Upon the announcement that the UFC’s parent company, Zuffa, had purchased Strikeforce in March 2011, many believed Strikeforce lightweight champion Gilbert Melendez would be one of the first fighters to leave the organization and compete inside the Octagon.
However, more than one year later, Melendez is still at the helm of Strikeforce’s 155-pound class and will compete in a rubber match against Josh Thomson on Saturday night.
Despite splitting their first two meetings, Melendez is currently considered the much better fighter and potentially the best lightweight in the world.
Still, Thompson has only lost two of his past 13 fights and has the ability to mount an upset against Melendez. As we close in on this important lightweight matchup, let’s take a look at which fighter has a better chance of walking away with the Strikeforce belt around his waist.