Strikeforce Officially Announces "Babalu" Sobral vs. Robbie Lawler On June 16th

by Kelvin Hunt on Apr 30, 2010 4:00 PM EDT in News

Strikeforce Middleweight "Ruthless" Robbie Lawler

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

"BABALU" SOBRAL TO FACE ROBBIE LAWLER
IN STRIKEFORCE MAIN EVENT

AT NOKIA THEATRE L.A. LIVE WEDNESDAY, JUNE 16

Tickets Go On Sale Tomorrow

LOS ANGELES (April 30, 2010) - Knockout artist "Ruthless" Robbie Lawler (17-5) will collide with former STRIKEFORCE Light Heavyweight (205 pounds) Champion Renato "Babalu" Sobral (35-8) at a catch weight of 195 pounds in the main event when STRIKEFORCE Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) hits Nokia Theatre L.A. LIVE in downtown Los Angeles, Calif. on Wednesday, June 16.

Tickets go on sale to the general public at 10 a.m. PT tomorrow/Saturday, May 1, at STAPLES Center box office, all Ticketmaster locations (800) 745-3000, Ticketmaster online (www.ticketmaster.com <http://www.ticketmaster.com/> ) and STRIKEFORCE'S official website (www.strikeforce.com <http://www.strikeforce.com/> ). Tickets will also be sold at the Nokia Theatre L.A. LIVE box office on days when events take place there.

The first-ever STRIKEFORCE event scheduled for mid-week will take place in the midst of the E3 Expo, the premier trade show for computer and video games. During E3 Expo 2010 at the L.A. Convention Center, EA SPORTS(tm) will exhibit its highly anticipated title, EA SPORTS MMA, in which STRIKEFORCE is featured as a premier league.

Sobral's start will be his first since he relinquished his STRIKEFORCE crown to superstar Gegard Mousasi, who stopped the Brazilian fighter one minute into their meeting at San Jose, Calif.'s HP Pavilion on Dec. 19, 2009. Prior to the loss, Sobral had reeled off five consecutive victories.

The 34-year-old Sobral, who resides in Orange County, Calif., has faced and defeated some of the sport's toughest competitors during his 13-year career. On Sept. 6, 2003, he defeated three consecutive, first-rate opponents - Trevor Prangley, Mauricio Rua, and Jeremy Horn - in one night of single-elimination tournament action.

Also slated for action on the card are former WWE champion turned undefeated heavyweight MMA sensation Bobby Lashley (5-0) and lightweight star K.J. Noons (8-2)

Doors at Nokia Theatre L.A. LIVE will open for the event at 5:15 p.m. PT. The first non-televised preliminary bout will begin at 6 p.m. and the first main card fight will begin at 8 p.m.

The event will be televised live on SHOWTIME at 11 p.m. ET/PT (delayed on the West Coast).

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I know strikeforce has to keep lawler bussy fighting someone but I just don’t see what this fight does for him or his career and why he signed this fight in the end ? To me its only a loose/loose for Robbie. Lawler should be fighting top MW’s not catch weight fights with 205ers at this point in his career. Sure I can see Robbie putting Babalu to sleep early on hear but if somehow Babalu can get this fight to the ground and pain top control it could be all over for Robbie fast. And a Loss to Babalu really hurts Robbies stock.

It’s just another example in a long line that makes me scratch my head when it comes to Scott Cokers decisions running Strike Force and its Future ? I myself don’t understand why Strike Force did do Lawler vs Matt Lindland instead of having Lindland fight Kevin Casey, 2 MW’s with name value instead of a MW fighting a LHW in a fight not to many fans are excited or care to see.

by Shocbomb on May 1, 2010 4:46 AM EDT reply actions