Strikeforce Lawler v. Shields Live Coverage


Date: 06/06 6:00 PM
Views: 4,186

Written by Stevie J

From the prelims to the main events our coverage is LIVE so hit F5 or refresh as often as you like for updates! The first match should get underway in the next half hour. They are already testing the pyro and having Jimmy Lennon Jr. practice ring introductions. Brett Rogers is in the ring shadowboxing for the cameras and/or to stay warmed up.

6:15 CST. Kevin Randleman is walking around the cage, bopping to a Common track. It would be impossible to miss him from a mile away with the frosted blonde hair. He looks to be in good shape even with a t-shirt on. While we've got a moment here's the card for tonight.

Lightweight - 155 lbs.
Pat Benson (2-5-2) v. Dave Cochran (16-18)

Middleweight - 185 lbs.
Scott Ventimiglia (12-5-1) vs. Lucas Lopes (6-8)

Welterweight - 170 lbs.
Tyron Woodley (1-0) vs. Salvoder Woods (3-5)

Light Heavyweight - 205 lbs.
Booker DeRousse (1-1) vs. James Wade (5-6)

Light Heavyweight - 205 lbs.
Rafael 'Feijao' Cavalcante (7-1) vs. Mike 'MAK' Kyle (11-6-1)

Catchweight - 175 lbs.
Jessey Finney (3-0) vs. Josh Bumgarner (7-0)

Main Card

Light Heavyweight - 205 lbs.
Kevin 'The Monster' Randleman (17-12) v. 'Iron' Mike Whitehead (23-7)

Welterweight - 170 lbs.
'New York Bad Ass' Phil Baroni (13-10) vs. Joe 'Diesel' Riggs (29-10)

Catchweight - 180 lbs.
Nick Diaz (19-7, 1 NC) vs. Scott 'Hands of Steel' Smith (17-5, 1 NC)

Heavyweight - 206+ lbs.
Andrei 'The Pitbull' Arlovski (15-6) vs. Brett 'The Grim' Rogers (9-0)

Catchweight - 182 lbs.
'Ruthless' Robbie Lawler (16-4, 1 NC) vs. Jake Shields (22-4-1)

6:30 CST. While I was typing this up they did a test run with the referee giving out fight instructions. Scottrade is a nice looking venue. It looks scaled to hold at least 10,000 people although right now the only people here are media, Strikeforce event staff and fighters. Jimmy Lennon Jr. is still practicing in the cage - he rattled off Andrei 'The Pitbull' Arlovski and they had a camera man do the entrance walk with pyros going off on either side.

6:45 CST. Spectators are slowly starting to trickle in. The announcer just reminded us that tonight's event was sponsored by Affliction and to be sure to watch Affliction Trilogy to see Josh Barnett v. FEDOR.

* Dave Cochran v. Pat Benson

And our first prelim is about to begin! Both fighters dance around to begin, finding their range. Takedown about a minute in for Benson, with Cochran trying to hold onto the cage to prevent it. Eventually Benson lets him back up and Cochran seems to take him down in a dominant position but it was all to transition into a ground submission - and with 2:18 left in R1 the winner by armbar is Pat Benson.

* Lucas Lopes v. Scott Ventimiglia

Lopes is from American Top Team and is wearing all black trunks. The crowd is starting to fill in now for the second prelim, although we've got some already drunk fans behind the press row screaming GO BACK TO YOUR OWN COUNTRY at Lopes. Not cool. Of course they are hooting and whistling now for Ventimiglia. He's wearing mostly white trunks and judging by the crowd is the clear fan favorite.

Ring the bell, tap the gloves, we're underway. Ventimiglia is firing leg kicks early but Lopes clipped him with a head shot. Ventimiglia is backing away and trying to stay out of range. Flurry of punches about 50 seconds in. Ventimiglia gets him to the ground and gets side control about a minute in. The people sitting behind me have to fans or friends of Ventimiglia, or the most excited MMA fans in history. They're SCREAMING instructions at Scott - "GET THAT ARM! GET THE ARM!" Lopes tries to get a leg triangle but Ventimiglia rolls through and escapes. Ventimiglia has his back for a second, loses it, they move away from the cage and Scott is on his feet trying to get between his legs and avoid the upkick. Ventimiglia KNOCKS LOPES OUT... or does he? There seems to be a little confusion in the cage. Either way Lopes is not getting up and is hurt badly, and Ventimiglia has gone back to his corner. Finally a doctor waves it off. It was hard to see the punch with fans and cameramen in the way so I'll give you more information as soon as I get it. Lopes is getting up VERY slowly and is clearly not with it. Ventimiglia comes over to make sure he's okay. He's on one knee, leaning his hand on his head.

