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DAN HENDERSON TO CHALLENGE JAKE SHIELDS FOR STRIKEFORCE
MIDDLEWEIGHT TITLE AT BRIDGESTONE ARENA IN NASHVILLE, TENN., ON APRIL 17
Gegard
Mousasi Will Defend Light Heavyweight Crown Against “King Mo,” Gilbert
Melendez Risks Lightweight Belt Against Top-Seeded Rival Shinya Aoki
Tickets
For World Championship Tripleheader Go On Sale Friday, March 5; Pre-Sale
Begins Tomorrow/Wednesday, March 3, via “STRIKEFORCE
Insider”
NYC/NASHVILLE,
Tenn. –Mixed martial arts (MMA) legend and two-time United States
Olympic wrestling competitor Dan Henderson (25-7) will challenge STRIKEFORCE
World Middleweight (185 pounds) Champion Jake Shields (24-4-1) in the main
event of a highly anticipated STRIKEFORCE fight card at Bridgestone Arena
(formerly known as Sommet Center) in Nashville on Saturday, April 17.
In other featured bouts, STRIKEFORCE World Light Heavyweight
(205 pounds) Champion Gegard Mousasi (28-2-1) will defend his crown against
undefeated MMA star and two-time NCAA All-American wrestling star “King Mo”
(6-0) while STRIKEFORCE World Lightweight (155 pounds) Champion Gilbert “El
Nino” Melendez (17-2) will put his title on the line against DREAM Champion
and top-ranked Japanese superstar Shinya Aoki (23-4).
An exclusive special pre-sale ticket purchase opportunity for
STRIKEFORCE: Henderson vs. Shields will take place for “STRIKEFORCE Insider”
e-newsletter subscribers (www.strikeforce.com/signup.asp)
beginning at 10 a:m. CT tomorrow/Wednesday, March 3, and ending at 10 p.m.
CT on Thursday, March 4. STRIKEFORCE Insiders will receive a special
e-newsletter Tuesday tonight with the pre-sale code.
Tickets go on sale to the general public at 10 a.m. CT on
Friday, March 5 at Bridgestone Arena ticket office, all Ticketmaster
locations (800) 745-3000, Ticketmaster online (www.ticketmaster.com)
and STRIKEFORCE’S official website (www.strikeforce.com).
One of the most decorated
figures in the history of MMA, Henderson, who left the UFC to sign a
multi-year agreement with STRIKEFORCE in December 2009, is the only fighter
in the sport’s history to simultaneously hold two different titles in two
different weight classes (welterweight and heavyweight) for a major fight
promotion (PRIDE Fighting Championships).
The 31-year old-Shields, a Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu black
belt and resident of San Francisco, captured the vacant STRIKEFORCE
middleweight crown with a unanimous five-round decision over fellow
superstar Jason “Mayhem” Miller in a live CBS primetime televised matchup at
Sears Centre Arena in Hoffman Estates, Ill., on Nov. 7, 2009. Shields, who
has not suffered a defeat since December 14, 2004, will put a 13-fight win
streak on the line when he faces Henderson.
Since 2006, the 24-year-old Mousasi has reeled off
15 consecutive victories to become the top 205-pound fighter in the world.
An aggressive, Dutch-Armenian fighter, who relocated with his family from
Iran to The Netherlands when he was four-years-old, captured the STRIKEFORCE
light heavyweight title by impressively stopping Renato “Babalu” Sobral one
minute into the first round of their meeting at HP Pavilion in San Jose,
Calif. on Aug. 15, 2009.
Unbeaten since he made his MMA debut in Japan with a first round (2:11) TKO
over Travis Wiuff on Sept. 28, 2008, the 28-year-old King Mo is a former
NCAA Division I All-American and Big 12 wrestling champion for Oklahoma
State University. With a mere 11 months of MMA experience under his belt,
the Murfreesboro, Tenn.-born fighter decimated two-time UFC tournament
champion and MMA legend Mark “The Smashing Machine” Kerr just 25 seconds
into their meeting with a barrage of punches on Aug. 28, 2009.
Melendez, a 27-year-old
Muay Thai and Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu stylist, reclaimed the STRIKEFORCE
lightweight belt from the man who took it from him – Josh “The Punk” Thomson
– with a five-round unanimous decision in one of the most ferocious battles
of all time in the cage at HP Pavilion on Dec. 19, 2009. The stunning
victory came just four months after the San Francisco native avenged the
only other defeat of his career by stopping Japanese wrestling ace Mitsuhiro
“The Endless Fighter” Ishida with an onslaught of punches in the third round
(3:56) of a rematch on Aug. 15, 2009.
The 26-year-old Aoki, a dangerous submission expert
who holds a black belt in both Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu as well as judo, is
recognized as one of the sport’s premiere 155-pound fighters. His
tremendous flexibility has allowed him to surprise many opponents, thus
earning him the nickname “Tobikan Judan,” which is Japanese for “master of
flying submissions.”
On Oct. 6, 2009, Aoki seized the DREAM lightweight
title by submitting superstar Joachim Hansen with an armbar in the second
round (4:56) of a championship bout in Yokohama, Japan.
The event will air live on the CBS Television Network on
April 17.
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