Former WEC lightweight champion Jamie Varner was all set to begin his trek back towards the championship at WEC 48 against Kamal Shalorus, but he will either have to wait until a different date or fight another opponent as Shalorus is unavailable due to an injury. Varner released the disappointing information last night and I was able to confirm with today via text.

If the WEC does hold him out, he could be an alternate option in case either Lightweight Champion Ben Henderson or Donald Cerrone get injured and are unable to fight in their rematch for Henderson’s title.

WEC Heading North

Top MMA News says it has been able to confirm that the WEC will be making its way up to the great white north and that Calgary. Alberta, Canada will play host to the first WEC event on June 20 at the Stampede Corral. The website is basing this information on a conversation they had with Shirley Stunzi who is the Calgary Combative Sports Commission chairperson.

No bouts have been rumored at this point. The WEC will look to replicate the success the UFC has had during their trips to Montreal at UFC 83 and UFC 97.

Ibarra Speaks Out

In an interview with Erik Fontanez of Bleacher Report, Juanito Ibarra, who will be training new UFC mixed martial artist James Toney, said they have plans on shocking the world. Ibarra, who hasn’t been seen since a much-publicized falling out with Quinton “Rampage” Jackson, said Kimbo Slice would make for a perfect first opponent, followed up by a bout with UFC Hall of Famer Chuck Liddell.

Ibarra also said that Toney will be competing in the light heavyweight division. At this time no opponent or date has been announced, but according to Ibarra, Toney is looking to have his first fight in June.

UFC Rematch In The Works?

MMA Mania is reporting that The Ultimate Fighter 11 Finale may play host to a rematch between Stephan Bonnar and Krzysztof Soszynski. The two met just a few weeks ago at UFC 110 in Australia, ending prematurely when an accidental headbutt in the third round opened up a giant cut on Bonnar’s forehead. Referee John Sharp called a halt to the bout and awarded the TKO victory to “The Polish Experiment”.  Bonnar has recently indicated that he intends on filing a protest to have the bout ruled a technical draw.

Bonnar will also handle color commentating duties for this Saturday’s WEC 47 as Frank Mir is training for his UFC interim Heavyweight Title tilt against Shane Carwin in just a few weeks.

Strikeforce Stars On MTV2

Strikeforce’s Mayhem Miller, Josh Thomson, Lavar Johnson and Scott Smith will be part of MTV2’s Rock N’Jock on MTV2 this Saturday and next Saturday. This isn’t the Rock’N'Jock basketball like we remember from the past, but a show with clips and music videos. The show runs at 11 am EST.

Sign Right Here

Feel strongly that MMA should be legal in Toronto? Sign this online petition that MMA Connected host Joe Ferraro will hand deliver to Premier Dalton McGuinty…if the amount of signatures is significant. You don’t have to live in Ontario to sign.

In what will come as a shock to most and leave many wondering why, Strikeforce Heavyweight Champion Alistair Overeem announced during an exclusive interview with MMA Junkie that he will be fighting Brett Rogers, but for reasons beyond anyone’s comprehension, it will not be for the title he won in November of 2007.

The bout will take place at the same venue that featured a tilt between current Strikeforce middleweight champion Jake Shields and Robbie Lawler in June of last year.

Overeem actually made the announcement on his Twitter account but then told Junkie that the bout isn’t 100% confirmed. He went on to say that the situation should be cleared up sometime this week. Overeem and Strikeforce have come under intense scrutiny for holding up the organization’s heavyweight title.

When the subject of fighting Fedor Emelianenko came up, Overeem said that he gets the feeling that the former Pride heavyweight champion has no desire to fight him. He said he is content with fighting the 10-1 Rogers, who was last seen giving Emelianenko all he could handle for a round and a half before succumbing to an overhand right two minutes into the second round.

Rogers has been very vocal and critical of Overeem for what he deems a lack of respect for the Strikeforce heavyweight title. Even though he suffered his first loss to Fedor, Rogers showed he’s on his way to being abole to hang with some of the top heavyweight fighters in the world. It was just five months earlier that Rogers knocked former UFC heavyweight champion Andrei Arlovski out in a mere 22 seconds.

