Chad Griggs (left) vs. Gian Villante (right) – Strikeforce: Fedor vs. Silva
A light heavyweight bout appears to be in the works for this May’s upcoming Strikeforce event in California, as New York fighter Gianpiero Villante (9-3) is expected to face Derrick ‘Caveman’ Mehmen (12-4).
News of the bout was first reported by Newsday.com (sourced via MMAWeekly.com) who learned of the matchup from Villante Saturday night, who confirmed that bout agreements were in place for the fight.
The upcoming Strikeforce show is expected to take place on May 19, 2012 at the HP Pavilion in San Jose, California. The event is expected to feature the Heavyweight Grand Prix Final match between Josh Barnett and Daniel Cormier.
Officials have yet to confirm any matches for the event.
Villante will look for his third straight win in his fifth Strikeforce appearance. His last bout went down in January, winning a first round TKO victory against Trevor Smith at the Rockhold vs. Jardine show. The other win came in August of last summer, a unanimous decision versus Keith Berry at the Gurgel vs. Duarte event.
Mehmen fought this past Saturday night (March 31, 2012) as part of the WMMA 1 event in El Paso, Texas. The ‘Caveman’ lost a unanimous decision to former UFC/MFC veteran Rodney Wallace. The loss ended a two fight win streak for Mehmen who won a decision over Roy Jones last August as part of Mehmen’s Strikeforce debut.