The world of MMA has lost a friend and talented journalist, Eddie Constantine, 31. Known as "Fast Eddie" in his circle of friends, Eddie was an MMA journalist working for PROMMAnow.com. I met Eddie in person at Strikeforce 10-Melendez vs. Thomson, after building a report with him from chatting in TAGG radio’s chat room. We immediately hit it off as friends as he lacked any pretentious qualities as a down to earth individual.

Unfortunately, Eddie committed suicide on January 25^th, leaving behind friends and family to grieve his loss. It was reported that he was found by several of his friends who stopped by check on him at his home in Los Gatos, California.

Training himself and others in the sport of jiu-jitsu was a big part of his life, as he trained women’s self defense classes, as well as his friends at his home. Eddie was a purple belt under Renzo Gracie, and recently had begun a dedicated training program, which involved a contest that was dubbed “MMA’s biggest loser”. The contest was a weight loss competition with MMAJunkie.com’s John Morgan.

Training under Dave Camarillo at his Guerilla jiu-jitsu academy in Pleasanton as of late, he had a great relationship with his trainer and all those who trained with him.

Eddie’s welcoming personality drew many people to him, I being one of them. Covering weigh-ins and fights, I looked forward to seeing my buddy and colleague knowing I would get a big hug and a boisterous “What’s up bro?” Our meetings were always pleasant and lead into conversation about the latest and greatest in the world of MMA, always sharing whatever information we could with each other.

Passion, guts and courage are what it takes to be a journalist in the world’s toughest sport. Long hours, little to no pay, and a full time day job kept Eddie very busy. Not too busy to report on the sport and the people that he loved to be around. His personality and passion spoke for itself, and many people in the industry grew to respect him for it. He never had a problem finding fighters to interview, or gaining press credentials to events in the area because of it.

The world of MMA does not lend itself well to outsiders. Eddie, without question, was an insider. Interviewing anyone and everyone, from Champions, to first timer fighters, he never turned his nose up to people or opportunities. Anyone who visited local gyms with regular frequency was sure to have met Eddie, as he knew pretty much everyone there is to know at various different gyms in the Bay Area.

Eddie had many friends and fans, and I cannot express how it has affected them. I can speak for myself and say that I am very saddened by this turn of events. I walked around numb yesterday, as I was sent a link from a friend to an article written by Danny Acosta of FIGHT! magazine. I simply stared at the heading in disbelief, not wanting to click on it, somehow hoping that when I did, it was not the case, but it was. Eddie was not one to share or burden others with his problems, but that does not stop us for caring about him deeply, and wishing he would have leaned on any of us.

His passing is a great loss to many, and as there may be many questions as to how and why this happened, what is not in question was his presence among us, as he left a large body of his work that we can go back to visit at any time.

Press Release: Strikeforce
SAN JOSE, Calif. (Aug. 16, 2009) – In the biggest, most important and highly anticipated fight in the history of women’s mixed martial arts, Cris Cyborg registered a brutal 4:59, first-round TKO (punches) over Gina Carano before a raucous 13,524 at HP Pavilion here Saturday on SHOWTIME.

For as long as it lasted, the Cyborg-Carano fight was as exciting as it gets. By winning, Cyborg (8-1), of Curitiba, Brazil, earned the first-ever Strikeforce Female 145-pound Championship. Carano, of Las Vegas, fell to 7-1. The historic, non-stop action match between the two most talented female fighters in the world was stopped by referee Josh Rosenthal a split second before the horn sounded to end the opening round of a scheduled five-round fight. When the thrilling proceedings were halted, Cyborg was on top of Carano and had delivered approximately 12 clubbing punches with both hands to Carano’s head.

"I just want to thank the fans for all the support I have always received, and to Gina for giving me this opportunity,’’ said a gracious but ecstatic Cyborg, who is a member of Brazil’s famed Chute Boxe fight squad.

Carano, an underdog in the wagering but clearly a crowd favorite, entered the ring to a deafening roar and the fans’ reaction to her introduction was seemingly as loud as one could possibly be.The incredibly popular Carano gave as much as she took for the most part, but the aggressive-minded Cyborg proved to be too strong for the popular fighter who was making her first start in eight months.