Speaking of Arlovski, he had announced earlier in the day that he had signed a multi-fight deal to return to Strikeforce. Loretta Hunt of Sherdog is reporting that Arlovski will also be fighting on the May 15 card and will be taking on former EliteXC heavyweight champion Antonio Silva. The last 12 months have not been kind to “The Pitbull” as he was knocked out by Emelianenko in January of 2009 at Affliction: Day of Reckoning and then suffered the devastating loss to Rogers last June.

Silva was last seen losing a decision to fellow Brazilian Fabricio Werdum on the first ever Strikeforce on CBS card last November. The loss snapped a six fight winning streak for Silva, who holds a 13-2 overall record. Some felt that Silva actually won his fight against Werdum, as he was the aggressor, but Werdum eventually controlled Silva on the ground and seemingly set himself up for a bout with Emelianenko, which for some reason never materialized.

Arlovski has been under the tutelage of famed boxing coach Freddie Roach and recently made the trek to New Mexico to enlist the help of Greg Jackson. This past Saturday, Arlovski participated in a four round exhibition boxing match with Fres Oquendo that raised money for charity.

Sports Illustrated’s Josh Gross reported today that a lightweight bout between Strikeforce lightweight champion Gilbert Melendez and Dream Lightweight Champion Shinya Aoki has been added to the April 17 CBS card. Sherdog has confirmed the bout which will serve as the co-main event behind a battle for the Strikeforce middleweight championship as Shields will defend his title for the first time against Dan Henderson. If Henderson is successful, he will have worn championship gold in Pride, the UFC and Strikeforce, quite the serious accomplishment.

The only title that will be on the line in the Aoki-Melendez bout will be the Strikeforce strap. Melendez recently took back the title by defeating Josh Thomson in a five round war this past December. Apparently there may be a rematch between Aoki and Melendez later this year, but the second bout would take place in Japan and be conducted under their rules. The announcement of this bout will help ease the blow that Strikeforce took after Emelianenko decided not to fight on the CBS card.

- Two fighters coming off of tough losses are rumored to be facing off against one another at UFC 114. In another battle of the U.K. vs. the U.S.A., Michael Bisping and Dan Miller could meet in Las Vegas on June 14. MMA Junkie is reporting that the matchup has not been finalized, and bout agreements have yet to be distributed. Bisping lost a tough decision at UFC 110 to Wanderlei Silva while Miller was beaten by the current UFC middleweight number one contender Demain Maia at UFC 109.

The card is really starting to shape up nicely as the long-awaited grudge match between former UFC light heavyweight champions Rashad Evans and Quinton “Rampage” Jackson will serve as the main event. In the co-main event, another former UFC light heavyweight champion Forrest Griffin will take on Antonio Rogerio Nogueira.

- Spike TV released the video for season 11 of The Ultimate Fighter featuring Chuck Liddell and Tito Ortiz as coaches. Enjoy!

- Dream officials are trying to decide just what fighter British heavyweight Neil Grove will face at Dream 13 on March 22. Fighters Only has a story on its website that says Grove is training for a possible bout with either current Strikeforce heavyweight champion Alistair Overeem or former UFC heavyweight champion Josh Barnett.

Rumors have been circulating for a few days centering around the fact that both Tim Sylvia and Antonio Silva have turned down bouts with Barnett. Overeem seems to be content on staying in Japan (or anywhere but the United States), even sparking rumors that he could fight Fedor Emelianenko under the Dream banner, but Emelianenko’s team is demanding that Overeem be tested for performance enhancing substances. Grove has one UFC bout under his belt and that took place at UFC 95 last February where he lost to Mike Ciesnolevicz.

- Cage Potato put a list together which details the UFC fighters who have won the most bonus awards. Leading the pack was Chris Lytle who has won four Fights of the Night, two Submissions of the Night and one Knockout of the Night, leading to bonus checks totaling a whopping $310,000. That’s great money for Lytle, who despite having a less than stellar 7-9 record in the UFC, still has a job with the organization. The man comes to fight and is always entertaining.

