Fedor Emelianenko impressed a Chicago crowd by finishing a very game Brett Rogers in two rounds. A thunderous hook dropped Rogers in the second round and silenced an American crowd that had begun to chant U-S-A U-S-A in support of a plucky underdog in Brett Rogers who surprised everyone by giving the feared Fedor a very tough fight for a round and a little more.

Fedor was giving up size, weight and presumably power. But he came out aggressive and survived a scare when Rogers bloodied his nose with an early jab. Fedor threw his trademark hooks and battered Rogers repeatedly.

Rogers survived an initial takedown, fought his way to his feet and forced Fedor against the cage. Fedor got free and rocked him with a hook. Then took him down. Battered Rogers with a barrage of hooks before getting the takedown. But Rogers reversed and scored with ground and pound before Fedor escaped by looking for an arm bar. When Fedor reclaimed top position he fired with abandon. and looked for an arm triangle. But Rogers survived the round.

In the second Fedor caught Rogers with one of his signature looping hooks and followed up with ground and pound. Big John McCarthy stepped in and stopped the fight with 3:12 left in the 2nd round.

Some observers felt it was a premature stoppage.

The Strikeforce Middleweight Championship fight delivered with sustained back and forth action on the ground and standing in five tough rounds. Jake Shields took a unanimous decision despite having been saved by the bell while trapped in a rear naked choke at the end of the third round.

Jason "Mayhem" Miller made a very dramatic entrance with multiple dancers and a costume change, but Referee "Big" John McCarthy got the biggest pop of the night thus far when he was announced.

Shields took the fight down within seconds but Mayhem sat up against the cage and stymied him for thirty seconds before Shields took him all the way down and took his back then rolled to mount. But Miller got the fight back to the feet by the three minute mark in the round with a very impressive sweep. But Shields managed to get the fight down to the ground again quickly. Miller reversed and then slammed Shields down. Miller suplexed Shields twice more before the end of the round.

Round 2 saw Miller open with a hard left hook that bloodied Shields' nose. But soon Shields was attaining dominant position and regaining dominant position everytime Miller reversed or escaped. Several times Shields used positions familiar to MMA students from Eddie Bravo's Twister system. With a minute left, Shields threatened a rear naked choke but Miller escaped and ended the round on top with Shields threatening a heel hook. 

Miller came out on punching in the third and took Shields down with authority. But again Miller found himself reversed and once again on his back. Shields transitioned from one dominant position to another but couldn't score a submission or do much damage. Miller ended the round with Shields' back, a figure four body lock and and a locked on rear naked choke but the bell rang and saved Shields.

Entering the championship rounds, Miller had clearly sent Shields a message by not only surviving but come the closest to scoring a submission. After a standup from McCarthy, Miller attacked aggressively but Shields quickly got a takedown and was in side control. Many transitions ensued, but Miller never managed to escape Shields' smothering control in the fourth.

In the final round, Miller came out swinging but Shields quickly worked for a takedown and Miller found himself on his back once again. Shields took his back with the figure four leglock but never seriously threatened a submission. Shields survived a reversal and a threatened guillotine to ice the decision.

In a non-title fight featuring the Strikeforce Light heavyweight champ Gegard Mousasi against the once highflying Rameau Thierry Sokoudjou, it took almost two rounds for the top light heavyweight to assert his dominance with a brutal display of ground and pound.

In the first round, Mousasi stalked Sokoudjou down and managed to avoid Sokoudjou's power. A low blow from Mousasi was the first notable action. After a heated exchange, Sokoudjou managed to take the fight to the ground with 1:30 left in the round. But Mousasi quickly reversed positions and got side control. Sokodjou was able to explode out of danger and threatened with a choke. The round nearly ended with Sokoudjou on top but Mousasi pulled a reversal at the end.

In the second Mousasi forced Sokoudjou up against the fence and opened up with punches and knees before the fight went to the ground and Mousasi finished him.

In a fight to determine who might get the next shot at Fedor Emelianenko, the #1 heavyweight in the world,neither fighter left fans excited about their prospects to beat the best in the world.

Fabricio Werdum took a unanimous decision.

In the first, Antonio Silva opened the fight by stunning Werdum with a takedown and a barrage of shots on the ground.