Big John McCarthy is in the cage, several people from American Top Team are with Lopes, the referee is talking to Ventimiglia right now. Talking to other press the general conclusion is that Ventimiglia hit him with a knee while he was in the four point stance, before he was legal for such a strike, and the fight is probably going to be thrown out as a no contest - but we still haven't gotten an official announcement from Lennon Jr. or anyone else.

DISQUALIFICATION AT 3:26 OF ROUND 1 FOR VENTIMIGLIA FOR AN ILLEGAL KNEE TO THE HEAD. It looks like our third fight is about to get underway. We've got some Jimi Hendrix music playing in the building.

* Tyron 'Tabasco' Woodley v. Salvoder Woods

Woods is wearing the white trunks, Woodley the black shorts. He too represents American Top Team. Woodley looks ripped. Woodley looks more comfortable on the feet. He throws a big overhand right that just misses, backs off from a few retaliatory shots, then hits a HUGE takedown that pops the crowd. Woodley eats a kick and then takes Woods down again. He's stuck in guard and looking to improve. Woods is holding him tight and trying to not let him posture up. They work their way around the fence and Woodley finally manages to throw down some bombs before Woods pulls him back in, but he's worked his way to side and gets a tap to stop the fight. WOODLEY WINS VIA SUBMISSION. We'll get the official time momentarily.

4:20 OF R1 VIA TAPOUT FOR THE WINNER - TYRON 'TABASCO' WOODLEY. He moves to 2-0 in his career. They don't announce the submission so there's some debate as to what finished him. From the position Woodley was in he could have gotten a choke, an arm triangle, or damn near anything. They're running FullTiltPoker ads on the video screen as the next two fighters make their way to the ring.

* James Wade v. Booker DeRousse

Mike England is the referee in charge. The fighter in black with purple trim, weighing in at 205.75 pounds, a record of 5-6, James Wade. In the camou trunks at 204.25 with a record of 1-1 is Booker DeRousse. Both guys get a decent pop but DeRousse may be the crowd favorite. Booker starts pushing Wade around right away, bulls him into the fence, hits a few knees and gets a takedown. Wade pops right back up, eats a knee, gets taken down again, pops right back up, and the two have decided to keep it on the feet. DeRousse looks in good shape while his opponent is a little bit on the pudgy side. The paces slows considerably. Wade tries to get underhooks and Booker grabs the plum for more knees. Booker is completely dominating the standup thus far. BOO-KER, BOO-KER, BOO-KER chant from the St. Louis crowd. Wade seems to be hoping to hit a lucky punch and he's swinging wildly. IT'S A SLOBBERKNOCKER. Bookrer ducks everything he throws, takes him to the round, takes his back, can't sink in the RNC but his opponent is turtled up and eating repeated shots to the head on either side. IT'S ALL OVER - BOOKER WINS. Official time coming momentarily.

4:06 OF ROUND ONE AS THE REFEREE STOPS THE CONTEST VIA TKO IN FAVOR OF 'THE ONE AND ONLY' BOOKER DEROUSSE. The announcer reminds us that Rockstar Energy is sponsoring the fights. If I didn't already noted this Jimmy Lennon Jr. is not doing the announcing for any of the prelims, or at least he hasn't thus far. FEDOR IS IN THE BUILDING. It just went up and down press row. Apparently his PR guy is going around asking sites if they want to interview him.

* Mike 'MAK' Kyle v. Rafael 'Feijao' Cavalcante

Kyle has black trunks with white trim. Feijao has all-black trunks. He gets a very nice pop from the crowd. They have a Team Nog banner hanging over his side of the cage. England is the referee for this fight, and I'm pretty sure he has been for every prelim tonight. Kyle slips on a kick but gets back up quickly. Feijao seems comfortable just following him around, waiting for the right time for a shot or a takedown. Kyle has thrown some good kicks and strikes in this round. Right leg kick is crisp. Feijao backs away from a few jabs. Kyle is glistening with sweat, whereas Feijao seems cool and composed. He may just be trying to let Kyle tire himself out with all the dancing and jabs. Feijao hits a kick to the leg and momentarily makes Kyle wobble. Feijao eats jabs but doesn't seem to be getting hurt. Feijao fires a head kick that's checked. Kyle keeps working the leg kicks. Both fighters get one last strike as the bell rings and then simultaneous apologize to each other. I'd score that 10-9 Kyle.

