Woodley-Saffiedine Slated for Jan. 7 ‘Challengers’ Card

Tyron Woodley will face Tarec Saffiedine in the main event of Strikeforce Challengers 13, an event likely to take place on Jan. 7 in Nashville, Tenn.

Sources close to the organization informed Sherdog.com of the matchup Saturday afternoon. Strikeforce has yet to officially announce the pairing or the event.

A former Big-12 wrestling champion at Missouri, Woodley has amassed a perfect 7-0 record since turning pro last year. The potent grappler is 5-0 since joining Strikeforce and comes fresh off a one-sided victory over Brazilian jiu-jitsu world champion Andre Galvao. The two-time All-American holds five of his seven wins by submission and has allowed just one of his fights to reach the judges’ scorecards. Woodley’s only bout to go the distance was a hard-fought split decision victory over Nathan Coy at Strikeforce Challengers 8 in May.

Saffiedine is riding a three-fight win streak and is undefeated in Strikeforce competition. The Team Quest product made his debut on the big stage at Dream 10 in July 2009, where he outpointed Seichi Ikemoto. After dropping a split decision to Dong Sik Yoon three months later at Dream 12, the “Sponge” returned to the United States and earned a unanimous decision over James Terry in his Strikeforce debut. The 24-year-old native of Belgium most recently took a decision over UFC veteran Brock Larson at Shark Fights 13 in September.

Also scheduled for the event is a heavyweight attraction between two-time U.S. Olympic wrestler Daniel Cormier and Devin Cole.