Strikeforce Fighters to Appear on 'NCIS: L.A.'

Synergy was the word of the day when Strikeforce lightweight champion Gil Melendez, former titleholders Josh Thomson and Cung Le, and others joined the cast of CBS’s “NCIS: Los Angeles,” shooting this week in Hollywood, Calif.

“NCIS: Los Angeles” stars Chris O’Donnell and L.L. Cool J as agents with the Navy’s crime investigative service. In this episode, Cool J goes undercover as an MMA fighter to investigate the death of a Marine tied to the sport.

Strikeforce fighters Dan Henderson, Frank Shamrock and K.J. Noons also guest-starred as themselves, assisting Cool J for his cage debut against Eric Christian Olsen (“Fired Up!” “Dumb and Dumberer.”) Referee “Big” John McCarthy “officiated” the former rap star’s emphatic turn in the cage.

The episode airs on Tuesday, April 6 at 9:00 p.m. EST/PST on CBS, while Strikeforce returns to CBS’s “Saturday Night Fights” on April 17.