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Powerlifters Pictured: Ali Huston, Annie Rivieccio, Becca Swanson, Travis Ortmayer, Sean Katterle (contest promoter and the author of the article), Al Davis, James Searcy, Brandon Cass and the late, great Holger Kuttroff

Topics Covered: MHP's Clash of the Titans III & Kings of the Bench IV (contest report), World Raw Deadlift Records, Women's Raw Deadlift Records, Women's Suited Deadlift Records and The History of Women's Competition Deadlifting in America

According to a handful of sources, including one of the fighters involved, it appears blue-chip welterweight Tyron Woodley will put his undefeated record on the line against Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu champion Andre Galvao at Strikeforce‘s “Diaz vs. Noons II” event in San Jose on October 9th. Galvao himself broke the news of the potential pairing earlier today on his Twitter page.

However, Five Ounces of Pain contacted Strikeforce on Monday afternoon and was told the match-up could not be confirmed at this point in time. While the promotion’s position does not indicate the bout won’t eventually come together, the statement does mean the fight is not yet official.

If Woodley and Galvao do indeed face off on October 9th it should round out an already-stacked event with another entertaining scrap. A talented wrestler out of Missouri, Woodley is 8-0 in his career with finishing performances against seven of his opponents. Comparably, the 27-year old Galvao is 5-1 with his lone professional blemish coming by way of a split decision against Jason High in July 2009. He is 2-0 in Strikeforce and most recently won via TKO over Jorge Patino at this past August’s “Strikeforce – Houston” event.

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UFC 121: Lesnar vs Velasquez will take place on October 23rd at the Honda Center in Anaheim, and will feature UFC heavyweight champion Brock Lesnar facing number one contender Cain Velasquez. Velasquez has looked unstoppable in the Octagon, and brings both speed and a relentless pace to the heavyweight division. Lesnar, however is by far the bigger and more powerful fighter so it should be a very interesting bout. Does Velasquez have enough tools to take out the champ?

Divisions are available for kids, adults, master and senior competitors.

Register early and save! (register by Oct. 5th by 11:59pm PST) $50,00 for Adults and Master and $40.00 for Kids.

We will award medals and for 1st, 2nd and 3rd places in each division, and every registered competitor register by October 16th, will receive a complimentary tournament t-shirt. The top three competitor will earn points for their teams and the academies that score more points will get Trophies for 1st, 2nd and 3rd places.

San Clemente High School
700 Avenida Pico
San Clemente CA 92673
MAP

More information on the official site.

While the weather begins to cool down, Midwest Cage Championship is bringing the heat back to Hy Vee Hall on Friday, October 22 for MCC 29: “Champion vs. Champion.”

The main event of the evening will pit two champions in two different weight classes together, at a catch weight of 150 lbs., for a three round non-title match which promises to be action packed from bell to bell. Returning from his stint on UFC’s popular reality television show, “The Ultimate Fighter”, MCC’s Lightweight Champion, TJ “The Spider” O’Brien looks to return to Des Moines in hopes of capturing a win over MCC’s Featherweight Champion, Josh “Bam Bam” Henry.

MCC brass explains, “We were looking for solid fights for both of these guys, but the right opponents were not coming through. We want to challenge our champions, push them, in hops of getting them to the next level. Since O’Brien has fought at 145 lbs. and Henry has fought at 155 lbs., we thought it would be interesting to have them meet in the middle and fight each other in a non-title bout. We know this will be a great fight for the fans to watch.”

Featured earlier in the evening, two of the most exciting up and coming lightweights in the Midwest will meet. Rick “The Gladiator” Glenn, who has displayed both his stand up and ground fighting prowess time after time inside the MCC cage, will look to keep his win streak in tact when he takes on Johnny “Hollywood” Case, a mixed martial artist who competes under the tutelage of Rick Tasler.

Case known for his lighting fast hands and knock out power will face one of his toughest opponents to date. With the heart of a champion and the ever improving skill of Rick Glenn, look for this bout to be the fight of the night with fireworks written all over it.

And, speaking of Rick Tasler, the undefeated featherweight fighter will step back into the MCC cage, one more time.

Tasler explains, “I have been training the whole time since I left competitively fighting, training my own guys, running a show, basically submersed in the sport. It’s like I never left. I missed getting in there and mixing it up myself, so I am happy to say that I am returning to MCC. I am focused on October 22, and I plan on staying undefeated with another amazing performance for all my fans.” Tasler will be writing a weekly blog leading up to his fight, which will be posted every Monday on the MCC website.