Anderson Silva, Tyson Griffin, Nate Diaz and Joe Lauzon are next with five bonus awards. There are a total of seven fighters who have cashed four checks for their work inside the octagon.

- For those of you who like action figures, Round Five is getting set to release six fighter action figures in what they are calling “Ultimate Collector Series 2″ and leading the pack is the oh-so lovable Kimbo Slice. Also included in this release are BJ Penn, Tito Ortiz, Forrest Griffin, Michael Bisping and Randy Couture. You can purchase these figures at K-Mart, Target and Toys “R” Us in the United States and Canada. They are also available in Zellers which you can only find north of the border. Ftor more information on Round Five, you can check their website here.

- Former UFC heavyweight champion Andrei Arlovski announced on his website today that he has inked a multi-fight deal with Strikeforce that will cover the next 16 months. That’s great news for the San Jose based organization who find themselves unable to get their current heavyweight champion Alistair Overeem to defend his title and are having issues with their prize free agent signee, Fedor Emelianenko, who was scheduled to fight Fabricio Werdum on CBS in April, but now seems to be in limbo.

Arlovski fell on some hard times, getting knocked out in the first round by both Emelianenko while fighting for Affliction and then getting pummeled by Brett Rogers in just 22 seconds six months later in a Strikeforce cage. A healthy and focused Arlovski brings a lot to the table.

Good lord…is it over yet?

Gilbert Melendez/Josh Thomson II it wasn’t, but this Strikeforce title fight went 25 minutes long in what at times was the equivalent of watching sweat dry on the mats. At the end of the night though, Sarah Kaufman was jus that much better than Takayo Hashi in clean sweeping her to win the organization’s 135-pound title.

Kaufman’s striking was on point, especially her jabs and her right hands. But she didn’t pounce on Hashi and go for the kill, deciding to instead wait out her opponent and outpoint her at every turn.

Hashi attempted takedowns but was negated. Her game plan just didn’t work and in most cases, made this writer question why she was ranked so highly in the world and why she got the title shot. Kaufman barely looked worn out post-fight, but I was really hoping to see the killer instinct we’ve come to know with women’s MMA. Not so much here though. Hashi just never seemed to get out of the starting blocks and Kaufman was already miles ahead whenever she tried.

Given the disappointing event, this main event seemed to just fit. Boring fights and a non-existent crowd didn’t it make it feel like this is a competitor to the UFC in any regard.

Who does Kaufman face next? No idea, but hopefully it won’t go 25 minutes.

Karl Amoussou was hoping for better in his Strikeforce debut, but a grazing shot by Trevor Prangley’s finger that caugut Amoussou in the right eye. The doctor came in, Amoussou said he couldn’t see and then the fight was stopped.

Of course, Amoussou immediately said he could fight which was kinda pointless.

The fight was turning into a slugfest as Amoussou was showing off impressive speed but Prangley was also landing some hard shots of his own. Alas, this one ended in disappointing fashion for there is no five minute recovery period for eye pokes like there is for low blows.

A question: why doesn’t Strikeforce use any undercard fights like UFC does to fill time? These events always feel so rushed.

Main event is next. Rockhold is the only saving grace of the event so far. Attendance looks to be pretty poor in the few shots of the stands we are getting.

This one was over quick as Rockhold was all over Bradley, finishing the fight with a series of knees to the body that crumpled Bradley and caused the ref to stop the fight.

Rockhold was aggressive from the start, knocking Bradley down early with a glancing right to the back of the head. Bradley recovered, but later got hit with a counter right that knocked him down. Eventually, Rockhold connected with a left kick to the head and he followed with knees for the stoppage.

It’s time for the middleweight to step up in class as he’s looked good so far. Does Strikeforce have a next level guy for the still-young Rockhold?

Up Next:  Trevor Prangley vs. Karl Amoussou

Despite having a slew of fans in attendance, James Terry could not overcome the efforts of Tarec Saffiedine who used effective punch/kick combinations to beat Terry by unanimous decision.

All three judges had it 30-27 for Saffiedine. I had it 29-28 for Saffiedine as I thought Terry took the 2nd.

