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SBN coverage of Strikeforce Challengers: Woodley vs. Bears

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As with every major show, BloodyElbow.com will be here to bring you live results and commentary for Strikeforce Challengers: Woodley v. Bears.  The live blog will start with the beginning of the Showtime broadcast (at 11PM ET) so make sure to make Bloody Elbow your home for this event.

As always we have our one rule: NO SPOILERS! In the interest of not ruining anything from the undercard that may make the broadcast we ask that you do not discuss the results of the undercard in the comments until either the broadcast ends or the fight makes the air.

So again, join us for the show and share your thoughts as the event unfolds.

The broadcast is live, first fight up shortly.

Kevin Casey vs. Chad Vance - Round 1 - Casey says he is all and only BJJ and he closes the distance quickly.  They are grappling and Vance is way too hesitant to pull the trigger on his strikes and they tumble to the mat.  Casey quickly takes Vance's back and is working to punch and work for the choke.  It's in and Vance has to tap.  Kevin Casey wins by submission (rear naked choke), round 1.

Aaron Rosa vs. Rafael "Feijao" Cavalcante - Round 1- Rosa comes forward with combination punching but Feijao clinches him and pushes him against the cage.  Feijao uses a nice trip to get to the ground and Rosa stands right back up but does eat punches on his way.  The ref restarts them after a lack of action and Rosa lands a punch and again they clinch against the cage.  The round ends and I guess it was 10-9 Feijao, but it was a snoozer.  Round 2 - Rosa with a leg kick.  Rosa with an overhand left.  They clinch up again and Rosa pushes him away.  Overhand right and a flying knee to the body by Feijao.  How he gets Rosa to the ground.  Some punches and Rosa gets full guard.  Elbow by Feijao which is illegal in Strikeforce, they're stood up due to the foul.  Feijao lands a knee that hurts Rosa and puts him down followed by a flurry of punches and the fight is over.  Rafael "Feijao" Cavalcante wins by TKO (strikes), round 2.

Bobby Voelker vs. Erik Apple - Round 1 - Apple drops him with a series of punches early and keeps pounding but Voelker survives well and they go back to standing.  As Voelker pushes off he eats another punch.  Now Apple charges and pushes Voelker against the fence again.  Overhand right by Apple and they separate.  Voelker lands a punch of his own and then eats another.  Now Apple charges in for the takedown and ends up in Voelker's half guard.  Voelker scrambles and stands up.  They're exchanging shots and Apple is hurt, he dives for a takedown and doesn't get it but does recover.  They clinch against the cage and Voelker uses a trip takedown to end up on top.  Voelker landing some big shots now!  Big turnaround.  The round ends and Voelker stole it in the last minute with the longest sustained offense of the fight.  10-9 Voelker on the BE card.  Round 2 - They're trading big shots and Voelker is getting the best of it and hurts Apple a little bit.  Trip takedown by Voelker again to end up on top.  Apple eats more shots as he stands back up.  Voelker hurts him with a shot and pounces with a flurry of shots!  The fight is over!   Great comeback for Voelker.  Wow!  Bobby Voelker wins by TKO (punches), round 2.

Kim Couture vs. Kerry Vera - Round 1 - Kim lands a right and then Kerry blasts her with a series of shots.  Vera with a knee early.  Another knee lands hard.  Jab by Couture.  Couture eats a few more punches as she charges in.  Vera lands a series of hard shots now and she is dominating the round.  Kim with a right hand.  Jab by Couture again.  Big hook connects for Vera now.   Vera unloads on Couture against the cage and Couture is rocked and almost goes down a few times before finally crumbling.  Kerry Vera wins by KO, round 1.

Tyron Woodley vs. Rudy Bears - Round 1- They're striking and Woodley gets in close and gets the quick takedown.  Woodley with a move to full mount.  Bears is looking to scramble out and does so without really taking any damage.  Woodley with knees from the clinch.  High kick by Bears is blocked.  Woodley takes him back down.  Woodley looking for an arm triangle from half guard, he jumps to side control and finishes the submission.  Tyron Woodley wins by submission (arm triangle choke), round 1.