Feijao gets a takedown in the first 15 seconds of R2. They're right behind a Rockstar Energy ringpost so it's hard to see if Feijao is improving his position. They're slowly working their way to the right and Feijao seems stuck in guard. He eventually stands up hoping to drop bombs as Kyle hopes to fire upkicks. Someone gets a warning about grabbing the fence. Feijao briefly had full mount but Kyle gets back to his feet. He's throwing big shots with his hands now. For such a dominant fighter I really don't understand Feijao's strategy here. IN FACT HE JUST GOT ROCKED BY A SHOT. FEIJAO WOBBLES AND FALLS DOWN SLOWLY. The ref doesn't stop it right away, but when Kyle jumps on and Feijao doesn't defend himself he jumps right in. THIS ONE IS OVER AND KYLE IS THE WINNER. Official time coming momentarily. Feijao is still down and Team Nog is checking him over closely. Healthy round of applause when he finally sits up. We're treated to 2Pac's "Staring Through My Rearview" while we wait.

FIGHT STOPPED VIA TKO AT 4:05 OF THE SECOND ROUND FOR THE WINNER MIKE 'MAGIC' KYLE. Kyle improves to 12-6-1 and Feijao slips to 7-2. That's the surprise of the night for me so far in the prelims, but Feijao's strategy was totally ineffective against Kyle. I'm honestly baffled as to why he wasn't more aggressive. Press row was just tipped off that Barnett is here as well as Fedor. Kyle walked by right in front of our table and got a nice pop from the crowd. One prelim left to go! Music playing is "Party Like a Rockstar." Totally duuude! The building looks almot full now, right up to the rafters. Strikeforce definitely picked the right market for this show. The music mix just went from Shawty Lo's "Dey Know" to Kanye West & T-Pain's "Good Life." Music is heavily hip-hop tonight (and I approve).

* Jesse Finney v. Josh Bumgarner

Blue corner fighter Bumgarner is coming out to Culture Club! Apparently he doesn't want Finney to hurt him or to make him cry. Finney's entrance is to "Party Like a Rockstar." He's out of the red corner wearing the white trunks with red trim. His Finney's MMA team already has his banner hanging over the side of the cage before he even gets to the ring. Nice to see somebody prepared in advance instead of trying to pull it out at the last second when the fighter steps inside the fencing. The ring announcer pumps up the crowd and gives Finney about ten nicknames including, believe it or not, 'Number of the Beast.' Both fighters are given instructions by the ref on mic, so one gets the feeling they're hoping to show this fight during the televised card.

Finney is aggressive early through leg kicks. He ducks a punch from Bumgarner and drops levels for a takedown. Finney has side control about 30-0 seconds later. Bumgarner is eating hard head shots from the left fist of Finney. Finney keeps moving up higher on Bumgarner, sinks in the kimura and IT IS ALL OVER. Very nice crowd pop for Finney! Official time momentarily.

LADIES AND GENTLEMEN REF STOPS THE FIGHT AT 1:55 OF THE FIRST ROUND FOR THE WINNER JESSE FINNEY! Finney takes it upon himself to take the mic and thank the crowd and invite everybody to his afterparty later. "Strikeforce is coming back!"

8:15-8:45 CST. Tim Sylvia came in and sat down cageside. He's taking photographs with the fans and signing autographs. This is the only thing going on until 9 o'clock as the prelims got over really really early. It won't be hard for them to bonus any of them into the main TV show if those fights end early too.

8:50 CST. Jimmy Lennon Jr. has finally arrived and he is running down the main televised card and encouraging the crowd to be really loud tonight.

8:55 CST. Tony LaRussa is announced in the crowd, as well as Ken Shamrock, Pat Miletich, Big Nog, Anderson Silva, Gilbert Melendez and Josh 'The Punk' Thomson. Also in the house - Josh 'Babyface Assassin' Barnett, Fedor Emelianenko (guess it's not a secret any more). Fights starting in a couple of minutes.

9:00 CST. If you've got Showtime tune in now otherwise stay tuned to AngryMarks.com as we bring you live coverage of the fights from St. Louis!

* 'Iron' Mike Whitehead v. Kevin 'The Monster' Randleman

Cue the pyros and the music and we're underway! Whitehead is making his way down to the cage as we speak. Randleman has the "Airborne" eagle flag over his shoulder and is jumping up and down - just as full of adrenaline as when I saw him warming up earlier. He can't even stop once he gets in the cage - he's jumping up and down, raring to go! Whitehead gets a smattering of boos when Lennon introduces him, and Randleman gets put over like a million bucks as a former PRIDE fighter and former UFC Champion - he would have been the fan favorite regardless. Big John McCarthy is our ref for this one. LET'S GET IT ON!

