Bay Area MMA had a great showing at UFC On Fuel TV 4: Munoz vs. Weidman, if only because San Jose native Chris Cariaso was victorious in his Flyweight debut over Josh Ferguson. Now, the Bay will be represented again in the form of Strikeforce: Rockhold vs. Kennedy on Saturday, July 14. Strikeforce is still a San Jose-based promotion and we'll continue to cover the company even under the Zuffa umbrella.
That being said, there are still plenty of ties to the Bay Area and California in general. Luke Rockhold, who is in the main event defending the middleweight title against Tim Kennedy, was born in Santa Cruz, CA and fights out of the American Kickboxing Academy in San Jose. His opponent was born in California as well, in San Luis Obispo.
Both Nate Moore and Justin Wilcox are fighting out of San Jose as well, with both fighters also training with AKA. Jason High fights out of Lakewood, CA and Robbie Lawler was born in San Diego. So the regional ties are there. With Rockhold leading the way, it should be an exciting card for the Bay.
The full fight card is below:
Main Card
Luke Rockhold (9-1) vs. Tim Kennedy (14-3) [MW Title]
Nate Marquardt (31-10-2) vs. Tyron Woodley (10-0) [WW Title]
Roger Gracie (4-1) vs. Keith Jardine (17-10-2)
Lorenz Larkin (12-0, 1 NC) vs. Robbie Lawler (19-8, 1 NC)
Preliminary Card
Jorge Masvidal (22-7) vs. Justin Wilcox (11-4, 1 NC)
Pat Healy (27-16) vs. Mizuto Hirota (14-4-1)
Jordan Mein (23-8) vs. Tyler Stinson (23-8)
Jason High (15-3) vs. Nate Moore (8-2)
Ryan Couture (4-1) vs. Joe Duarte (10-2)
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