With a world title shot on the line, Strikeforce women's welterweight pros- pects Miesha "Takedown" Tate, Carina "Beauty But The Beast" Damm, Hitomi "Girlfight Monster" Akano and Maiju Kujala will compete in the first-ever Strikeforce MMA women's single-elimination tour- nament at "Strikeforce: Challengers" on Friday, Aug. 13, from Dodge Theatre in Phoenix, Ariz., live on Showtime.  The draw to determine the semi-final matchups for the two-round tournament will take place at the official weigh-in on Thursday, Aug. 12. A complete list of tournament rules will be provided in the coming days.

Bellator brings its action-packed brand of mixed martial arts to the Big Easy this fall during a nationally-televised show at the Mahalia Jackson Theater for the Per- forming Arts in downtown New Orleans on Thursday, Sept. 9. Bellator 28, will be headlined by two semifinal-round bouts in Bellator’s ongoing season three tour- naments as well as two “Qualifier Fights” for Bellator’s season four lightweight and featherweight tournaments. Those fights will feature Rich “No Love” Clementi vs. Carey Vanier, and Georgi “Insane” Karakhanyan vs. Chas Skelly.

Diego Sanchez and Paulo Thiago have verbal agreements in place to square off at UFC 121 in a welterweight match-up. Though not officially announced, UFC 121 is slated for Oct. 23 in Anaheim, Calif. at the Honda Center. The event is expected to be headlined by a UFC heavyweight title bout between current champ Brock Lesnar and challenger Cain Velasquez.

It has already been a whirlwind year for five-time UFC champion Randy Couture, with a win over fellow Hall of Famer Mark Coleman in February, a role in the highly-anticipated film “The Expendables” this summer, and an impending battle with James “Lights Out” Toney coming up in August.  So when he recently witnessed the unveiling of his UFC Magazine cover at his gym in Las Vegas, it was another milestone in a 2010 to remember for “The Natural”.

A potential bout between former UFC champions is rumored to be in the works. Quinton "Rampage" Jackson has verbally agreed to fight Lyoto "The Dragon" Machida. The bout is tentatively scheduled for an unannounced Nov. 20 UFC event, according to reports.

Cole Konrad, the two-time NCAA wrestling champion who is undefeated since making the transition into MMA earlier this year, is the latest confirmed participant in Bellator's upcoming heavyweight tournament. The 26-year-old Konrad, a protégé and training partner of reigning UFC Heavyweight Champion Brock Lesnar, will enter the tournament looking to improve on the unblemished 4-0 record he has compiled since making his pro debut in January. His two most recent wins came during special “Feature Fights” at Bellator 17 and Bellator 22 in May and June.

Spike TV will showcase two of “The Ultimate Fighter’s” most prominent recent alumni, Matt Mitrione and CB Dollaway, in live undercard bouts from “UFC 119: Mir vs. Nogueira 2” on Saturday, Sept. 25 at 9:00 p.m. ET/6:00 p.m. PT from Conseco Fieldhouse in Indianapolis, Ind. In a battle of up-and-coming heavyweights, the outspoken Mitrione takes on Joey Beltran. Dollaway is set to face seasoned veteran Joe Doerkson.

Mike "Mak" Kyle, a resident of San Jose, Calif., steps back into the cage on a stacked "Strikeforce: Challengers 9" fight card at Comcast Arena at Everett, live on Showtime at 11 p.m. ET/PT (delayed on the West Coast), this Friday, July 23. "I really want to look good next Friday night," he said. "It's not just about going out there and just winning this fight. I want to go out there and really put on a show.

Bellator's much-anticipated season three heavyweight tournament will kick off on Thursday, Aug. 12 with an intriguing opening-round fight between heavy-handed UFC veteran Eddie Sanchez and massive British knockout artist Neil “Goliath” Grove at the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino in Hollywood, Fla. The card that also features pecial non-title “Super Fight” between reigning Bellator Middleweight Champion Hector Lombard and former NFL standout Herbert “Whisper” Goodman, as well as two bouts in the women's tounament.

Showing his support for the M-1 Selection tournament in the USA, Fedor Emelianenko will be in attendance for the Semi Finals event August 7, 2010 at Bally’s Casino Hotel in Atlantic City, New Jersey. “Fedor and M-1 Global are committed to finding the next generation of MMA superstars,” says Evgeni Kogan, M-1’s Director of Operations. “As the corner stone of the M-1 Global stable of athletes, Fedor felt it was imperative he attend the event in the US to show his support and encouragement.” A press Q&A will be held at 5 p.m. EST on Saturday August 7 at Bally’s Casino Hotel and followed by an autograph session at 6:15 in preparation to kick-off of the Americas Semi Final event.