The Final Cut

Strikeforce issued the following press release today announcing Bobby Lashley’s next fight:



FORMER WWE SUPERSTAR BOBBY LASHLEY TO FACE FELLOW UNBEATEN RON SPARKS IN CLASH OF UNBEATEN MMA HEAVYWEIGHTS AT NOKIA THEATRE L.A. LIVE WEDNESDAY, JUNE 16



LOS ANGELES (May 15, 2010) – Former WWE superstar Bobby Lashley (5-0) will square off with fellow undefeated Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) heavyweight Ron “The Monster” Sparks (5-0) when STRIKEFORCE hits Nokia Theatre L.A. LIVE on Wednesday, June 16. DREAM welterweight champion Marius “The Whitemare” Zaromskis (13-4) will face Evangelista Cyborg (17-13) in a featured welterweight (170 pounds) contest.



The 33-year-old Lashley, a 6 foot 3, 265-pound native of Junction City, Kan., was overwhelmingly victorious in his STRIKEFORCE debut on Jan. 30, stopping Wes Sims with an onslaught of punches in the first round (2:06) at BankAtlantic Center in Sunrise, Fla. The popular Lashley enjoyed success with both the WWE and rival pro wrestling league, TNA, between 2005-07.



In his outing before last on June 27, 2009, Lashley scored an impressive first-round (3:17) TKO over 6-foot-5 inch, 350-plus-pound goliath Bob “The Beast” Sapp in Biloxi, Miss.



A resident of Denver, Colo., Lashley was a collegiate wrestling star for Missouri Valley College and member of The United States Army.



“I’m excited about fighting again,” Lashley said. “I’ve been working very hard and I am continuing to learn. The guy I am fighting is huge. This will be a great fight.”



The 35-year old, 6-foot-5 Sparks, of Louisville, Ky., is a tough guy with freakish girth and power who brings it each and every time. An equally imposing physical specimen who has been pummeling opponents, Sparks is coming off a unanimous four-round decision over Johnathan Ivey in his last effort on June 3, 2009.



Until then, only one of Sparks’ fights had lasted more than a minute. The total elapsed time in Sparks’ previous triumphs, all of which he won by knockout, was 184 seconds. He won in 1:07, 0:36, 0:24 and :17, respectively.



“I like to get in and get the job done,” said the hard-hitting Sparks. “My last fight went all four rounds, but there is nothing I enjoy more than knocking a person out.”



Sparks, who has been seeking a major fight against a “name” opponent, is looking forward to June 16.



“Trust me, we’re going to go down swinging,” he said. “There will be no tap-outs. I am grateful of the opportunity STRIKEFORCE is giving me and I am very confident of a victory.”



You can click here to see a photo of Ron “The Monster” Sparks.

– Former WWE Diva Maria was eliminated from NBC’s “Celebrity Apprentice” on Sunday night. She made it to the next-to-last episode. Sunday’s finale is down to actress Holly Peete and rocker Brett Michaels.



– As noted over the weekend, John Morrison may have injured his ankle at this weekend’s RAW live event in Kingston, Ontario, Canada. After his match with Vladimir Kozlov, Morrison had to be helped to the back by trainers. We’re waiting to hear more.



– NXT stars Justin Gabriel and Wade Barrett worked this weekend’s RAW live events in Canada, with Gabriel getting wins over Barrett.



– WWE’s new luchador star Dos Caras also worked the weekend’s RAW live events, losing to Goldust. He continues to impress WWE officials with his solid work on the mic and in the ring.



– Here are tonight’s confirmed ROH on HDNet matches:



* World Tag Team Champion Claudio Castagnoli in action

* Update on Delirious following his injury last week by Austin Aries

* Colt Cabana interview

* Kenny King and Rhett Titus vs. Josh Raymond and Christin Able

* Pick 6 Contender’s Series: Kevin Steen vs. Roderick Strong

* Plus another chance to see the final eight minutes of what are calling the best TV match in 2010. The finals of the TV Title Tournament – Eddie Edwards vs. Davey Richards

– The reason why Sting and Jeff Jarrett’s “match” turned into a brawl last night at Sacrifice is because of Sting’s shoulder injury, which prevented him from working a traditional match.



– As previously announced, Kurt Angle will return at tonight’s TNA iMPACT! tapings.



