Strikeforce's August card now is official and will feature the first title defense of its newest women's champion.
Strikeforce CEO Scott Coker on Tuesday announced that the card, as previously reported, will take place Aug. 18 at Valley View Casino Center in San Diego. Headlining the card will be a women's bantamweight title fight between champion Ronda Rousey (5-0 MMA, 3-0 SF) and top contender Sarah Kaufman (15-1 MMA, 6-1 SF).
Details are still forthcoming on ticket on-sale times and prices, but Coker said tickets for "Strikeforce: Rousey vs. Kaufman" will go on sale Friday.
Rousey continued her tear through the sport by submitting Miesha Tate this past March to win the bantamweight title in Columbus, Ohio. It was Rousey's fifth straight first-round armbar submission victory – though it was deepest she had ever gone. Rousey submitted Tate 4:27 into the fight after the first four fights of her career went just a combined 2:18. Before turning pro, Rousey went 3-0 as an amateur – with three first-round armbar submissions.
Rousey, a bronze medal winner in judo at the 2008 Olympics, dropped to bantamweight for the first time for her title fight against Tate. That fight was said by many to be the most highly anticipated women's fight since Gina Carano vs. Cristiane "Cyborg" Santos in August 2009.
Kaufman, a former Strikeforce bantamweight champ, will enter the fight with Rousey on a three-fight win streak. On the preliminary card of the March 3 card in Columbus where Rousey won the belt, Kaufman positioned herself as the top contender when she won a bloody majority decision against Alexis Davis. Prior to that, Kaufman went 2-0 in 2011 with wins over Megumi Yabushita and Liz Carmouche.
Kaufman won the bantamweight title in February 2010 against Takayo Hashi, then defended it in July 2010 with a slam knockout of Roxanne Modafferi. But she lost the title to Marloes Coenen in October 2010.
Three other bouts have been reported for the event, though not yet made official by Strikeforce. Ronaldo "Jacare" Souza will meet Derek Brunson, Roger Bowling fights Tarec Saffiedine and T.J. Cook meets Ovince St. Preux.
