In addition to a major Showtime event on June 26th, Strikeforce is reportedly planning a second card for Wednesday, June 16th at the Nokia Theatre in Los Angeles, California. MMAjunkie.com first reported on the second planned event, which is also expected to air on the Showtime network.

While no bouts have been officially announced, the Los Angeles event may be headlined by a middleweight rematch between final Elite Middleweight Champion “Ruthless” Robbie Lawler and fellow former ICON Sport champ Jason “Mayhem” Miller, who submitted Lawler in 2006.

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Strikeforce has confirmed a pair of fights for the eighth instalment of its Challengers Series, which takes place on May 21st at the Rose Garden in Portland, Oregon. Undefeated prospect Tyron “T-Wood” Woodley will face SportFight Welterweight Champion Nathan Coy in the night’s main event. ULTMMA.com first reported on the planned bout.

Also on the card, Muay Thai standout Kerry Vera will look to keep her unblemished record intact when she faces Julianna “The Venezuelan Vixen” Peña in a 135-pound women’s bout. Peña has also yet to taste defeat.

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Three weeks after stating intentions to leave Strikeforce and possibly retire, Erin Toughill has reconsidered and now plans to stay with the promotion. Citing “basic miscommunications” which have since been resolved, Toughill plans to remain on the Strikeforce roster and aims to return soon.

Strikeforce representative and fighter liaison Shannon Knapp was said to be instrumental in bringing the two sides together in correcting issues that resulted in a frustrated Toughill contemplating retirement in March. She will take time off and intends to fight for Strikeforce later in the year.

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Strikeforce Women’s Middleweight (145-Pound) Champion Cristiane “Cyborg” Santos will likely return to Strikeforce action in June against an opponent to be determined. The promotion’s CEO, Scott Coker, made the announcement this evening during an interview with MMAWeekly Radio.

Santos successfully defended her title in a January bout with Dutch standout Marloes “Rumina” Coenen at Strikeforce: Miami. The Brazilian star stopped Coenen in the third round, but now faces a dilemma as Strikeforce struggles to find a suitable challenger for her 145-pound championship.

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Close to two years after they were first set to face each other, Strikeforce Welterweight Champion Nick Diaz and Japanese legend Hayato “Mach” Sakurai will square off at Dream.14 on May 29th. The non-title bout could serve as the main event of the card, which was formally announced today.

Diaz and Sakurai were originally scheduled to compete at Dream.5 in July of 2008 in a bout that was rumoured to be for the first DREAM Welterweight Championship. Diaz was pulled from the event for a fight in EliteXC and has since captured the Strikeforce Welterweight Championship.

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With just under two months to go before UFC 114: “Jackson vs Evans,” the Ultimate Fighting Championship has confirmed the full 11-fight lineup for the May 29th card. The event is headlined by a 205-pound grudge match between former UFC Light Heavyweight Champions Quinton “Rampage” Jackson and “Sugar” Rashad Evans.

Also announced for the pay-per-view portion of the card was a heavyweight tilt between undefeated rising star Todd Duffee, who is coming off of a crushing seven-second knockout win, and PRIDE veteran Mike Russow.

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The first major sanctioned MMA event in the state of Massachusetts could feature a rematch between two of the top female fighters in the sport. Former champions Tara LaRosa and Roxanne Modafferi may square off for a second time at the upcoming Moosin: “God of Martial Arts” card on May 21st.

Modafferi and LaRosa are tentatively set to do battle at a catchweight of 130 pounds. The fight has received official approval from Strikeforce, to which Modafferi is currently under contract. LaRosa won the pair’s first meeting at 135 pounds in March 2006 via three-round decision.

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After injuries resulted in a series of postponements, welterweight standouts Jon Fitch and Thiago “Pitbull” Alves are set to compete in a long-awaited rematch at UFC 115 on June 12th in Vancouver, British Columbia. UFC President Dana White confirmed the news late tonight.

Most recently, Fitch and Alves were set to square off at UFC 111, but Alves was forced to withdraw from the fight after a pre-fight CT scan detected a brain anomaly. He has since undergone surgery to correct the problem and will be ready to return on the much-discussed June card.

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