Strikeforce announced its second major SHOWTIME event today and it is set for Saturday, June 6 at the Scottrade Center in St. Louis, Mo. Top-ranked fighters Robbie Lawler (16-4) and Jake Shields (22-4-1) will meet and light heavyweight titlist Babalu Sobral will defnd against Rafael Cavalcante.
The event will be televised live on SHOWTIME® at 10 p.m. ET.
Lawler, a world top-10 middleweight, and Shields, ranked among the top-5 welterweights in the world, will face off at a catch weight of 182 pounds.
Sobral (32-7) will be making the first defense of his Strikeforce Light Heavyweight Championship against vaunted striker and fellow Brazil native Cavalcante (7-1).
"It’s a great opportunity to fight another top-ranked fighter," said the 27-year-old Lawler, a former high school football star known for his stunning knockout power."
"(Strikeforce owner) Scott Coker really stepped up and I’m glad to be fighting for him and Strikeforce," continued Lawler, who was one of many fighters acquired in Strikeforce’s asset purchase from ProElite, Inc., earlier this year. "We were all unsure of where our next fight would be (referring to the former EliteXC stable of fighters), so we’re glad someone with his experience stepped in. He has been good to us."
A seven-time veteran of UFC action, Lawler attracted his biggest audience to date during his live CBS Television Network broadcast rematch with Scott Smith, whom Lawler stopped with an onslaught of kicks and punches in the second round of their headlining matchup in Stockton, Calif., on July 26, 2008.
The 30 year-old Shields, a Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu black belt, is looking to notch his 12th consecutive victory. In his last start, he submitted the explosive Paul Daley with an armbar in the second round of their live CBS broadcast match in Sunrise, Fla., on October 4, 2008.
"It’s a fight that makes sense," said Shields of his upcoming challenge. "We’re both already known to the SHOWTIME viewers. He’s a top middleweight and I’m a top-ranked welterweight. It makes me want to train really hard. I know I’ve got to be ready because, if I’m not, he’s going to kick me in the head or punch me and knock me out. I’m super-excited to come in at my best.
"My grappling’s better than his striking. I’ve been working on my striking a lot, though, and I think it’s a lot better than some people give me credit for. I’m not going to say I’m a better striker than Lawler because that would be stupid. Lawler is one of the better strikers out there."
Also a Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu black belt, the 33-year-old Sobral was crowned the first-ever Strikeforce Light Heavyweight Champion after landing an elbow strike that opened a deep cut around the eye of Bobby Southworth in the first round of their bout at the HP Pavilion in San Jose, Calif., on Nov. 21, 2008. Southworth survived the round, but was deemed unable to continue the fight by the ringside physician before the start of the second round.
Over the course of 39 career starts, Sobral has faced and defeated some of the sport’s best competitors including legendary K-1 and UFC champion Maurice Smith, Chael Sonnen, and Rameau Thierry Sokoudjou, whom he submitted with a choke in his last appearance on January 24, of this year.
On Sept. 6, 2003, Sobral knocked off three top-tier rivals -- Jeremy Horn, Mauricio Rua, and Trevor Prangley -- during a single-elimination tournament.
Referred to simply as "Feijao" by MMA fans, Sobral’s opponent has been on fire of late, stopping all of his last three opponents inside the first round. Only the last of these, Travis Galbraith, whom Feijao faced on July 26, 2008, survived the three-minute mark against the Brazilian sensation.
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