Tickets for MCC 29: “Champion vs. Champion” are available on-line at www.MidwestCageChampionship.com, by phone at 515-229-8566 and at all Dahl’s ticket outlets. For more information on the fight card including interviews, video blogs and up to the minute news, check out the web site. DO YOU WANT TO FIGHT FOR MCC? Fill out this application- http://www.midwestcagechampionship.com/want-to-be-an-mcc-fighter/

PRESS RELEASE / SAN JOSE, CALIF. (Sept. 13, 2010) – Five months after their initial encounter, an exciting battle that ended prematurely due to an accidental poke in the eye, “Relentless” Roger Bowling will put his unbeaten record on the line one more time against “Vicious” Bobby Voelker in a collision of welterweights as the main event of a Strikeforce Challengers fight card presented by Rockstar Energy Drink at Save Mart Center in Fresno, California, live on Showtime at 11 p.m. ET/PT (delayed on the West Coast), on Friday, October 22nd.

Additionally, undefeated prospect and Fresno resident Billy Evangelista will make his long-awaited return to the cage when he faces Waachiim “Native Warrior’’ Spiritwolf in a 165-pound catch weight bout. Heavyweight star and Madera, California native Lavar “Big” Johnson will continue his miraculous return to the sport in a match-up against an opponent to be determined.

The 5-foot-8, 27-year-old Bowling (8-0), of Columbus, Ohio, won a unanimous three-round technical decision over the 6-foot, 31-year-old Voelker (22-8), of Kansas City, Kansas, during a Strikeforce Challengers presentation on May 21st in Portland, Oregon, on Showtime.

Bowling, who trains in Cincinnati with, ironically, Team Vision, was ahead by the scores of 29-28 on the three judges’ scorecards when an excellent, crowd-pleasing fight was halted at 1:38 of the third round after he could not continue due to an unintentional poke in the right eye he had received.

The talented, aggressive-minded Bowling entered the fight, his Strikeforce debut, with high expectations and the rising star lived up to the billing and his nickname as he punished Voelker, particularly during the majority of the first two rounds.
This will be the first start since for Bowling, a pro since June 2007 who had won his seven previous fights inside the distance, six of which came in the first round.

Voelker, who was in the midst of a major rally against Bowling when the bout came to a disappointing end, has maintained a busy schedule since turning pro in February 2006. He has fought once since the Bowling match, winning a hard-fought, three-round split decision over Cory Devela last July 23rd in Everett, Washington.

It was the eighth victory in 11 starts for the hard-trying, determined Voelker, who registered a dramatic, come-from-behind second-round TKO over Erik Apple at Strikeforce Challengers in Kansas City.

“It was unfortunate and frustrating my last fight had to finish that way,’’ Bowling said. “I felt it ruined the first couple rounds that I worked really hard for. But it was just one of those things that can happen. If you get poked in the eye, you can’t open it. And if you can’t open your eye, they’re not going to let you fight.

“Both Roger and I have great hearts and I’m looking forward to doing it again with him.’’ said Voelker, whose left eye was cut in the first. Like he did against Apple, Voelker showed an incredible chin, heart and remarkable resolve and resiliency by staging a dramatic comeback in the third stanza after absorbing an inordinate amount of punishment in the first two rounds.

At the end of the second round, a seemingly exhausted Voelker impressively managed to take down Bowling. It was still going Voelker’s way at the outset of the third as he rocked Bowling, who had never had a fight go past two rounds, with combinations.

But shortly thereafter, moments after the referee had separated the fighters when they were clinched against the cage, one of the seams on the outside of Voelker’s gloves grazed Bowling’s right eye. Unable to continue, the fight went to the scorecards and Bowling got a decision based on the strength of the first two rounds.

“It’s an unfortunate thing,’’ Voelker said. “We had a great war and we just wanted to end it with a great war in the last 3:22. Things happen, accidents happen. He wasn’t able to see and couldn’t continue. He won the first two rounds so he got the decision. There it is. We can do it again. We’ll both be back.’’

The start for Evangelista (10-0, 1 No Contest), a Muay Thai specialist, will be his first since Nov. 6, 2009, when the 5-foot-8, 29-year-old earned a unanimous decision over hard-hitting brawler Jorge Gurgel at a previous Strikeforce Challengers event. An injury sustained in the bout with Gurgel has kept Evangelista sidelined.