In other televised fights Saturday on SHOWTIME: Gegard "The Dreamcatcher" Mousasi (29-2-1) of Leiden, Netherlands, was victorious for the 13^thconsecutive time, winning his United States debut and the Strikeforce light heavyweight title by destroying defending champion Renato "Babalu" Sobral (35-9) of Los Angeles via Brazil, at 1:00 of the first-round (TKO, strikes).

Gilbert "El Nino" Melendez (16-2) of San Francisco by way of Santa Ana, Calif., avenged one of his two losses and retained the Strikeforce interim lightweight belt with a convincing third-round TKO (punches) over Mitsuhiro "Endless Fighter’’ Ishida(18-6-1) of Japan.

Melendez mostly dominated his fight agains Ishida. "The key to this fight was patience and I was patient tonight,’’ he said. "I know what kind of fighter Ishida was, and I knew what I had to do. It’s great to avenge a loss. But I am a different fighter than before.’’

Brazil’s Fabricio "Vai Cavallo’’ (12-4-1) Werdum moved closer to a possible world title fight against Fedor Emelianenko with a 1:24, first-round submission (guillotine) over Mike Kyle (12-7-1) of San Jose.

In the second of three Strikeforce world title fights, Mousasi threw a kick but Sobral blocked it and wound up on the ground in a scramble. Mousasi, who was in top position when they hit the ground, quickly unleashed a barrage of punches and that was that, ending Sobral’s five-fight winning streak. "I am very happy,’’ Mousasi said. "I am willing to fight anybody.’’

Brazil’s Fabricio "Vai Cavallo’’ (12-4-1) Werdum moved closer to a possible world title fight against Fedor Emelianenko with a 1:24, first-round submission (guillotine) over Mike Kyle (12-7-1) of San Jose.

In the opening bout of the telecast, Werdum overcame some early adversity to triumph impressively. "I trained hard and am happy with the result,’’ said Werdum, who resides in Huntington Beach, Calif. A two-time Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu world champion who owns a victory over current Strikeforce heavyweight champion Alistair Overeem, Werdum would not be opposed to an immediate crack at Fedor.Werdum has already defeated one of the Emelianenko brothers. On Nov. 12, 2006, he registered an impressive first round (3:24) submission (arm triangle choke) over two-time Russian National Sambo champion, Aleksander Emelianenko, brother of Fedor Emelianenko.

"I would be very happy if Strikeforce wanted to make a fight between Fedor and myself. Fedor is the best in the world and this world be a fantastic opportunity.’’

Saturday’s non-televised results: Jay "The Thoroughbred’’ Hieron (18-4), Las Vegas, won a unanimous three round decision (30-37 three times) over Jesse Taylor (13-4), San Diego, at 170 pounds; Scott Lighty (5-0), San Luis Obispo, Calif., TKO (punches) over Mike "The Animal’’ Cook (7-5), Fresno, Calif., at 2:05 of the first round (205 pounds); Justin "The Silverback’’ Wilcox (6-3), San Jose, submitted (rear naked choke) David "Tarzan’’ Douglas (4-2) of Antioch, Calif., at 3:16 of the third at 155 pounds; a Cung Le-trained fighter James Terry (7-1), San Jose, made in two straight over Zac Bucia (2-4), San Francisco, winning at 1:23 (TKO) in a rematch at 170 pounds; and Alex Trevino (4-0), of San Jose, submitted (keylock) Isaiah Hill (4-7), of San Jose, at 3:36, of the first round of their 155-pound bout.

NEW YORK--Dream Middleweight Grand Prix runner-up and submission wizard Ronaldo "Jacare" Souza (10-2) has signed a multi-fight agreement with world championship mixed martial arts (MMA) promotion STRIKEFORCE.

Souza is expected to fulfill the first fight on his contract in the fall.
 
"I am very excited that I will have the opportunity to fight in STRIKEFORCE amongst many of the world’s best middleweight fighters,"

NEW YORK--After a week of intense negotiations and speculation, the hottest topic of discussion in the professional fight world has come to a head as the world’s number one heavyweight and most sought after mixed martial arts (MMA) champion Fedor "The Last Emperor" Emelianenko has signed a historic, multi-fight agreement that will see him headline mega-events co-promoted by world championship promotions STRIKEFORCE and M-1 Global.

