Strikeforce Nashville Recap: Jake Shields proves his worth, King Mo defeats Mousasi

Strikeforce promotion presented an extraordinary “Nashville” event with no less than three title fights. The event was held at the 20,000-capable Bridgestone Arena in Nashville, Tennessee.

The opening bout of the night featured the top five Light Heavyweight in the World (and arguably the top 10 P4P fighter in the World) Gegard Mousasi and the loudmouth challenger Muhammed “King Mo” Lawal. Two months of neverending trash talk ended up in a surprisingly dominant performance by Lawal, who managed to prevent from Mousasi to execute his gameplan by constantly taking “The Dreamcatcher” to the ground. More than that, Lawal looked solid during his short stand up moments against Mousasi, throwing some heavy punches at the Dutch-Armenian. Lawal has cut Mousasi’s 15-fight winning streak, which included some of the best opponents you can find outside the UFC bubble.

Gegard Mousasi was way more effective damage-wise, but his inability to gain moment cost him the decision. A victory over Gegard Mousasi rises Mo’s record to 7-0, proving that the one of the most decorated wrestlers in the game has a very bright future ahead of him.

Later that night, Gilbert Melendez welcomed the legendary Japanese superstar Shinya Aoki to the United States, by dominating the “Baka Surviving” during five rounds of Strikeforce Lightweight Title action. Melendez showed a heart and pride of a true Champion by chasing Aoki around the cage and taking risks on the ground. Shinya Aoki did not have the answers for Melendez determination and impressive striking that forced him to pull guard in every attempt.

Gilbert Melendez has clearly solidified his place as the Top 5 Lightweight in the World, as many people suggest that in light of BJ Penn’s defeat at UFC 112, “El Nino” might be the best 155’er on the planet. Melendez will seek for a new challenges at the Strikeforce Lightweight division, as the fight against KJ Noons looks like the only option available at the moment.

In the main event attraction of the evening Jake Shields has surprisingly dominated the veteran Dan Henderson for the Strikeforce Middleweight title. Shields was rocked in the early seconds of the fight by Dan Henderson’s world-famous right hand, but managed to weather the storm and defeat the legend. Shields proved many people wrong when he took down the Olympic Wrestler at will, something that most of the UFC fighters failed to do over the past years.

The only thing to complain about was Shields’ inability to finish Dan Henderson, after being in full mount position for at least five times during the fight. Jake Shields’ Unanimous Decision victory over Dan Henderson improves his record to 25-4, to the pleasure of the UFC President Dana White.

White will do everything in his power to sign Jake Shields, but it is up to the Champion if he wants to test himself against Georges St. Pierre, Jon Fitch and Dan Hardy. Shields’ judgment may be blinded after the embarrassing incident with Mayhem Miller, as we will have to wait and see what the California-native has in mind.

Strikeforce’s next event “Heavy Artillery” will feature the heavy-hitting Alistair Overeem, who will defend his Heavyweight Title for the first time in three years against Brett “The Grim” Rogers. The event will air live on Showtime and take place on May 15, at the Scottrade Center in St. Louis, Missouri.

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