In his outing before last on May 15th, 2009, on Strikeforce Challengers, Evangelista fought Mike Aina. The result was initially ruled a victory by disqualification for Aina, but it was later overturned and ruled a no contest by the California State Athletic Commission after Evangelista appealed. Replays showed Evangelista’s knee struck Aina in the shoulder, not the head, as the referee originally believed.

Spiritwolf (8-6-1), a resident of San Diego, Calif., will make his debut for Strikeforce. A two-fight winning streak and three-fight unbeaten streak (2-0-1) in 2010 ended for the 5-foot-8, four-year pro when he lost a decision to Delson Heleno on September 4th.

A Native-American who is of Navajo and Yaqui descent, Spiritwolf registered an impressive first-round TKO over Crafton Wallace in his outing before last on May 22.

Johnson, a second-round TKO (punches) winner over then-undefeated Lolohea Mahe last March 26th in the main event of Strikeforce Challengers at Save Mart Center, will be making his second start since he was gunned down while attending a family BBQ during the July 4th holiday in 2009.

The 6-foot-2, 33-year-old Johnson survived three gunshot wounds sustained during the walk-by shooting that led to the death of a cousin. A father of two boys, ages eight and five, Johnson spent 30 days in a hospital, fighting for his life, and several more months rehabilitating.

Taking all that into consideration, he was pleased with his comeback performance, “I felt great,” he said. “The whole comeback thing was rough, but I took baby steps and came along. Now, I’m ready to fight again.’’

American Top Team’s Gesias “JZ” Cavalcante was long-considered one of the top lightweights in Mixed Martial Arts before enduring a slew of injuries and eventually dropping back-to-back decisions in DREAM against Shinya Aoki and Tatsuya Kawajiri. Prior to the losses, Cavalcante had gone 14-1-1 in the first sixteen bouts of his professional career and had gained a reputation for being both solid on his feet and slick on the ground.

The 27-year old Brazilian bounced back with a split-decision win over Katsunori Kikuno last July after nearly a year-long layoff from the sport, and will apparently look to continue regaining more of his mojo on Strikeforce’s October 9th offering in a bout against former promotional champ Josh “The Punk” Thomson.

The pairing will serve as Cavalcante’s Strikeforce debut and comes after signing a four-fight deal with the company earlier this year.

News of the match-up was originally reported by Cavalcante’s manager, Alex Davis, during a recent conversation with MMAWeekly. Five Ounces of Pain has since confirmed the bout with Strikeforce officials.

Thomson is 9-1 in his last ten bouts with the only loss coming by way of decision to current Strikeforce lightweight title-holder Gilbert Melendez last December. Prior to the fight Thomson hadn’t lost since March 2006. He has only been finished once in a career spanning nearly a decade and is 17-3 overall as a professional.

The card is slated to be headlined by a grudge-match disguised as a title fight in the form of 170-pound champ Nick Diaz defending his belt against rival KJ Noons, as well as feature Sarah Kaufman putting her welterweight strap up for grabs against Marloes Coenen and rising middleweight star Luke Rockhold facing veteran Matt Lindland. The event will take place October 9th in the promotion’s home-base of San Jose, California’s HP Pavilion.

In what many might deem a surprising decision, the UFC has handed 6-1 heavyweight Todd Duffee his walking papers after recently losing the first bout of his career and then withdrawing from a scheduled October fight with Jon Madsen due to a knee injury. Prior to being dropped in the third round by Mike Russow at UFC 114 – a fight he was winning until that point no less – Duffee had finished all six of his previous opponents including five by way of first-frame knockout.

News of the 24-year old’s release was reported by MMAJunkie, though no official reason for the professional separation was given.

While is it too early to know exactly where Duffee will land once the dust has settled it is likely he will draw significant interest from Strikeforce, as well as in Japan, based on his style and hulking physical appearance. A powerful brawler measuring in at 6’3” and around 250 pounds, Duffee was considered to be one of the UFC’s brighter heavyweight prospects. In addition to his streak of TKOs, the Las Vegas native also owns the promotion’s record for fastest knockout in history – a seven-second flattening of Tim Hague at UFC 102 in August 2009.

The feud between current Strikeforce welterweight champ Nick Diaz and current contender KJ Noons has been well-documented both in and out of the cage. The two first squared off in November 2007, then again in a less formal capacity during the closing moments of an EliteXC broadcast, and have been linked as being one of MMA’s most-heated rivalries since.