Saffiedine opened up a nasty cut under Terry’s left eye that really opened up in the 3rd round, but the Team Quest member couldn’t finish him off. Both men looked gassed after the stand-up battle, but it was an entertaining fight between two guys just out there throwing fists and kicks.

Saffiedine showed off some great leg kicks, including a head kick fake/connection that looked awesome. He worked over Terry from every angle possible, using well-timed knees and the afore-mentioned combination to wear down Terry.

Terry kept coming but did look frustrated in his inability to get anything going against Saffiedine. Both guys looked good here.

Next up:  Luke Rockhold vs. Paul Bradley

Yancy Medeiros def. Raul Castillo by unanimous decision

Going in, both middleweights were undefeated but Medeiros dominated en route to unan. decision win to keep his ‘0′ in the loss column. Castillo just didn’t seem to want to exchange. Medeiros kept on Castillo the entire 15 minutes, pressing him with punches, kicks and knees – doing enough for the victory.

All three judges scored it 30-27, as did I.

Castillo’s game plan faltered early as he kept attempting takedowns but Medeiros stuffed him every single time, negating a major part of the attack. But instead of Castillo switching it up and mixing it up, he was on the defensive and didn’t want to get dirty with the superior striking of Medeiros.

A puzzling part of the fight was when Castillo actually connected with a knee, but it was a low blow. As Medeiros was recovering, the referee essentially told him that he was fine when the rules state that he’s allowed five minutes to recover. It was bizarre and another indication that the sport still has some work to do with officials in and out of the cage.

Kind of a flat opener.

Up next: James Terry vs. Tarec Saffiedine

A lot of his friends were busy surfing and skating (his older brother is a professional surfer), but that wasn’t what Rockhold wanted. It was a decision by his parents that would set him on the path to stardom and a spot on Friday night’s Strikeforce Challengers card against Paul Bradley.

The West Coast Lifestyle

“I grew up in the lifestyle of a typical Santa Cruz teenager, but my parents wanted me to compete in school sports and kind of forced me to compete,” Rockhold said. “I chose wrestling and stayed with it from seventh grade all the way through high school. I tried to go to a local college but it really wasn’t for me.”

He attended some wrestling camps, but wasn’t interested in the lifestyle that came along with being a college wrestler. He had begun training in jiu-jitsu in high school and decided to go full-time with it from there. That’s where his association with American Kickboxing Academy came into the equation (AKA).

“I was winning some pretty big tournaments and was looking to get into mixed martial arts. It was always a dream of mine. I had heard about AKA from some friends of mine who said that the pro fighters were starting to make decent money and get some exposure on television. I was invited to come down and train, so I went down there and fell in love with it. I went to the store and bought a $2 mouth guard and some other gear and off I went.”

Instructor Javier Mendez thought Rockhold had some potential and a relationship was formed. He’s been there even since and so far, it’s working as he’s 6-1 (all wins via tapout) and with five straight wins going into Friday.

“It’s pretty inspiring being around all of these fighters and watching them reach new heights. Our whole team feeds off of each other, we have a pretty humble team, except maybe one or two guys, we try and stick together. I have grown so much, since starting here,” Rockhold said.

The Opponent

Coming off a big win against former Ultimate Fighter contestant Jesse Taylor in November, Bradley is a step up in competition and one Rockhold knows he can’t afford to make any mistakes against. Bradley is 12-1 and has two straight decision wins.

“Bradley is a really tough wrestler from Iowa with a lot of power. He is definitely going to be my biggest test yet. I know he has some holes, especially in his jiu-jitsu and I will look to take advantage of that. He’s dangerous but he will make a mistake and I will make him pay for it,” he said.

A win over Bradley should get the attention of Strikeforce officials and maybe a spot on their main cards, but Rockhold isn’t in a rush, not yet at least.

“I’ve been asked that question so much lately. Even the Strikeforce officials have been asking me about that. I think I am heading in the right direction and a win over Bradley would be a huge statement. I just want to focus on one fight at a time and when this fight is over, I can start to think about what’s next. If I keep winning, things will eventually take care of themselves.”

Training With Herschel And The Future

With training at AKA, Rockhold has a lot of great fighters he can go to for advice. Surprisingly one he enjoyed working with didn’t have a lot of experience in the cage, but rather on the football field: Herschel Walker.

