 |
| Strikeforce Middleweight Champ Luke Rockhold will be tested in his first title defense against former UFC veteran Keith Jardine. |
Rockhold, who defeated Ronaldo "Jacare" Souza in September to win the middlweight title, was believed to be preparing for a bout with Tim Kennedy. However, Kennedy suffered an undisclosed injury and had to pull out of the fight before it was officially announced. Rockhold (@rockholdMMA) teased fans on Twitter of who is next opponent might be, saying "Can's say who or when fight is but they should release soon! Not who u would expect". That got minds of fans and media racing to figure out who his opponent would be. It is safe to say that NOBODY could have guessed Jardine.
"The Dean of Mean" will be making just his second appearance on a Strikeforce card after a bout against Gegard Mousasi in March of this year, which ended in a draw. Jardine has a storied career that includes wins over Forrest Griffin, Brandon Vera and Chuck Liddell. However, it has been a career spent as a light heavyweight or heavyweight fighter.
This will be Jardine's first foray into the middleweight division and it leads many to wonder how his first middleweight bout is for the Strikeforce middleweight title. With other worthy middleweights, it's worth mentioning that a fight card with Jardine headlining could do more to entice audiences to watch than a fight card without it. That is pure speculation, but MMA is a business and everyone wants to see a profit for their product.
In any case, the middleweight bout is set. It will be the champ Luke Rockhold defending his title against Keith Jardine on January 7, 2012. I'd say expect the unexpected, but this bout can't be more surprising than its announcement.
Follow me on Twitter @NiteshDutt.
No comments:
Post a Comment