Weekly MMA Roundup: Jardine Loses Again, Dream Bolsters Lineup

Though there may not have been any mainstream MMA events this weekend, Shine Fights and Shark Fights managed to entertain the few people that watched their shows. Drew Fickett won Shine Fights eight-man one-night lightweight tournament by submitting all three of his opponents in a combined time of less than eight minutes. Though it wasn’t over stellar competition, Charles Bennet being the most recognizable of the three, winning three fights in one night gives Fickett something to brag about and should land him in a bigger promotion in the near future. Strikeforce would be a perfect fit.

In the main event of Shark Fights 13, Keith Jardine lost his fifth fight in a row, this one to Trevor Prangley by split-decision. Though it was far from an embarrassing defeat, it was against a natural middleweight that Jardine was hoping to kickoff his comeback against. Jardine had a good run in the UFC, but it appears to be that time when everyone but the fighter himself can see it is over.

In the co main event of Shark Fights 13, former UFC knockout artists Houston Alexander and Rameau Sokoudjou gave the crowd what they wanted with a back and forth brawl that saw Alexander almost out in the first round only to battle back and stop Sokoudjou in the second frame. It was a display of exactly what makes these fighters exciting: ferocious power and cringing vulnerability. The officiating was dangerously awful, as the ref allowed Alexander to end the first round with two blatant and hard headbutts, and then refused to stop the fight as an unconscious Sokoudjou took around 20 extra blows on the ground. This is exactly the kind of thing that everyone complains about but nothing is ever done to rectify the situation.

FEG announced three more bouts for Dream 16 this week. Hiroyuki Takaya—who is coming off a surprising knockout victory over Joachim Hansen—will take on former WEC bantamweight champ Chase Beebe, Michihiro Omigawa will face former WEC featherweight champ Cole Escovedo, and Mitsuhiro Ishida will meet Akiyo Nishiura. Dream is currently in negotiations with “Kid” Yamamoto. This is looking to be one of the better Dream cards in some time.

Roger Bowling will face Bobby Voelker in a rematch to headline Strikeforce Challengers 11. Their first bout ended early in the third round due to an unintentional finger in the eye of Bowling, but Bowling still won by technical decision. Also on the card will be the return of undefeated prospect Billy Evangelista against Waachiim Spiritwolf.

Strikeforce announced today that they have signed top heavyweight Josh Barnett. It is another great addition to their ever-growing heavyweight division that also now features Sergei Kharitonov. I would like to see Strikeforce pick up new free agent Todd Duffee and veterans like Jeff Monson and Tim Sylvia. Also, is it for sure that Aleksander Emelianenko is unable to perform in the U.S.? Most likely, but it would be great if he could.