“That was quite the experience to see a 47 year-old man come in here as green as he was and take to the sport like he did. He was there every day. Here’s a guy who has reached the pinnacle of success in the NFL, and I am working side by side with him,” Rockhold said.

“He was just really cool, very down to earth and quickly became one of the guys. He’s really strong and athletic and he has excellent instincts too. It was amazing to watch how much he would learn day in and day out.”

Rockhold admits he’s a bit of a thrill seeker which is part of his fascination with MMA. A goal-driven individual, Rockhold has aspirations to not just be a top fighter but the top-ranked at his weight class and with Strikeforce.

“I still see myself training at AKA, but fighting in bigger fights. I see myself getting to the top. I truly believe in my abilities and that I will get there,” he said. “I want to fight the toughest competition and the middleweight division here is stacked. They’ve been really good to me, I am happy here and I look forward to the challenges that are in front of me.”

But while fighting for a big promotion and training alongside many of the world’s best has Rockhold optimistically looking ahead, it’s the little things that still get him excited.

“I just found out I was going to be on the EA Sports MMA game. I am so stoked about that and I am looking forward to kicking some ass in the cage and in the game.”

Strikeforce Challengers is on Showtime tonight at 10 pm EST, headlined by Sarah Kaufman vs. Takayo Hashi.

- UFC heavyweight Shane Carwin is less than thrilled with UK-based website MMABay. Carwin is claiming that the site and interviewer Michael Pepper twisted his words around when talking about the recent Frank Mir “death threat” situation with Brock Lesnar. Carwin stated that he never said Mir was an unfit or terrible human being.

Instead, Carwin claims that he said that if any mixed martial artist seriously wants to kill another fighter, then he is a terrible person. He mentioned that he had yet to hear Mir’s interview and was not directing the comment towards him.

In other Carwin news, congratulations go out to him and especially his wife who recently went through 29 hours of labor, giving birth to a baby girl. That’s a tough couple!

- According to Bloody Elbow, K.J. Noons favorite fighter, who so happens to be K.J. Noons, will lace up the gloves and participate in his first mixed martial arts contest since June of 2008 when he takes on Andre Amado in Japan at Dream 13. Noons who was the first and last lightweight champion of EliteXC, became embroiled in a bitter contract dispute with the promotion and decided to focus on his boxing career instead.

He has an 11-2 boxing record overall and is 4-1 since his last mixed martial arts bout. Amado is 6-3-1 with his biggest win coming against UFC lightweight Caol Uno. He has lost three straight.

- Strikeforce continues its game of hide and seek in regards to their April event. MMA Madness reported yesterday that a bout between middleweight champion Jake Shields vs. Dan Henderson has been confirmed, but there is still no date nor venue. MMA Junkie is reporting that Strikeforce is now looking at an April 17 date in Nashville, TN. With just under two months to promote this card, Strikeforce needs to get their act together.

The main event is rumored to be a heavyweight showdown between Fedor Emelianenko and Fabricio Werdum, but sources have said that Fedor won’t begin training until the date has been secured.

- Topps and the UFC have teamed up together with a contest in which the first collector to find one of 10 randomly inserted cards that have all three autographs of Chuck Liddell, Tito Ortiz and Dana White will win an all-expense-paid trip to Las Vegas. The winner will be a guest at the UFC Training Center and get to meet some of the coaches and fighters of season 12 of The Ultimate Fighter. There will be a total of 10 winners with the other nine receiving a pair of UFC gloves signed by the trio. The cards look awesome and should be a huge hit.

- Quinton “Rampage” Jackson has never been one to shy away from controversy, but this time he may have alienated some of his own fans. In an interview he conducted with Fighters Only, Rampage discusses his problems with White and the UFC. Jackson says he was promised a shot at UFC light heavyweight champion Lyoto Machida after the conclusion of The Ultimate Fighter, surprising considering how much of the season seemed to be leading to Jackson vs. Rashad Evans instead. Jackson also stated that he is anxiously awaiting the end of his current UFC contract and that he no longer enjoys fighting.

Check out the video for the full interview: