Six local fighters weigh-in for Strikeforce Show at the Sports Arena
Featured on Saturday's Strikeforce undercard at the Valley View Casino Center are two local fighters, Herman Terrado (L) of San Diego's Undisputed Fitness and Training Center Downtown going up against Chris Brown of Santee.
Results of Friday’s official weigh-in for Strikeforce: Melendez vs. Masvidal, airing Saturday, December 17 at 10:30 p.m. on Showtime. The event is headlined by the Strikeforce lightweight title fight between Gilbert Melendez versus Jorge Masvidal, and the Strikeforce women’s featherweight title bout between Cris “Cyborg” Santos and Hiroko Yamanaka.
Main and Co-main event
Gilbert Melendez (L) vs. Jorge Masvidal (R).
Jorge Masvidal (22-6) 155 pounds versus Gilbert Melendez (19-2) 155 pounds
Melendez stands 5’ 9” tall, is 28 years-old and from San Francisco, CA. His credentials: He’s a two-time and current Strikeforce lightweight champion, former WEC lightweight champion and has a brown belt in jiu-jitsu from Cesar Gracie.
His opponent, Masvidal from Miami, Florida is 27 years-old and stands 5’ 11” tall. His accomplishments in the pro ranks? He’s beaten a lot of the top 10 ranked fighters to include the reigning Japanese champion, Satoru Kitaoka, by knockout.
San Diego's pride and joy, Cris Cyborg Santos of Pacific Beach poses for a photo after her Friday weigh-in for Saturday's contest versus Hiroko Yamanaka of Japan.
Cris “Cyborg” Santos (10-1) 145 pounds versus Hiroko “Cat’s Eye” Yamanaka (12-1) 145 pounds
On Saturday night at the Valley View Casino Center, Hiroko Yamanaka of Japan will try to do the impossible, beat the reigning pound for pound, female MMA World Champion, Cris Cyborg Santos.
The key fight in Santos’ career? The fight against Gina Carano, where she won the belt and proved herself to be the best female MMA fighter in the world. Santos who is 26 years-old, is a local who lives in Pacific Beach, CA.
Her opponent, Yamanaka, is 33 years-old, stands 5’11” tall and hails from Kisarazu, Chiba, Japan. Her favorite grappling technique is the armbar and her favorite striking technique is the right cross.
Gregard Mousasi of Holland (L) faces off with Ovince St. Preux (R) after their weigh-in on Friday.
Featured bouts
Ovince St. Preux (11-4) 206 pounds versus Gegard Mousasi (31-3-2) 206 pounds
Mousasi, who turned pro in 2003, is 26 years old and stands 6’1” tall. He began his Mixed Martial Arts training with Judo at age eight. The titles he has held? Dream middleweight and light heavyweight champion and former Strikeforce light heavyweight champion.
His opponent, St. Preux (11-4), is a former football player from Knoxville, Tennessee. He’s 28 years-old and stands 6’3” tall. His favorite grappling technique is the guillotine and his favorite striking technique is the high kick and superman punch.
Billy Evangelista (R) always wanted the chance to face the formidable K. J. Noons. On Saturday at the Valley View Casino Center he'll get that opportunity.
Billy Evangelista (11-1-1) 156 pounds versus K. J. Noons (9-3) 156 pounds
Evangelista, who is 31 and from Fresno, CA, has a very interesting history. After graduating from Fresno City College in 1999, he enlisted in the army for a 3-year tour going Airborne Infantry.
K. J. Noons from San Diego, now 29 years old, has done it all. He holds a Black Belt in American Kenpo Karate, a 12-2 Pro Boxing record, and a 13-1 Pro Kickboxing/Muay Thai record. “I come from a family of fighters. My father was a fighter. As a kid I was put in martial arts and competed in boxing and kickboxing throughout high school. I became a pro boxer at 18 and the MMA came later.
After their weigh-in for Saturday's Strikeforce meeting, Justin Wilcox (L) and Caros Fodor (R) face off.
Caros “The Future” Fodor (9-2) 156 pounds versus Justin “The Silverback” Wilcox (11-3-0-1) 156 pounds
Wilcox is 5’6” tall and 31 years of age. Wilcox went 15-0 and held the Midwest’s most prestigious amateur belt, the Cut Throat MMA Heavyweight title. His favorite striking technique is the knees to the head.
Fodor, who is from Kirkland, Washington, stands 5’9” tall and is 26 years-old. Ask about his favorite grappling and striking techniques? “My favorite grappling move is the one I grab in practice all the time, which is the flying arm bar from the clinch. My favorite striking technique would be the high nine to the face, aka “The Cro Cop”.
