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Former Affliction Entertainment and PrideFC star Josh Barnett has just inked a deal to join the popular Japanese MMA promotion, Dream. It’s believed the controversial heavyweight will make his debut at Dream.13 on March 22nd.

MMAWeekly.com confirmed the signing with sources close to the situation late Monday night, and an official announcement from the organization is expected within the coming days.

Barnett hasn’t been seen Stateside since single-handedly taking down Affliction’s humble mixed martial arts promotion with a failed drug test just one week before his highly-anticipated showdown with Fedor Emelianenko at “Affliction: Trilogy.”

After forcing Affliction to permanently close their doors last August, Barnett took a brief leave from MMA. He hasn’t been seen in a mixed martial arts bout since knocking out Pedro Rizzo at “Affliction: Day of Reckoning” in July of 2008 – although he did appear in at least one wacky pro-wrestling event in Japan.

Due to his LATEST positive drug test, Barnett submitted an appeal to the California State Athletic Commission to re-issue his license. Unfortunately, due to countless reasons under the rainbow, Barnett’s hearing has been postponed four times with the next pow-wow set for April 20th.

“The Baby Faced Assassin” holds an impressive 24-5 pro record and was considered one of the planet’s best heavies before his latest fiasco, however God only knows how many of his wins are tainted with steroid juice.

For now, it appears Barnett will continue to hide out in the Orient and wait for his next assignment. According to the report, no opponent has yet to be assigned, however many have declined to face Barnett for whatever reason.

Here are the fighters rumored/expected to participate inside the Yokohama Arena in Yokohama, Japan:

Josh Barnett vs. TBD
Katsunori Kikuno vs. Kuniyoshi Hironaka
Ikuhisa Minowa vs. Jimmy Ambriz
Ryo Chonan vs. Andrews Nakahara
K.J. Noons vs. Andre Dida
Joachim Hansen vs. Bibiano Fernandes (Dream Featherweight Champion)

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It’s been almost 19 months since welterweight champion Georges St-Pierre dominated Jon Fitch at UFC 87. Although the 25-minute thrashing was the nastiest beating he’d ever received, Fitch believes he’s much improved and would take out the planet’s baddest welterweight if/when their paths cross again.

“He is elite. He is the top dog. You don’t really have to explain how good he is,” Fitch told ProFighting-Fans.com of GSP’s prowess.  “You don’t have the kind of record he has and get to where he is without being the best. However, I’ve made huge improvements in my last year of training.

“I think I’m at the point where I can technically matchup with him and I think I can beat him. I think, right now, I’m a better fighter than him. I’m just waiting for the opportunity to prove it.”

Although GSP took home a lopsided unanimous decision in their first meeting, Fitch was able to push the French-Canadian the distance even though he stared defeat dead in the eyes on multiple occasions.

The American Kickboxing Academy-trained fighter has rolled off three straight wins since the loss, however faces fellow top contender Thiago Alves at UFC 111. It’s highly likely the winner would get next dibs at the crown and Fitch is fully prepared to showcase his refined MMA game.

“He is a very powerful guy with great leg kicks. Since the last time we fought he has grown mentally,” Fitch said. “He is just all-around a stronger opponent mentally and physically since we last met. It’s going to be a hell of a fight and I believe it’s a fight I need to prove that I deserve a rematch against GSP.”

UFC 111 takes place March 27th inside the Prudential Center in Newark, New Jersey. St-Pierre will headline the SpikeTV/pay-per-view broadcast against Dan Hardy, which marks his first title defense since annihilating the aforementioned Alves at UFC 100 last July.

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Although Strikeforce CEO Scott Coker promised to make a “big announcement” today, there still hasn’t been an official announcement regarding their spring agenda. Thankfully, MMA’s grapevine was backed up with all the Strikeforce information you need – for April and May.

Strikeforce’s Manic Monday Recap:

* – Jake Shields confirmed on his Twitter account that he would headline the April 17th event and defend his middleweight title against Dan Henderson, however couldn’t verify if the show was going to be held inside the Sommet Center in Nashville, TN as expected.

* – Shields also informed us that the highly anticipated light heavyweight title match between champion Gegard Mousasi and Muhammed “King Mo” Lawal is on tap for the CBS broadcast.

“Officially fighting @DanHenderson on 4/17 Strikeforce Main Event live on CBS!! Mousasi vs King Mo and more TBA,” Shields Tweeted.

* – Lorretta Hunt of Sherdog.com reported that former UFC heavyweight champ Andrei Arlovski has signed a four-fight, 16-month contract with Strikeforce and will face Antonio Silva on their yet-to-be-announced card on May 15th in St. Louis, Missouri.

* – Josh Gross of SI.com confirmed with multiple sources that Strikeforce lightweight title holder Gilbert Melendez will defend his belt against Japanese import Shinya Aoki on the April 17th show, meaning the primetime broadcast will now feature three title fights.

* – Strikeforce heavyweight champ Alistair Overeem confirmed with MMAJunkie.com that he will likely face Brett Rogers at the May 15th promotion, however it will be in a non-title affair.

Rumored for CBS’ April 17th event inside the Sommet Center in Nashville, Tennessee:

Antwain Britt vs. TBD
Shinya Aoki vs. Gilbert Melendez (Strikeforce Lightweight Champion)
Muhammed “King Mo” Lawal vs. Gegard Mousasi (Strikeforce Light Heavyweight Champion)
Dan Henderson vs. Jake Shields (Strikeforce Middleweight Champion)

Rumored for May 15th event inside the Scottrade Center in St. Louis, Missouri:

Andrei Arlovski vs. Antonio Silva
Brett Rogers vs. Alistair Overeem Non-title Match (Strikeforce Heavyweight Champion)
Fabricio Werdum vs. Fedor Emelianenko

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Now that “UFC 109: Relentless” is officially in the books, let’s take a look ahead to the UFC’s next major event, UFC 110 on February 20th inside the Acer Arena in Sydney, Australia.

The pay-per-view broadcast actually takes place on the 21st in Australia, however it can be seen live in North America on February 20th beginning at 1PM ET/10AM PT.

For you Octagon fans that enjoy watching the events during their customary 10PM ET/7PM PT timeslot, the replay will also be made available to you on Saturday evening, however don’t expect to pay less than the $44.95 price tag just because you are ordering the show via tape delay.

Here are the fighters slated to participate in the show:

Preliminary Bouts:

James Te Huna vs. Igor Pokrajac
Brian Foster vs. Chris Lytle
C.B. Dollaway vs. Goran Reljic
Stephan Bonnar vs. Krzysztof Soszynski
Chris Haseman vs. Elvis Sinosic

Main Bouts:

Mirko “Cro Cop” Filipovic vs. Ben Rothwell
Ryan Bader vs. Keith Jardine
George Sotiropoulos vs. Joe Stevenson
Wanderlei Silva vs. Michael Bisping
Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira vs. Cain Velasquez

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EA Sports has announced that five more Strikeforce fighters have been added to the roster for “EA Sports MMA,” the gaming giant’s debut into the world of mixed martial arts.

It was announced today that “EA Sports MMA” has added TNA/Strikeforce star Bobby Lashley, Nick Diaz, Marius Zaromskis, Joe Riggs and Melvin Manhoef to the game’s lineup.

Nobody can question the talent that the “EA Sports MMA” roster possesses, but with “UFC Undisputed 2010″ set for a May 25th release, EA has to be careful they don’t fall too far behind THQ’s highly anticipated sequel.

The game now has 25 fighters on its official roster and they are expecting to add more talent down the line. The company still has not set an official release date.

Here’s the most recent “EA Sports MMA” roster:

Bobby Lashley
Nick Diaz
Marius Zaromskis
Joe Riggs
Melvin Manhoef
Shinya Aoki
Hidehiko Yoshida
Cung Le
Gilbert Melendez
Robbie Lawler
Ronaldo Souza
Matt Lindland
Scott Smith
Josh Thomson
Nick Thompson
Brett Rogers
Jake Shields
Frank Shamrock
Fedor Emelianenko
Randy Couture
Renato Sobral
Gegard Mousasi
Muhammed Lawal
Jason Miller
Jay Hieron

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Later this spring, Strikeforce middleweight champion Jake Shields is expected to defend his brand new title against MMA legend Dan Henderson.

Although Shields recognizes the opportunity at hand, the 185-pound champ has a tremendous amount of respect and admiration for the former two-division PrideFC champion.

“I think he’s a phenomenal opponent … he’s one of my favorite fighters of all-time,” Shields said this past weekend. “He’s a legend in the sport so it’s something I really hope comes together.”

Henderson stated the fight was a done deal while appearing on MMALive last week, but it appears the sides have hit a minor snag in the negotiations process.

“There are a couple tiny things that need to be worked out,” Shields said when asked if both parties had put pen to paper.

Although Shields holds Henderson and his career in high regard, the Bay Area native appeared confident when talking about the proposed 5Round affair.

“I think he’s a little wild at times … makes a few mistakes,” said Shields. “There are a few weaknesses in his jiu jitsu, so obviously, that’s my strongest point. I’ll try to exploit him there.”

Shields believes the fight will be over once Henderson makes his first mistake, especially when you take into account the relentless style of jiu jitsu Shields comes with.

“I try to force the submission instead of just waiting for the guy to make a mistake. When you have a shorter round you don’t have time to wait,” Shields said of his aggressive ways.

Let’s not forget, Henderson isn’t the type to sit and wait for something to happen either. A vicious right haymaker could have Shields unconscious before he’s even able to get his hands on Henderson, let alone take him to the mat.

This one should be explosive.

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For the past five months, the MMA world has not seen “the first lady of MMA” Gina Carano.

Since losing her bid for the Strikeforce Women’s lightweight title to Christiane “Cyborg” Santos on Aug. 15, the Las Vegas native has been missing in action with no outlook as to when she will return to the sport.

Some might speculate that she was abducted by aliens and taken to another planet, never to be seen again. Others may think that some psychopathic, obsessed fanboys kidnapped her and have her tied up in their mother’s basement.

The possibilities are scary once you think about them.

Fear not ladies and gentleman (mostly gentleman), Carano hasn’t been taken to another planet, nor is she the victim of some horrific act by a less than balanced fan.

Hollywood has taken up the time of many fighters within the sport of mixed martial arts and Carano just happens to be one of them.

Ryan Couture, son of UFC Hall of Famer Randy Couture, was able to shed some insight yesterday via email when he wrote, “I saw Gina briefly over the holidays and it sounds like she’s been working long days in preparation for her upcoming film role.”

Hollywood seems to wear out even the most conditioned of athletes. The time spent preparing for a fight is grueling, to say the least, but let’s not take anything away from the hours spent working in front of the camera.

“It won’t be until shooting wraps on that project that she’ll be able to shift her focus back to fighting,” Couture continued. “At the time that I spoke to her she didn’t have a timeframe [for a return] in mind, but did mention that she missed training and was eager to get back to it.”

According to IMDB.com, Carano is set to take on a role in the movie “Knockout” which also stars G.I. Joe ’s Channing Tatum. Other actors rumored to appear in the film along side Carano are Ewan McGregor, Dennis Quaid, and screen legend Michael Douglas.

This is certainly a step up from her last role as Veretta in “Blood and Bone” where she worked along side known martial artist Michael Jai White. The film also featured MMA personalities Bob Sapp, Maurice Smith and Kimbo Slice.

Much like a handful of other mixed martial artists, Carano has attracted the eyes of film directors and producers alike. As one who brings a tremendous amount of charisma and charm to the sport of MMA, it only seems reasonable that Carano would have the same influence in Hollywood.

Carano being one of the most attractive women on the planet certainly helps as well.

Worst case scenario, Gina Carano will leave MMA for Hollywood. The bright side? No more watching her get punched in her perfect face.

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There is a ton of hype surrounding the UFC’s debut on Versus, and rightfully so. If the fighters rumored/expected to participate inside the Odeum Colorado in Broomfield, Colorado can remain healthy,”UFC on Versus” will go down as the deepest freebie fight card ever offered by the UFC.

A light heavyweight bout between Brandon Vera and the up-and-coming Jon Jones will headline the March 21st show, with the victor taking a ginormous leap towards becoming a legit contender in the UFC’s most prized division.

Vera, who was slated to meet Antonio Rogerio Nogueira at UFC 109 before Little Nog pulled out with an injury, was last seen dropping a controversial unanimous decision to UFC Hall of Famer Randy Couture at UFC 105 in Manchester, England.

Fortunately for Vera, Jones is more than a formidable opponent. The 22-year-old has taken the UFC world by storm since making his debut against Andre Gusmao at UFC 87 in August 2008. He was perfect through his first nine pro scraps entering his last contest against Matt Hamill at “The Ultimate Fighter: Heavyweights Finale,” however was DQ’d after he landed a couple illegal north-south elbow strikes to Hamill’s grill.

A pair of important heavyweight scraps will open for them as former top contender Gabriel Gonzaga will meet one of the division’s faster rising stars in Junior dos Santos, and Cheick Kongo will face MMA journeyman Paul Buentello as well.

Here are the other fighters rumored for the highly anticipated extravaganza:

Preliminary Bouts

Mike Pierce vs. Rob Kimmons
Chase Gormley vs. Brendan Schaub
James Irvin vs Alessio Sakara
Spencer Fisher vs. Duane Ludwig
Eliot Marshall vs. Vladimir Matyushenko

Main Bouts:

Clay Guida vs. Shannon Gugerty
Anthony Johnson vs. John Howard
Cheick Kongo vs. Paul Buentello
Gabriel Gonzaga vs. Junior dos Santos
Jon Jones vs. Brandon Vera

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