Belcher vs. Akiyama
Rd 1
Holly Madison was the guest ring girl for this bout as she promoted "peep show". The two fighters felt each other out for the first couple of minutes untile Belcher landed a left low-kick that landed to the groin of Akiyama. Belcher disregarded the low-kicks and began to exchange with Akiyama's heavy hands. Belcher landed a left hook that drops Akiyama down on his butt. After pressing Akiyama against the cage the two returned to thier feet to trade more punches. Akiyama stood in front of Belcher and landed stiff jabs and a superman punch  followed by a combination of straight punches, some of which landed to the face of Belcher. Belcher throws a right kick that Akiyama caught and took Blecher down with.

Rd 2
Akiyama takes Belcher down, but Belcher reverses and attempts a failed knee-bar attempt. Akiyama reverses to side mount and lands a few short elbows before Belcher retained guard. Akiyama throws big punches from the top but Belcher defends fairly well. Belcher shrimps in and escapes back to the feet. Trading leg kicks the fighters are slowing slightly. Belcher lands a couple of solid leg kicks and straight punches, but Akiyama stays in the pocket and trades. The fighters trade hard rights to close the round.

Rd 3
Belcher starts the round with more leg kicks and Akiyama comes out swinging with big looping punches that miss their mark. Akiyama seems to have something wrong with his left eye as the two trade punches. Akiyama lands a left hook and Belcher lands more leg kicks. Belcher leads with solid lefts as Akiyamas' eye begins to swell. The fighters trade big rights as they stand in front of each other. Akiyama snaps Belcher's head back with a big right, and Belcher lands a right of his own. Belcher is dropped by another big right, but rolls overs and gets back up to his feet. Belcher lands a superman punch. Belcher misses with a spinning back fist and Akiyama trips him to the canvas. The two get back to their feet and trade several more punches to the face as the round ends.

Yoshihiro Akiyama defeats Alan Belcher by split decision. The crowd voices their disapproval of the decision.

Michael Bisping vs. Dan Henderson
Rd 1
Henderson takes the center of the cage. Bisping circles before snapiping out some left jabs. Henderson rushes in with big right hands. Bisping is on his bike and circles to keep distance. Henderson rushes in and lands another right before Bisping keeps him at bay with acouple of rights of his own. Bisping lands a lead leg-kick and a right as Henderson comes in. Bisping throws a high kick and a punch as Henderson loads up wating to land the big right hand. Bisping lands a right before Henderson takes him to the cage. Henderson lands some kness as he controls Bisping against the cage. Bisping with a failed takedown attempt before Henderson lands an overhand right to close out the round.

Rd 2
Bisping with a leg kick. Bisping uses his jab to keep distance before Henderson closes to land a couple of rights and a left hook. Henderson lands an uppercut, and a solid jab that spins Bisping around. Bisping continues to circle and begins to pepper Henderson with his hand speed. Bisping continues to circle toward the right hand of Henderson. Henderson lands a huge right that drops Bisping to the canvas before he follow him down for one more to put an exclamation point on the fight.

Dan Henderson knocks out Michael Bisping at 3:20 of Round 2

UFC-Hall of Famer Royce Gracie was in attendance and waives to the camera.

George St. Pierre vs. Thiago Alves-UFC Welterweight Title Bout
Rd 1
GSP with an inside leg kick. Alves with a hgih kick that is blocked and a leg kick. GSP grabs a single leg and takes Alves down. Alves wlaks his way back up, but GSP puts him back down. GSP works his way to Alves' back, but Alves spins into him and they make it backup to the feet. GSP fires a body shot and Alves with a body kick. GSP lands a big leg kick and a snapping jabs. Alves stuff a shot and checks a kick. GSP misses with a spinning round house kick. GSP with a stiff jab and Alves charges in only to be taken down. Alves lands an elbow on the bottom and is bleeding from the top of his right eye.  Thiago fights his way back up to the feet as GSP pressses him against the cage to close the round.

Rd 2
GSP with a leg kick. Alves checks a kick but is taken down by the Champion. GSP holds him down, but there is not a lot going on. GSP lands some short rights to the head and body. GSP lands some big rights that bloody the nose of Alves. GSP lands another left elbow from Alves' guard. Alves keeps GSP from passing his guard, but GSP land some big punches while Alves is on his back.  Alves explodes out from under GSP and is pressed against the cage.

Rd 3
Alves comes out swinging and stuffs a takedown followed by a superman punch that misses. GSP keeps his distance and Alves lands a left jab. GSP throws a high-kick that is blocked. GSP fires a one-two and then takes Alves down. Alves nuetralizes GSP on the ground and gets back to his feet. GSP works his jabs as Alves works inside and attempts to brawl with GSP. GSP escapes but eats a leg-kick. GSP land a solid body kick that drops Alves. GSP with ground and pound trying to finish Alves but Alves recovers.