Whitehead misses with a high kick and Randleman takes him to the ground. It only stays there for a moment as Whitehead pops back up to his feet. This time it's Whitehead who gets the takedown and spins around on Randleman looking for a dominant position. Randleman flips his way out of it and stands back up. Whitehead throws a jab and shoots in for a takedown again. He gets it but Randleman rolls right through and winds up on top so we go back to the feet. Whitehead backs him into the fence and takes him down AGAIN. Randleman escapes with about 2 minutes left in the round. Whitehead tries low leg kicks now. Big right uppercut misses. Second one connects and Randleman felt it. McCarthy calls for more work as they get into the fence, and Whitehead takes him down again. Randleman holds him down until the bell. 10-9 for Whitehead in R1.

Whitehead is trying to throw bombs early in R2. He shoots for the takedown and gets it 25 seconds in. McCarthy gives someone a warning for grabbing the glove. Whitehead is grinding out the fight on top and fans behind us are calling for McCarthy to stand it up. With 2:50 left in the round the boos start coming down from all corners of the Scottrade. Randleman tries to sweep out with 2:00 left but Whitehead is smothering him. At 1:40 he gets back to the feet. He's breathing out of his mouth and not keeping his hands up. Whitehead doesn't look fresh either but he has more in the tank than Randleman right now, who he keeps tagging with shots. Another 10-9 round for Whitehead as the crowd boos.

Randleman tags Whitehead with a big right early in R3 but Whitehead fires a strike right back and just misses with a big looping right. Whitehead is showing head movement whereas Randleman just keeps coming forward. HUGE SHOT BY RANDLEMAN KNOCKS WHITEHEAD DOWN. He starts pouring on the hammerfists but Whitehead weathers the storm and gets back up. He's noticeably limping though. Now it's Randleman trying to get the takedown along the cage, but even on one leg Whitehead is holding him off fairly well. They break apart at the 2:30 mark. Whitehead is practically dragging his right leg behind him and STILL manages to take Randleman down. Whitehead seems content to stay on top and hold down Randleman to get the unaninmous position. With 45 seconds to go Randleman pops back up. Randleman's left jab connects but even if he wins this round it's too little too late. The weary warriors dance for the last 10 seconds until the bell. I give this one to Whitehead in all three.

Here's Jimmy Lennon Jr. with the announcement. WE HAVE A UNANIMOUS DECISION - ALL THREE JUDGES SCORE THE BOUT 29-28, ALL IN FAVOR OF THE WINNER 'IRON' MIKE WHITEHEAD. No surprise there. Whitehead fought a smart fight to defeat Randleman, dominating him on the ground. Emelianenko is shown in the crowd and gets a pop. A video package for Baroni v. Riggs is on now.

* Joe 'Diesel' Riggs v. 'New York Bad Ass' Phil Baroni

Riggs is pretty no nonsense on his way to the cage, while Baroni comes out with a red robe that has glittering trim and a pair of shades on. The robe is actually a little big for him as it slips off his shoulder while he's standing on the ramp posing for the pyro. Riggs smiles for the camera as Lennon gives his stats. Baroni looks as trim and fit as he's been claiming in his interviews. Big John McCarthy is reffing this fight as well. LET'S GET IT ON.

Riggs throws a head kick early. Baroni backs him up towards the fence but Riggs gets a takedown and quickly switches to Baroni's back hoping to sink in a choke. He survives but has to turtle for a second before getting his back to the mat with Riggs on top in a dominant spot. he switches to side again, Baroni keeps rolling, eventually just laying on his side. Riggs keeps pushing forward and gets Baroni into the fence. Baroni stands up and Riggs takes him right back down. Up, down. Finally Baroni manages to counter to being on top. McCarthy issues a warning for fingers to the face. Riggs is keeping Baroni close and McCarthy tells him to do something with the position or he'll stand it up. he does with 50 seconds left in the round. Riggs immediately charges in for a takedown. Baroni gets a warning for shots to the back of the head. Baroni winds up on top right before time expires. Close round but Riggs most likely took it.