But Werdum survived the early onslaught and turned it into a fight by surviving the first round. The second round featured more of the groundfighting you'd expect from two jiu jitsu black-belts. But Werdum was unable to get the submission in the 2nd or do much damage on the ground. 

In the third, Werdum took Silva down and got his back with three minutes left, but couldn't keep Silva on the ground. But he tagged Silva with several knees standing while working for another take down. With a minute left, Werdum stunned Silva with a standing knee that dropped Silva. Werdum followed him down and dominated the rest of the fight on the ground.

Fabricio Werdum, the #13 heavyweight in the world came in favored against Antonio Silva, the #22 ranked fighter on the USAT/SBN Consensus MMA rankings.

Werdum washed out of the UFC after getting KTFO'd by Junior dos Santos. Silva was the EliteXC heavyweight champion before testing positive for steroids and spending the last year or more fighting in Japan.

Saturday's main event heavyweight showdown between Fedor Emelianenko (30-1, 1 NC) and Brett Rogers (10-0) could go down as another easy victory for the indestructible force that is "The Last Emperor", or it could go down as a shocking upset victory and the end of an era of dominance. As with nearly every single fight in which Fedor Emelianenko is involved in these days, the storyline is the same and the tension and pressure falls onto the MMA fanbase. While most of us are eagerly awaiting the battle as anxious onlookers, it's surprising how easily we are now succumbing to the influence of the media into the possibility that this match-up could turn out to be a true upset of a great fighter.

Should we be this anxious? It's an interesting piece of the puzzle to analyze. Years ago during Fedor's PRIDE reign, I felt much more at ease watching Fedor completely crush his competition by way of quick transitioning submission holds, explosive lunging hooks, and pure dominance in the ground and pound game, but those easy feelings that Fedor will simply cruise through his competition have passed despite Fedor's two most recent victories over Tim Sylvia and Andrei Arlovski.

Most fans considered the Sylvia win as a superior fighter feeding on a very one-dimensional giant who had become relatively ineffective. It didn't help Fedor any in that Sylvia went on to lose to professional boxer Ray Mercer, but his bout with Andrei Arlovski only drew more criticism that Fedor's weaknesses were becoming more and more apparent with age.

What many fans seem to forget is just how amazing Fedor Emelianenko is as a fighter. He's one of the first fighters in history to be equally great at nearly all aspects of mixed martial arts. He can grapple both offensively and defensively with some of the best jiu-jitsu fighters in the world while also putting those same world-renowned fighters into serious danger. When he exploded onto the scene in PRIDE, his ground and pound tactics were some of the most brutalizing pieces of footage you could ever show anybody new to MMA, and those fans would sit in amazement and be drawn in.

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As with every major show, BloodyElbow.com will be here to bring you live results and commentary for .  The live blog will start with the beginning of theShowtime 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.

If you're looking for undercard coverage, Rodriguez of Fightlinker (he's godzillad here on BE) is live at the event. He's on Twitter too.

135lbs Zoila Frausto vs Elisha Helsper Round 1 Superman punch from Frausto to open, misses. Checked leg kick. Helsper blocking high kicks with one arm. That might be sufficient, might not. Jab from Frausto. Leg kick. Another failed superman punch from Frausto. Not a ton of action so far. Helsper throwing some leather. Side kick lands for Frausto. Jab for Frausto. Inside leg kick. Push kick. Superman punch lands! Jab from Helsper. Finally some nice exchanges to end the round Bloody Elbow is going to have to score this 10-9 for Frausto.  Round 2 Helsper comes out aggressive. Lands a hard elbow up against the fence. Knee to the body from Frausto after closing distance off another missed superman punch. Nasty high kick stuns Helsper.  Helsper on her back eating shots. Helsper's eye is bleeding -- toenail gash? They stand again. Straight kick from Frausto. Helsper hanging tough. Charges forward behind some straight punches but Frausto clinches, gets a Thai plum and lands knees to the body. Bloody Elbow scores it 10-9 for Frausto. Round 3 Helsper forces Frausto against the cage with a flurry, landing body shots. Miletich says Helsper needs to be on top. Helsper gets the takedown, in 1/2 guard. Quick restart by the ref. Bad call. leg kick by Frausto. Miletich is up in arms about the standup. Helsper charges in behind some straight punches, winds up in the Thai plum, eats some knees. Helsper gets control back. Helsper with double unders. Ref separates them. Frausto lands with a punch. A combination and a kick. Helsper landing some mean punches. Frausto gets a takedown. Ends the fight raining down leather. Bloody Elbow scores it 10-9 Frausto,  for a final score of 30-27 Frausto. The judges agree, Frausto takes a UD.