– More TNA releases are expected to be announced soon, possibly this week, as the company plans on making some budget cuts.

Here is a WWE RAW preview for tonight:



– Buzz Aldrin hosts tonight’s commercial free show.



– After losing to the Tyson Kidd last week, a member of the Hart family earned a shot at the Miz’s US Title. The Miz chose Bret “Hitman” Hart to be that challenger. Does the Hitman have a chance to win the title, or will this be his last stand?



– Just days before the Over the Limit PPV, WWE Champion faces former Champion Sheamus!



– After scaring away Vickie Guerrero and laying out Edge with the RKO, should Randy Orton watch his back?



– Last week, Ted DiBiase paid off Primo and Carlito to beat down R-Truth. What will R-Truth have in store for the fortunate son?



– Remember to join us for our live coverage of the show, starting at 8:45PM tonight!



UPDATED WWE OVER THE LIMIT CARD:



* Rey Mysterio vs. CM Punk If Rey Loses, He Joins The Straight Edge Society. If Punk Loses, He Gets His Head Shaved

* Unified Tag Team Title Match: The Miz and Chris Jericho vs The Hart Dynasty ©

* IC Title Match: Drew McIntyre © vs. Kofi Kingston

* Grudge Match: Randy Orton vs. Edge

* World Title Match: Jack Swagger © vs. The Big Show

* WWE Title I Quit Match: John Cena © vs. Batista



The following is from TNAWrestling.com:



– This Thursday night, witness the aftermath of the “Sacrifice” Pay-Per-View event!



– Reigning TNA World Heavyweight Champion Rob Van Dam will appear! RVD retained the gold on Sunday night against AJ Styles – what’s next for the champ?



– What will Hulk Hogan have to say about Sting’s brutal attack on Jeff Jarrett at the Pay-Per-View? Can Hogan put a stop to Sting’s path of destruction in TNA?



– The broadcast will feature a major update on the TNA Top Contenders Ranking System! Who will be the next Superstar to get a shot at Rob Van Dam and the TNA World Heavyweight Championship?



– What does Abyss have planned for Desmond Wolfe and Chelsea on Thursday night? At Sacrifice, Abyss beat Wolfe in the “Chelsea vs. Ring” match, and gains control of Wolfe’s valet for 30 days!



– What will be the fallout from the Jay Lethal/Ric Flair brawl on Sunday night at the Pay-Per-View? Tune in Thursday and find out!



– Is war about to erupt between Team 3D and Ink Inc after what happened at Sacrifice? Find out on Thursday!



– All this and much more on Thursday night at 9/8c on SpikeTV!

Jim Ross had a new blog entry up at http://www.JRSBARBQ.com’ Here are the highlights…



On Favorite HBK Matches: Favorite Shawn Michaels matches? Too many to list but some that quickly pop into my mind are HBK vs. Taker Hell in a Cell, HBK vs. Foley, HBK vs. Austin @ WM, HBK vs. HHH when Shawn returned to WWE after about a 4 year absence, and of course the WM25 match pitting Michaels vs. the Undertaker in Houston. Yeah, I know that I’ve probably left some other obvious one’s out. Sorry.



On Lesnar vs. Carwin: Prediction…Brock vs. Carwin…I’m a Lesnar guy but I will guarantee you that this will be a war and will be Lesnar’s toughest test to date in MMA. Shane Carwin has many of the same physical tendencies and comparable athletic background that Brock possesses but until someone gets it done, I’m going with Lesnar. The mental makeup of Brock Lesnar is something to behold and one has to fully understand the man to know just how much he hates/detests losing. The former WWE and NCAA champion will trainlike a madman in preparation for this July 3 confrontation on PPV in Vegas.



On Lashley vs. Lesnar: Will we ever see a Lesnar vs. Bobby Lashley MMA match? Perhaps, but not any time soon. Lashley is still putting together his body of work and has many more fights to go until most feel that the talented Lashley could realistically challenge Brock.



On Taz in ECW: How do I rate Taz’ ECW career? It was extraordinary. Taz was ECW’s version of Stone Cold and when Taz did something or said something I believed. Taz’ on air persona in ECW was a tremendous example of how it’s done. Taz believed and therefore the audience believed.



Be sure to check out the full blog at http://www.JRSBARBQ.com/