With UFC 106 looming on Saturday evening, many fans will be itching for some relevant MMA action to get them in the mood for the big event tomorrow. Fortunately for us, Strikeforce has come through to fill your need. The fifth installment of Strikeforce's Challengers series (ShoMMA) will take place this evening from the Memorial Hall in Kansas City, Kansas, and it will air live on Showtime at 11 PM EST (Delayed on the West Coast).

The card will be headlined by a welterweight bout between Missouri wrestling standout and two-time NCAA D-I All-American Tyron Woodley and Kansas City-native and Chinese Kenpo black belt Rudy Bears. Also featured on the card will be a women's bout featuring the same names as the main event from UFC 105. Brandon Vera's wife, Kerry Vera, will battle Randy Couture's former wife, Kim Couture, in a 135 lb. women's division contest. It will only be Vera's second fight and Couture's third fight professionally. Rafael "Feijao" Cavalcante will also make his return against Aaron Rosa on this card.

 
Welterweight: Tyron Woodley (5-0) vs. Rudy Bears (10-3)

Woodley's NCAA credentials should be the deciding factor in this fight. He has the ability to be a dominating force on the floor, and his submission game is good enough to get him through some of the lower-echelon fights at this stage in his career. There was some criticism of Woodley in the Zach Light fight as Light gave up some pretty bad positions in the first round, and Woodley was unable to sink in submissions that were there for the taking. Regardless of those faults, Woodley is still a rather green competitor who should hopefully show some improvement in this bout.

Bears has a solid Brazilian jiu-jitsu background coupled with the accolades of being a kickboxer who has won regional ISKA events and titles. He'll be looking to pummel Woodley with strikes early, but he should be adept enough to ward off some attempts by Woodley on the ground. The problem is that Woodley's strength and wrestling should be able overcome Bears' jiu-jitsu tactics on his way to a dominating victory. Tyron Woodley should improve his record to 6-0 in this contest.

Women's Division (135 lbs.): Kim Couture (1-1) vs. Kerry Vera (1-0)

I'm really not sure what to say about this fight. Kim Couture looked absolutely awful against both Kim Rose and Lina Kvokov in her previous professional bouts. She actually broke her jaw in half in one of those match-ups and was commended for her toughness. While she definitely showed she was a tough competitor, a jaw breakage doesn't inspire confidence in anyone thinking she'll win against an adept puncher like Vera.

Kerry's debut against Leslie Smith was quite impressive in comparison to that of Couture's debut. She was very quick with her feet, throwing quick lefts and rights and mixing overhands, some decent kicks, and good technique in her delivery. While she didn't show tremendous power, she did manage to land significantly more than her opponent.

Kerry should take this via decision and batter Kim Couture with punches. I don't see how Couture can handle Vera's speed unless she's improved substantially over the last year.

SBN coverage of Strikeforce Challengers: Woodley vs. Bears

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Here are how the upcoming cards are looking so far:

Strikeforce Challengers: Evangelista vs. Gurgel - Friday Nov 6th at 11pm
Billy Evangelista (9-0) vs. Jorge Gurgel (13-5)

Jesse Taylor (13-4) vs. Luke Rockhold (5-1)

Shane Del Rosario (8-0) vs. Brandon Cash (5-0)
   
Thomas Diagne (1-0) vs. Merritt Warren (4-2)

Elisha Helsper (1-0) vs. Zoila Frausto (3-0)


Strikeforce Challengers: Woodley vs. Bears - Friday Nov 20th at 11pm
Tyron Woodley (5-0) vs. Rudy Bears (10-3)

Rafael Cavalcante (7-2) vs. Aaron Rosa (12-2)

Kim Couture (1-1) vs. Kerry Vera (1-0)

Sarah Kaufman (10-0) vs. Takayo Hashi (12-1)

Bobby Voelker (20-7) vs. Erik Apple (10-1) 
 

HT: Strikeforce.com