Thomas Diagne vs Merritt Warren Round 1 They circle, leg kicks from Diagne. Warren fires back. Side kick from Diagne. Holy sanshou Batman! Diagne with another sidekick, then a huge takedown from Diagne. Diagne in side mount but Warren has his head wrapped up. Diagne frees his head but is now in 1/2 guard. Diagne rears up for some ground and pound. Pretty much stale mated on the ground. Warren gets full guard. Diagne scoring with GnP. Warren going for a leg lock. Working a heel hook! Diagne rolling, he taps! Merrit Warren by submission, inverse heel hook.

Luke Rockhold vs Jesse Taylor Jesse Taylor's with some remarkable pre-fight talk. Wow, I'm rendered speechless.   Round 1 Referee Dan "Quick Standup" Stell is the 3rd man. Taylor shoots, Rockhold stuffs it.  Working an arm-in guillotine. Taylor working for a double, then a single. Taylor gets him down. Rockhold back up. Another takedown. Rockhold gets full guard. Very high guard, has wrist control. Goes for an armbar, gives up his back to Taylor. Rockhold back to his feet. Rockhold gets on Taylor's back, too high, Taylor rolls to his back. Rockhold gets his back, has figure four leg lock on the body. Gets the RNC but Taylor's chin is under the arm. He taps. Rockhold by submission, rear naked choke.

Brandon Cash vs Shane Del Rosario Del Rosario is talking about Fedor(!). I think I hear Leland getting worked up about this one already. Round 1 Cash shoots, fails. Cash drops him with a huge hook, Del Rosario pulls guard but he's taking a beating. Cash with mount to  side mount, back to mount. Del Rosario gets back to his feet. His eye is swollen shut. Another takedown, full guard. Quatros calls it a mugging. Del Rosario working for a triangle. Cash rolls out. Cash to Del Rosario's 1/2 guard. Del Rosario gets full guard, works for an armbar, fails. Cash throwing bombs down. Omaplata by Del Rosario! Shane Del Rosario wins by submission, omaplata (!)

Billy Evangelista vs Jorge Gurgel Referee Dan "Quick Standup" Stell is the 3rd man. Round 1 Gurgel opens with kicks. Evangelista with a punch. Evangelista has a mouse under his left eye already. Leg kick from Evangelista. Left hook for Gurgel. High kick blocked by Gurgel. Teep kick from Billy. Punches are traded. Evangelista with a right hand. They trade rights. Evangelista ices the round with a takedown before the bell. BloodyElbow scores this one 10-9 for Evangelista. Round 2Gurgel pressing forward. Lands a leg kick and a body kick. They clinch, Billy with a knee. They separate. Evangelista with a high kick. They trade hard rights. Gurgel landing nice combination punches. Front kick from Billy. Spinning backfist and kick combo from Gurgel, gets taken down by Evangelista. Gurgel in guard. Butterflies in. Evangelista to 1/2 guard. Hard ground and pound! Back to full guard. Gurgel working a kimura from the bottom. Billy gets the arm free. Bullshit stand up from Stell. Gurgel drops Evangelista with a high kick! Evangelista shoots in, gets caught in a guillotine. Evangelista escapes. Very hard round to score. Bloody Elbow scores it 10-9 Evangelista. Round 3 Gurgel knows he needs to finish this one to leave Fresno with a win. Trading hard punches. Evangelista scores with a right hook. Trading bombs. Evangelista looking to clinch up. Evangelista scoring with punches. Gurgel with a right. Trading punches. Gurgel firing away with kicks and punches. Evangelista goes for the clinch, gets stuffed. Billy with a knee. Gurgel looking for a trip, lands a knee, they separate. Time is winding down, looks like the judges will decide. Gurgel charging in behind punches. Evangelista takes a kick, is bleeding but gets Gurgel on his back. Bloody Elbow scores this round 10-9 Gurgel, for a final score of 29-28 Evangelista. But the judges could go either way. Unanimous decision for the hometown kid, Billy Evangelista, 30-27, 30-27, 29-28.