Rd 4
Alves is swollen all over his face, but is certainly game. GSP lands a short leg-kick. GSP shoots in and takes Alves down again. GSP works to full mount, but Alves puts him back in half-guard. Alves works his way out and manages a top position. GSP works a butterfly guard as Alves lands some short shots from the top. GSP pushes Alves away after a minute of being on his back. Alves comes in thowing powerful punches, but GSP keeps distance to avoid them. GSP takes Alves down again and works to take his back. GSP has hooks in but cannot finish Alves as the fourth round closes.

Rd 5
GSP tells Greg Jackson that he pulled his groin. GSP with an inside leg kick. Alves continues to come in, but GSP avoids. Alves lands a right and thorws a high kick that is blocked. GSP takes him down again. Alves is beaten up, but works his way to his feet valiantly. GSP works his jab and circles away as Alves alnds another leg kick. GSP takes him down once again. Alves works his way back to the feet only to be taken down again. Not much damage is done as GSP holds him down with an injured groin. Alves almost makes it to his feet in the closing seconds of the bout.

George St. Pierre defeats Thiago Alves by unanimous decision and retains his title.

Frank Mir vs. Brock Lesnar-UFC Heavyweight Title
Rd 1
The fighters circle as they find distance. Brock paws to keep Mir at bay, but Mir wades in before Brock takes him down. Lesnar works from the top and lands a short elbow.  Lesnar holds Mir down and lands right to the face of Mir. Lesnar lands big shots to the body of Mir. Lesnar lands a couple of hammer-fist to close out the round.

Rd 2
Lesner and Mir clinch, but Lesnar lets him up. Mir throws strikes to the face of Lesnar and a knee. Mir attempts a flying knee, but is taken down. Lesnar pins him down and lands vicous punches to the face of Mir until the fight is stopped.

Brock Lesnar defeats Frank Mir by KO at 1:48 of Round 2.

Jon Fitch vs. Paulo Thiago
Rd 1
Fitch starts with a leg kick and a high kick. Another high kick attempt to a takedown. Thaigo attempts a guillotine and transitions to a darce. Fitch eventually escapes and takes Thiago's back. Fitch lands short elbows from the top as they stalemate for about the last minute of the round.

Rd 2
Fitch with a leg kick that misses. He throws a high-kick followed by a right. The fighters are entangled against the cage like the end of round 1. Fitch eventually trips Thaigo to the canvas, but Thaigo is squirly. Fitch moves to his back and tries to set his hooks, but Thiago fights him off.

Rd 3
Fitch takes him down once again and climbs his way onto Thaigos back. Thaigo slams Fitch on the canvas, but Fitch holds on. Fitch postures up as Thaigo throws several up-kicks. Fitch takes his back once again and lands several short punches to the face of Thaigo. Fitch locks in a body triangle and continues to punch the face of Thaigo as he tries to slap on a submission as the round closes. Fitch decides to finish with punches as he abondons the submission attempt.

Jon Fitch defeats Paulo Thiago by unanimous decision.

At the age of 17, Chris was given a job as Program Director by Alex Gong at Fairtex in San Francisco. Gong, a talented and decorated fighter was killed after pursuing a man that fled the scene of a hit-and-run incident involving Gongs' car. After Gongs' untimely death Chris and Bunkerd left Fairtex and opened their own gym (Fight and Fitness) in pursuit of their dreams.

Since then, Cariaso began training in fighting in MMA, rattling off 6 consecutive victories before being handed his first loss. Rebounding quickly a few months later, Cariaso submitted Cung Le student, Anthony Figueroa by rear-naked-choke (mata leon) in the second round of their bout on the Melendez vs. Thomson fight card in June of 2008.

After almost a year of not stepping in the ring to compete, Cariaso was given an opportunity to fight for the World Combat Sports Challenge National Bantamweight Title. His opponent was Alvin Cacdac, a tough fighter with a solid wrestling background, who recently defeated another of Cung Le's students, Jose Palacios.