Despite his failure to reach the catch-weight, Jerron Peoples and his opponent Roger Bowling will be going ahead with their match. Peoples will hold a 10 pound weight advantage.
Jerron Peoples (4-1) 180.5 pounds* versus Roger “Relentless” Bowling (9-2) 170 pounds
Even though this will be the fifth Strikeforce appearance by Bowling, three of those bouts were against Bobby Voelker with Voelker winning the rubber match in July with a second round TKO. Therefore the only losses on his record have been to Voelker and seven of his nine victories came prior to the final bell with five TKOs and two submissions.
Peoples will have the crowd behind him as he hails from San Diego. He opened his career with four straight TKO wins before dropping his Strikeforce debut via TKO against Eduardo Pamplona at Challengers 16 in June. Peoples possesses heavy hands but Bowling hits very hard and will be more accurate than Peoples. In addition, Bowling will have the grappling advantage and may want to go that route rather than risk the big shot from Peoples who has the advantage of weighing 10 pounds more.
Unable to make the agreed-upon catchweight, Peoples will be forfeiting money from his purse. Bowling, confident about defeating his abilities, agreed to go ahead with the fight.
Bowling, who is from Cincinnati, Ohio, stands 5’9” tall and is 28 years-old. His favorite grappling technique is the armbar and his favorite striking technique is his left hook.
When you're a big boy like Gabriel Salinas-Jones (R) and Devin Cole, weight doesn't matter come weigh-in time. It's just a formality.
Gabriel Salinas-Jones (5-0) 265 pounds versus Devin Cole (19-9-1) 248 pounds
Cole, who is from Medford, Oregon, stands 6’4” tall and is 35 years-old. Accomplishments? NAIA College Wrestling All-American. He graduated from Southern Oregon University in 2003 with a B.S. in Health Promotion and Fitness Management with a minor in Math.
There’s an interesting tale about how Salinas-Jones of Chicago, Illinois got started in MMA.
“When I was 19 and doing strongman competitions, I started working as the strength and conditioning coach at Virginia Tech. I’d go to this gym to lift weights. (Note well, Gabriel, who is now 26, is 6’1” tall and weighs 265 pounds)
“So there’s this little Jiu-Jitsu class and this little wiry instructor by the name of Richard Jesse. He came over and sat down on a machine next to me. He wasn’t there to lift, he was trying to get me to come to his class. At the time, I thought it was kind of stupid. So I went, figuring I’d go and beat up this little 145 pound guy. We rolled for about 10 to 15 minutes and he tapped me out about five times. There are a lot of people in BJJ and MMA who think it’s kind of cool, but once they get their butt kicked, they either want to get better or don’t because it’s too hard. I didn’t like getting my butt kicked, so I went back to train with him and I’ve been training ever since. Richard Jessie got me into the sport because he kicked my butt.”
Fernando Gonzalez, a local fighter from the Team Quest Team of Temecula (L) will be going up against Eddie Mendez (R).
Eddie Mendez (5-1-1- 1 NC) 186 pounds versus Fernando “The Menifee Maniac” Gonzalez (17-9) weighed 186 pounds.
Mendez, who is from Sun Valley, CA, is 27 years-old and stands 5’ 9” tall. His thoughts about fighting Gonzalez: “Thoughts on opponent, Fernando Gonzalez? I really don’t know much about him. I do have respect for him outside the cage, but once that cage door closes, I’m there to work and nothing else matters. Once it’s over, I will gladly be respectful towards him.”
Gonzalez is another local fighter. He stands 5’9” tall, is 28 years-old, trains at Team Quest in Temecula, CA and lives in Murrieta, CA. The high point in his career? Gonzalez ko’ed Heath “Cowboy” Harris for the WBC U. S. title.
Herman "the Hitman" Terrado
Herman “The Hitman” Terrado (6-2) 170.5 pounds is going up against Chris Brown (5-0) who weighed 170 pounds
Both gentleman are locals from the San Diego area.
Terrado is well known, not only for being a great fighter, but for being a top MMA instructor at the Undisputed Fitness and Training Center Downtown at 16th and K Streets. He’s only 22 years old and stands 5’9” tall.
Brown, who stands 6’1” tall and is 26 years-old, hails from Santee, CA. Before Strikeforce came along, he worked all sorts of jobs in construction. This will be his very first fight for Strikeforce.