SBN coverage of Strikeforce Challengers: Evangelista vs. Gurgel

While Fedor Emelianenko vs. Brett Rogers has gained much of the attention from mainstream media and casual fans as the fight to watch on Saturday night, it may not actually end up as the best fight this card produces in the end. The middleweight championship title bout between Jason "Mayhem" Miller (22-6) and Jake Shields (23-4-1) has all the indications of being a true war between two former training partners who are stylistically very well-matched against each other.

Shields will enter this contest riding a twelve-fight win streak with his most recent win coming in June against Robbie Lawler at a catchweight of 182 pounds. Miller has fought twice this year with a first round submission victory over Kala Hose and a No Contest decision at DREAM 9 in which Miller unintentionally landed a soccer kick to Ronaldo Souza's forehead that cut him. Souza could not continue, thus the no contest was ruled.

While Fedor vs. Rogers is intriuging for the simple fact that people want to see if Rogers can bring an end to Fedor's reign, the more likely outcome will be that Fedor demolishes Rogers inside the first round. A surprise outcome would certainly be spectacular, but it's tough to gauge who would win a five-round bout between Jason Miller and Jake Shields, which makes it a fight that hardcore fans are eagerly awaiting.

Shields is a Brazilian jiu-jitsu black belt under Cesar Gracie with an extensive wrestling background and has been working to improve his stand-up with training in kickboxing and Muay Thai. He'll be the favorite when it comes to the grappling department, but Miller is savvy enough to avoid submissions on the floor. He's also a very durable fighter in that he's very tough to finish, and Shields will find it difficult to pound out Miller if he can gain a positional advantage from the top.

There in lies the strategic problem for Shields in this match-up. While he has the grappling acumen to be a real terror, can he actually finish Miller? It's doubtful. After all, Miller survived various submission attempts from one of the best grapplers on paper in MMA in Ronaldo "Jacare" Souza and he withstood a dominating beatdown by Georges St. Pierre back at UFC 52 without succumbing to unconsciousness or tapping out.

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Starting our weekend of non-stop action, Strikeforce presents their fourth installment of the Challengers series on Showtime at 8 PM PT/11 PM EST featuring a main event showdown between two touted lightweight fighters that will surely be a war of attrition. The rest of the card is rounded out with a plethora of regional talent from the various camps such as the American Kickboxing Academy and taps into the local talent in the Fresno area as well. It should give fans a real opportunity to see some of the up-and-coming talent that will likely make an impact in the future of Strikeforce.

In the evening's main event, former UFC fighter Jorge Gurgel (13-5) will battle undefeated Strikeforce prospect Billy Evangelista (9-0, 1 NC) in lightweight showdown between a rejuvenated veteran and a rising star. Gurgel enters the contest coming off an unanimous decision victory over Conor Heun at ShoMMA II back in June while Evangelista is coming off a no contest against Mike Aina at ShoMMA I in which Aina was hit with what was perceived as a knee to the head while he was down. Further review after the fight revealed that the knee never actually hit Aina's head, thus the bout was overturned to a no contest.

While Gurgel enjoyed novelty success as a fighter who left everything in the Octagon during his stint in the UFC, most fans would state that Gurgel was a victim of trying to be too fan friendly in the way he fought. Instead of trying to excite fans with an aggressive mentality and a throw-caution-into-the-wind style of fighting, he may have produced more success had he relied on his Brazilian jiu-jitsu black belt abilities versus his kickboxing strategies. 

After being released from the UFC following his loss to Aaron Riley at UFC 91, Gurgel moved to Strikeforce and hinted at the possibility that he would move toward a style more suited to his mastery of the ground game. Unfortunately, we didn't see that against Conor Heun. We could easily see more of the same in this match-up as both Gurgel and Evangelista have shown a desire to stand and bang, likely what Strikeforce is banking on in this battle. 

This is a fairly tough fight to call if both men are going to bang it out. Evangelista's speed could be a huge advantage, but Gurgel is definitely willing to eat a number of blows to push the pace and damage his opponent. I still think Evangelista's agile footwork could be the difference here. 

SBN coverage of Strikeforce Challengers: Evangelista vs. Gurgel

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