Cariaso and Cacdac met on May 30th, and after 5 rounds of back and forth action, Cariaso was able to capitalize after escaping a knee-bar attempt by Cacdac in the 5th and final round of their bout. Cariaso was able to sink in a rear-naked-choke (mata leon) that Cacdac was unable to defend, giving Cariaso the victory, and crowning him WCSC National Bantamweight Champion.

Monday, July 6, 2009
Press Release: Strikeforce

NEW YORK (July 6, 2009)-STRIKEFORCE World Heavyweight Champion Alistair "The Demolition Man" Overeem (29-11) will put his coveted title on the line and, at the same time, attempt to avenge a previous defeat when he squares off with old nemesis and two-time Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu World Champion Fabricio "Vai Cavalo" Werdum (11-4-1) during the live, SHOWTIME® telecast of STRIKEFORCE:  Carano vs. Cyborg from San Jose, California’s HP Pavilion on Saturday, August 15. 

"I’m very happy that I’m being given the opportunity to fight him again and I’m looking forward to beating him," said the 29-year-old Overeem who, at 6 feet 5 inches tall and a chiseled 250 pounds, is considered one of the sport’s most impressive physical specimens.  Overeem hails from The Netherlands and is a longtime member of the country’s Team Golden Glory, the fight squad that boasts a host of the world’s top martial arts fighters.  "This is the one rematch I’ve wanted.  I’m going to punish this guy."

The 31-year-old Werdum, a native of Porto Alegre, Brazil, is similarly confident about his chances of conquering Overeem a second time.  Werdum, who relocated to Huntington Beach, California earlier this year to train with The United States affiliate of Brazil’s Chute Boxe fight camp, submitted Overeem with a kimura in the second round (3:43) of their first encounter, which took place at Pride: Total Elimination Absolute in Osaka, Japan on May 5, 2006.  The matchup was Werdum’s fifth of a six fight stint under the now-defunct Pride organization.

"I am very confident.  I have trained my whole life for this moment," said the 6 foot 4 inch, 235 pound Werdum regarding the rematch with Overeem.  Coming in as the challenger in a title match is a huge motivating factor for me.  Whether the fight is against Alistair or another fighter doesn’t necessarily matter to me.  What matters is that I am fighting the champion.

"STRIKEFORCE is one of the biggest and most prestigious organizations in the world," continued Werdum.  To become the heavyweight champion for such a respected organization would be an honor that is beyond words.

Last October, Werdum completed a four-fight stretch with UFC during which he toppled both former heavyweight championship challenger Gabriel Gonzaga and Brandon "The Truth" Vera.  Prior to his debut in The Octagon, Werdum pulled off an impressive first round (3:24) submission (arm triangle choke) of two-time Russian National Sambo champion, Aleksander Emelianenko, brother of the world’s top heavyweight MMA fighter, Fedor Emelianenko.

Overeem was crowned the first STRIKEFORCE World Heavyweight Champion in history on November 16, 2007 after he brutalized fellow heavy hitter Paul "The Headhunter" Buentello with a relentless offensive, finally stopping Buentello with a series of hard knee strikes to the midsection in the second round (3:42) of action at HP Pavilion. 

Overeem made his debut with STRIKEFORCE at HP Pavilion on June 9, 2006, earning a one-sided, unanimous decision over Vitor "The Phenom" Belfort in the main event of the second STRIKEFORCE MMA card in history.  The outcome marked Overeem’s second career win over Belfort.

The possibility of a rematch between Overeem and Werdum moved one step closer to becoming a reality on April 11th of this year when both fighters were guests at the STRIKEFORCE:  Shamrock vs. Diaz mega-card at HP Pavilion.  While Overeem was addressing the media on hand for the post-fight press conference, Werdum stood up from the audience and issued a challenge to Overeem. 

In the main event on August 15, mixed martial arts’ (MMA) leading lady, the undefeated and extremely popular Gina "Conviction" Carano (7-0), will square off with rival powerhouse Cris "Cyborg" Santos (7-1) in what is one of the most eagerly anticipated battles of all time.

Carano and Cyborg, the consensus two best female fighters in the world, will be the first women in MMA history to headline a major MMA fight card.  In addition, they will fight for the first STRIKEFORCE 145-pound Female Championship.

In yet another title bout, STRIKEFORCE World Lightweight (155 pounds) Champion Josh "The Punk" Thomson (16-2) will put his title on the line against Gilbert "El Nino" Melendez (15-2), the man whom Thomson dethroned by way of unanimous decision at HP Pavilion on June 27, 2008.