Fresh off of a victory at K-1 Dynamite!! on New Year’s Eve in Japan, middleweight knockout king “Marvellous” Melvin Manhoef will make his Strikeforce debut on January 30th at Strikeforce: Miami in Sunrise, Florida. An opponent for the hard-hitting striker has not yet been announced.

With all but one of his victories coming by knockout, Manhoef is one of the most explosive fighters in the entire division, but his disdain for the ground game has hindered his progress in recent years. Manhoef will look to make a big statement when he competes for Strikeforce for the first time.

Manhoef (24-6-1) stopped 2006 PRIDE Welterweight Grand Prix Champion Kazuo “The Hitman” Misaki in less than two minutes in a featured bout on the Dynamite!! card, but Misaki has since filed an official protest due to what appeared to be an early stoppage by the referee. Manhoef only competed in MMA one other time in 2009 and succumbed to an armbar from former WEC Middleweight Champion Paulo “Ely” Filho at Dream.10.

Splitting his time between K-1 kickboxing bouts and mixed martial arts, Manhoef is one of the most feared strikers in the world and is arguably the most devastating knockout artist in all of MMA. He made headlines by knocking out granite-chinned former K-1 World Grand Prix Champion Mark Hunt in just 18 seconds at K-1 Dynamite!! 2008 despite giving up nearly 100 pounds to the much larger Hunt.

With a number of interesting matchups available in Strikeforce, including a potential fight with fellow striker and former EliteXC Middleweight Champion “Ruthless” Robbie Lawler, Manhoef will look to position himself for a title shot against reigning Strikeforce Middleweight Champion Jake Shields. Fans who have yet to see Manhoef compete will quickly become familiar with his ultra-aggressive style.

Strikeforce: Miami takes place on January 30th at the BankAtlantic Center in Sunrise, Florida. The event airs live on Showtime in the United States and Super Channel in Canada.