As such, it stood to reason a war of words between Diaz and Noons might develop during the build towards their October 9th Strikeforce title bout once old feelings began to surface again. However, those who might have presumed the outspoken Diaz would fire the first significant shot would have been wrong, as Noons made it very clear in a recent conversation with Strikeforce his respect for the Stockton native is limited to purely the skills he offers in the ring.

“Nick’s good for entertainment, but I come from a family of fighters,” said Noons. “I started early, and I have respect for martial arts. It teaches you discipline, how to become a good person, and I feel that I am. On October 9th, I’m fighting a guy that, if I had a kid, I wouldn’t want him looking up to. He’s a trash-talking, pot-smoking chump.”

“I already got one up on Nick. I beat the crap out of the guy. He’s had a good run, and there’s a lot of build-up for this rematch. We’ve both improved, this is a different weight class now, he’s gotten better, I’ve gotten better…it’s a different situation. But at the end of the day, I’m a true mixed martial artist, I have respect for the sport, and I am a good role model,” the 27-year old striker continued.

The former EliteXC champ also didn’t shy away from letting fans know his intent or motivation when the action begins in San Jose come that not-too-distant Saturday night. Explained Noons, “This is beyond a grudge match. I’m going to light him up like a Christmas tree. He’s going to have to kill me to lose. It’s very personal.”

Noons is 10-2 in his career and most recently beat Jorge Gurgel via second round TKO at “Strikeforce – Houston” this past August. He is currently on a six fight win streak.

New York City, New York (September 3, 2010) – Forging the development of tomorrow’s MMA superstars today, M-1 Global proudly announces the kick-off of the highly anticipated M-1 Challenge on October 28 at the glamorous Ice Palace in St. Petersburg, Russia, where the first ever M-1 champions will be crowned.

“On this historic evening, M-1 Global will be crowning three world champions,” says Evgeni Kogan, Director of Operations of the mixed martial arts powerhouse, M-1Global. “For the first time ever in M-1’s history, championship belts will be awarded in the lightweight, middleweight, and heavyweight divisions. These are the culminating battles between the M-1 Selection regional champions.”

Lightweight Title Fight:
Artiom Damkovsky, M-1 Selection Eastern Europe 2010 champion (10-4) clashes with
Mairbek Taisumov, M-1 Selection Western Europe 2010 champion (12-2)

Middleweight Title Fight:
Magomed Sultanakhmedov, M-1 Selection Eastern Europe 2010 champion (28-4) meets
Rafał Moks, M-1 Selection Western Europe 2010 champ (5-2)

Heavyweight Title Fight:
Maxim Grishin, M-1 Selection Eastern Europe champion (7-4) battles the undefeated
Guram Gugenishvili, M-1 Selection Western Europe champion (8-0).
-Additional bouts to be announced

The Welterweight and Light Heavyweight championship bouts are being scheduled for later this year in the United States, establishing M-1 Challenge champions in all five weight classes. Once executed, a true contenders system will be established to fuel events throughout 2011, driving M-1 Global’s growth as a leading brand in the US and international markets.

2011 includes a full slate of M-1 Challenge events held in the United States and Europe. These are the mega-event spectaculars where Champions will be crowned, titles defended and contenders’ positions on the ladder will be determined. Feeding the stable of fighters will be two Selection tournaments in 2011 with details being announced shortly.

Free broadcast coverage of the entire 2010 M-1 Challenge event schedule will be available at a later date to viewers worldwide on www.M-1global.com and selected affiliate partner sites.

Go to www.M-1Global.com for additional information.

About M-1 Global:
Founded in 1998 by Vadim Finkelchtein and Sergey Matvienko, M-1 Global has established itself in the realm of mixed martial arts (MMA) as the premiere entity for discovering and developing the world’s next-generation of superstar fighters. With offices in St. Petersburg, Amsterdam, New York City, Washington DC, Los Angeles and affiliates in Kuala Lumpur, Seoul, Tokyo and Paris, the M-1 brand stages its M-1 Selection, M-1 Challenge, M-1 Breakthrough events worldwide and its co-produced Strikeforce events in the United States; captivating the live, television and broadband audiences with its superior production values and match-ups.

M-1 Global’s greatest asset is the number one heavyweight fighter in mixed martial arts history, Fedor Emelianenko. With daily coverage on all MMA-related websites in the world, and articles in Time Magazine, LA times and New York times, Fedor and M-1 Global make a lifetime match serving as the catalyst to grow MMA in the 21st century.