5 Fights Official for Jan. 7 Strikeforce Challengers

Strikeforce has officially announced its first show of 2011, and the company will begin its new year in the city which hosted its infamous April brawl.

The 13th installment of the Strikeforce Challengers series will take place on Jan. 7 at the Nashville Municipal Auditorium in Nashville, Tenn.

As reported by Sherdog.com over the weekend, the Showtime-televised card will be toplined by a clash of welterweight prospects Tyron Woodley and Tarec Saffiedine. In the show’s likely co-main event, heavyweight Olympic wrestling convert Daniel Cormier will put his unbeaten record up against International Fight League veteran Devin Cole.

Filling out the televised undercard will be a middleweight showdown between Yancy Medeiros and John Salter, a 145-pound women’s scrap which pits Amanda Nunes against Julia Budd, and a welterweight affair between Nate Moore and Nathan Coy.

Undefeated Hawaiian Medeiros will look to build on his perfect 9-0 mark and continue his success within the Strikeforce ranks, having scored a pair of wins over Raul Castillo and Gareth Joseph inside the black cage in 2010. His opponent, Salter, will be seeing his first action since his August release from the UFC. The Alabama native went 1-2 inside the Octagon, losing to Gerald Harris and Dan Miller, with his only win coming against Jason McDonald, who gruesomely injured his ankle during their bout.

Nicknamed the “Lioness of the Ring,” 22-year-old Brazilian Nunes has reeled off five straight wins via technical knockout since dropping her 2008 debut, including second-round victories over tough countrywomen Vanessa Porto and Ediane Gomes. Looking to tame the “Lioness” will be 27-year-old MMA neophyte Julia Budd. Known as the first woman to defeat Gina Carano in the muay Thai ring, the “Jewel” made a successful transition to MMA in October with a TKO win over the previously-unbeaten Shana Olsen at Strikeforce Challengers 11.

Fighting out of San Jose’s famed American Kickboxing Academy, Moore holds a record of 1-1 within the Strikeforce ranks. Moore forced fellow prospect Louis Taylor to submit to punches in November 2009, but was most recently knocked out by Saffiedine at a May “Challengers” event. He won’t have an easy return, as he meets former SportFight welterweight champion Coy, himself seeking to bounce back from a decision loss to Woodley on the same card. The Team Quest product, nicknamed “Soulforce,” holds notable career victories over current UFC 170-pounders Rick Story and Mike Pierce.