Baroni is coming out strong in R2, swinging away. Riggs misses with a spinning backfist. Riggs with another takedown one minute in. Baroni pops up and gets a leg trip takedown of his own. Riggs is back up at the two minute mark and a knee and a head shot may have stunned Baroni a little. Riggs clips Baroni after a takedown attempt with a right and a knee and seems able to grab the plum and rock him with more. Baroni goes on defense. He gets a takedown and tries to sink in a submission but Riggs survives and is okay with 40 seconds to go. The bell rings with Baroni on top again. That may have been even closer than the first round. I'm inclined to give one to Riggs and two to Baroni, which means the third round is the money round now.

Riggs is firing low leg kicks to start R3. A left knee and a jumping left knee both connect. A left head kick seems to have found range. A spinning right kick to the gut. Riggs is either getting cocky or feels Baroni has no answer. Flying knee one minute in. Baroni seems to be wearing down either from the offense or from a hard weight cut - possibly both. Baroni hasn't done much in this round other than backpedal and duck. Another knee finds the mark with 2:15 left. Left head kick follows. Riggs tags Baroni easily with a left-right combo. McCarthy with a reminder to keep the hands closed. Riggs is definitely playing this up for the camera now - he even stopped and posed. Baroni's will appears to be broken. Knees and rights. Baroni is surviving but just barely. Riggs with a takedown as the clapper sounds 10 seconds. Crowd seems much happier with this fight. I'd score it 29-28 unanimous for Riggs.

Riggs and Sylvia exchange daps. Here's Jimmy Lennon Jr. as we GO TO THE JUDGES SCORECARDS. ALL THREE JUDGES SCORE IT 30-27 FOR THE WINNER: JOE 'DIESEL' RIGGS. Wow, Baroni didn't get a round on a single card. I'm a little shocked by that. Baroni was not winning the fight but he wasn't blown out to the degree the score would indicate. In the post-fight interview Riggs says he broke both hands during the fight. He puts over Baroni as a world class fighter and great competitor. Riggs gives shoutouts to his family, friends and the crowd as the interviewer throws it back to Mauro Ranallo. Nick Diaz v. Scott Smith is up next!

Announced live in the building and on the TV feed is that Strikeforce has signed Gina 'Conviction' Carano vs. Christiane 'Cyborg' Santos for August 15th.

* Scott 'Hands of Steel' Smith v. Nick Diaz

Smith comes out first, then Diaz, and Diaz wastes no time heading straight for the cage and getting his black hoodie off. Big John McCarthy is in charge for this fight as well. Here we go!

Diaz charges right in and starts throwing shots. Smith gets underhooks and pushes him up against the fence before the two break apart. Diaz openly mocks Smith - you can hear him saying "come on, hit me." Diaz continues to pepper away at Smith as he backs away and looks for an opportunity. Leg kick catches Smith. DI-AZ, DI-AZ chant breaks out. McCarthy pulls them apart at 2:45 to go. Diaz gets Smith up against the fence, jabbing away at the ribs. Diaz' mockery nearly backfires as Smith catches him with one solid shot. Smith pushes him up against the fence and Big John calls for more work. Smith with a nice takedown and just a minute to go but Diaz recovers fast and we're back to striking on the feet. The crowd is popping for every big shot by either man. Diaz avoids a flurry and gets a takedown right before the bell, and the whole crowd pops up to salute both men.

Slugfest in the first 20 seconds of R2. Diaz seems to be getting the better of it. Smith's nose looks red. Smith goes behind 45 seconds in and tries to pick Diaz up. He's unsuccessful but gets in a couple of good strikes after they break. Diaz clips Smith with a really nice right and fires off a series of body shots - Smith may have been out for a split second. He appears noticeably slowed now. McCarthy just warned Smith that he needs to fight back. He eats about 8 or 9 shots and only fires off one in return. He seems wobbly. Diaz is tagging him almost at will. Smith tries a spinning head kick in desperation that pops the crowd. Looks like Smith weathered the storm and with 1:50 to go he's holding Nick against the fence. McCarthy breaks them apart and Diaz starts tagging Smith again. Left head kick is just barely checked. Another follows. Low leg kick by Smith in response. Smith backs away to avoid another head kick. Smith scores with another leg kick. Diaz is sick of Smith backing away and mocks him again. Smith catches another right but it's not enough to finish him. 20 seconds left. Diaz goes body head body head and Smith grapevines a leg to survive for the third round. McCarthy comes over to check on him as they bring out the stool.

