punching Brazilian and middleweight (185 pounds) rival Evangelista Cyborg (16-13) in the main event of a STRIKEFORCE Challengers card from Tulsa, Oklahoma’s SpiritBank Event Center on Friday, September 25, live on SHOWTIME® at 11 p.m. ET/PT (delayed on the West Coast).

Tickets for the event, priced from $25, go on sale Monday, August 10, at 10 a.m. CT and will be available for purchase at the SpiritBank Event Center box office, all Ticketmaster locations (800-745-3000), Ticketmaster online (www.ticketmaster.com), and Strikeforce’s official website (www.strikeforce.com). Read the rest of this entry »

“Smokin” Joe Villasenor showed no signs of rust after a year away from the cage as he recorded a close split decision over Evangelista “Cyborg” in the main event of the sophomore edition of Strikeforce Challengers Friday night on SHOWTIME® before an enthusiastic crowd at the ShoWare Center.

In a gritty and tactical battle all the way to the end, Villasenor proved victorious winning on two of the three judges scorecards, 29-28, 28-29, 29-28. “I haven’t fought in over a year and that’s a great fight to come back to,” Villasenor said after the fight. “A three-round war. I was really surprised by (Cyborg’s) countering. It turned into a great fight.”

SHOWTIME will replay Friday’s telecast on Thursday, June 24, at 10 p.m. ET/PT on SHOWTIME 2. It will be available ON DEMAND beginning Monday, June 22. Read the rest of this entry »

The main event weigh-in produced some pushing and shoving Thursday as Evangelista “Cyborg” and “Smokin” Joe Villasenor squared off a day before their huge Strikeforce Challengers, middleweight fight to take place Friday, June 19, at the ShoWare Center at Kent, Wash., live on SHOWTIME® (11 p.m. ET/PT, delayed on the west coast).

After Cyborg weighed in for their 185-pound fight at 184 ½ pounds and Villasenor 185 pounds, both fighters met face to face. Things got a little too close for comfort and Cyborg pressed his head hard against Villasenor who then pushed back before words were exchanged. At one point, Cyborg pushed Villasenor by the throat before both fighters had to be separated.

Each of the other eight fighters taking part in the televised portion of the show also made weight and squared off without incident. Read the rest of this entry »

Two days before the highly anticipated Strikeforce Challengers MMA event at Kent’s ShoWare Center, Strikeforce will hold a free open public workout at Noon PT on Wednesday, June 17, at Vision Quest Sport and Fitness Center in Auburn, Wash.

The fighters will demonstrate a typical MMA workout, discuss MMA skills and competitive tactics and answer questions from the media. Read the rest of this entry »

Rising stars Cory “The One” Devela (9-2) and Luke Rockhold (4-1) will face off with each other in a middleweight (185 pound) battle at the Strikeforce Challengers mixed martial arts (MMA) event at the ShoWare Center in Kent, Washington on Friday, June 19.

“I feel like a million bucks,” said the 24-year-old Devela, one of the sport’s most promising young talents who hails from Bonney Lake, Wash., and is a member of the Dennis “Superman” Hallman led Team Victory that has pioneered a hybrid fighting style dubbed “Cowboy Karate.” “I know he’s mostly a submission guy and I’m strong at that so it should be a great fight.” Read the rest of this entry »

KEN HERSHMAN “We’ve had SHOWTIME boxing for more than 20 years and ShoBox, our young up-and-coming boxing series, began in 2001. It was designed to give fighters valuable experience and valuable television exposure both at the same time to accelerate the popularity of their careers. That franchise has launched the career of more than 30 world champions. We couldn’t be happier with that franchise. ShoBox has really become the Kleenex of boxing defining what a young fighter is. We expect the Challenger series to be just that in the world of mixed martial arts.”

“The look and the feel of the Challenger series will be distinct and unique to itself. There will be less of the bells and the whistles that we bring to the big shows that would be a bit overkill in some of the venues that we’re going to be in. But there will be the same high quality standard we bring to every show.” Read the rest of this entry »