Former Strikeforce Lightweight Champion Josh “The Punk” Thomson and former two-time K-1 HERO’s tournament champ Gesias “JZ” Cavalcante will face off at Strikeforce San Jose: “Diaz vs Noons 2” on October 9th. The fight, first thought to be set for June, was officially announced today.

Thomson and Cavalcante were tentatively scheduled to meet at Strikeforce: “Fedor vs Werdum” on June 26th, but Thomson instead went on to submit veteran Pat “Bam Bam” Healy in the third round. Cavalcante most recently edged Katsunori Kikuno on July 10th in a close fight at Dream.15.

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After close to two years away from the sport, Paulina “Sweetness” Ramirez made a successful return to mixed martial arts tonight at Tachi Palace Fights 6: “High Stakes” in Lemoore, California. The Hanford native bested former training partner Stephanie “Macaquinha” Frausto of Fresno.

Ramirez and Frausto engaged in a back-and-forth bout that was contested entirely on the feet. The fighters split rounds two and three, and Ramirez’s clinch control in the opening stanza proved to be the difference maker on the scorecards as she edged out a razor-thin Split Decision.

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Despite the loss of tournament participant Marcus “Maximus” Aurelio, Shine Fights still intends to move forward with its eight-man Lightweight Grand Prix on Friday. Shine Fights COO Jason Chambers told MMAFighting.com that the First Council Casino in Newkirk, Oklahoma is already “90% sold out.”

However, further investigation reveals that Shine’s unofficial partner for the event, Oklahoma-based promotion C3 Fights, has made similar claims in the past for events that were nowhere near sold out. First Council staff have reportedly handed out hundreds of comped tickets at C3 Fights events.

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The semi-finals of the Bellator Fighting Championships 115-pound women’s tournament will take place at Bellator 31 on September 30th. Megumi “Mega Megu” Fujii faces Lisa Ward for the second time, while Jessica “Jag” Aguilar battles Zoila “The Warrior Princess” Frausto. The promotion confirmed both fights with MMARising.com earlier today.

Fujii and Ward first met in a 2007 bout in BodogFIGHT that saw Fujii prevail with an armbar very late in the first round. Aguilar and Frausto, meanwhile, will look to advance to the tournament final and score an upset victory.

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In an update from yesterday, MMARising.com has confirmed that all fighters on this Friday’s Shine Fights card in Newkirk, Oklahoma will face ineligibility suspensions for taking part in an unsanctioned event. The suspensions, expected to last between 60 and 90 days, are enforceable by all member states in the Association of Boxing Commissions (ABC).

Fighters deemed as “ineligible” will be unable to compete on any sanctioned mixed martial arts cards until the duration of their suspension has expired. All Shine Fights participants will face this distinction.

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With just days to go, Shine Fights has moved their embattled Lightweight Grand Prix to the First Council Casino in Newkirk, Oklahoma. However, the event will now be unsanctioned and MMARising.com has confirmed that the Oklahoma State Athletic Commission will have zero involvement.

Shine Fights representatives contacted the OSAC prior to the event’s move and were informed that the commission would not approve the tournament format that the promotion intends to use. As a result, no commission will be present at the event in Newkirk if it proceeds as planned on Friday.

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Picking up her third straight win, Japanese veteran “Windy” Tomomi Sunaba outlasted boxing standout Monica Lovato in a two-round bout at Pancrase Passion Tour 8. Sunaba used effective leg kicks and knees en route to a competitive but convincing Unanimous Decision.

With the victory, Sunaba remains unbeaten in her 2010 campaign and her career is back on track after a tough 0-4-1 streak against elite opposition. The talented kickboxer controlled much of the bout with Lovato and picked up her biggest win since late 2008 in the process.

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Three more fights have been announced for the upcoming Dream.16 event on September 25th. DREAM Lightweight Champion Shinya “Tobikan Judan” Aoki will face Marcus “Maximus” Aurelio, though Aoki’s title will not be on the line. Aurelio’s planned participation in the Shine Fights Lightweight Grand Prix on September 10th reportedly won’t be an issue.

Also announced were fights pitting former DREAM champ Joachim “Hellboy” Hansen against Japanese veteran Hideo Tokoro, and former Shooto champ “Lion” Takeshi Inoue against wrestling standout Kazuyuki Miyata.

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