Smith offers a hand to start round three and Diaz slaps it away. That may have incited Smith as he throws a better series of strikes in the open of this round than he has in minutes. Smith gets him against the fence and McCarthy breaks them apart. Smith eats a body shot that either slumps him or he grabbed a leg to survive - probably both. Diaz looks to take advantage, rolls him over for the submission and locks it in easily. THIS ONE IS ALL OVER AND DIAZ HAS TAPPED OUT SMITH.

Here's Jimmy Lennon Jr. with the official announcement. WE HAVE THE TIME OF 1:41 IN ROUND NUMBER THREE, AN ARM CHOKE ENDS THE FIGHT FOR THE WINNER BY WAY OF SUBMISSION - NICK DIAZ! Diaz is both loved and hated by this crowd, although in his post-fight promo he does give Smith credit for having a lot of heart and giving him a good fight. He gives praise and recognition to Cesar Gracie as the post-fight promo ends. We see Arlovski warming up on the big screen.

* Brett 'The Grim' Rogers v. Andrei 'The Pitbull' Arlovski 

Strikeforce is wasting no time bringing out this fight. Rogers is in the cage by 10:40 CST. Arlovski is definitely a star in St. Louis. From the moment his music started snarling the crowd were on their feet, and he gets another round of applause once he steps inside the fence. Lennon is reminding us this bought is sponsored by Affliction and that we should be sure to catch Affliction: Trilogy on PPV, August 1st. This is a pure heel and babyface dynamic, with Rogers as the big bad bully and Arlovski as the scrappy babyface. I would have expected Rogers to be more liked due to his knockouts and his quick ascent to stardom, but this crowd is 95% or more in Arlovski's favor. Big John McCarthy signals to both men - LET'S GET IT ON!

IT IS OVER IN UNDER THIRTY SECONDS - ROGERS CLIPPED HIM AND POURED ON THE PUNISHMENT AS ARLOVSKI SANK. MCCARTHY MAKES THE SAVE AND ROGERS DOES IT AGAIN WITH ANOTHER STUNNING PUNCH OF DOOM. The crowd goes OHHHHHH every single time the combo that rocked Arlovski is shown on the replay.

OFFICIAL TIME OF 22 SECONDS BY WAY OF KNOCKOUT FOR THE STILL UNDEFEATED BRETT 'THE GRIM' ROGERS. He's still getting some heat but not nearly as much as some people are clearly impressed by the victory. Rogers is very gracious and thanks Arlovski for giving him the chance to prove he's for real. Rogers says he's happy that he defeated Arlovski because now he can buy his family a home. The interviewer asks if Fedor or Barnett is next. "Anybody man, anybody!"

John Beyrooty lets us know the official attendance for tonight is 8,867. If there's an empty seat in the house I can't spot it. I'm told that on the TV feed they are interviewing Barnett and Fedor to fill time.

* 'Ruthless' Robbie Lawler v. Jake Shields

Shields is first out to the cage. They give him the pyro fireballs AND a few exploding fireworks as he comes out. Lawler gets a big burst of fireworks too. His entrance music is either M.O.P. or a really good knockoff, as I hear Billy Danze over and over saying "Let's get it on. I'm 7:30!!" Lennon: "Live from St. Louis, it's SHOWTIME!" Shields is fighting out of the blue corner and Lawler out of the red. Lawler has red and black trunks on, Shields black and white. Big John gives clear and concise instructions and it's time to GET IT ON.

Both men are jockeying for position in the first minute, with nobody establishing themselves on the ground or the feet. Lawler pushes him into the fence and throws a knee when they break apart. Shields is throwing good kicks. Marks in the crowd are yelling out instructions. "THROW YOUR UPPERCUT JAKE!!" Yes I'm sure he'll listen to you instead of his corner. Shields and Lawler go to the ground again and SHIELDS GETS A LIGHTNING QUICK SUBMISSION. I have to give it to my guests on AMP last Thursday - they had this fight pegged correctly. Lennon will give us the time momentarily. Replay shows that Shields had the head guillotined tight even as it was going to the ground.

2:02 IN R1 FOR THE WINNER BY GUILLOTINE CHOKE SUBMISSION - JAKE SHIELDS. The interviewer comes out to congratulate him on a spectacular submission. Shields thanks Lawler for taking the fight and says he's one of his favorite fighters. He says this is nowhere near his best, and he's looking forward to whoever is thrown in front of him, friend or otherwise, he wants to get that belt. Robbie Lawler gets a brief interview as well before they throw back to Mauro Ranallo. That's it for live coverage of Strikeforce in St. Louis! Enjoy the bonus fights if they show any.



comments powered by Disqus