Diaz, Melendez to Defend Strikeforce Belts April 9

Welterweight champion Nick Diaz will defend his crown against feared British striker Paul Daley in the Strikeforce “Diaz vs. Daley” headliner on April 9 at the Valley View Casino Center in San Diego. Three bouts are now official for the event, which will air live on Showtime.

Diaz (Pictured) will carry a nine-fight winning streak into the match. The 27-year-old Stockton, Calif., native last appeared in January, when he submitted Evangelista “Cyborg” Santos with a second-round armbar at the HP Pavilion in San Jose, Calif. A Brazilian jiu-jitsu black belt under Cesar Gracie, Diaz has secured 20 of his 24 career victories by knockout, technical knockout or submission. Wins over former UFC middleweight champion Frank Shamrock, one-time EliteXC middleweight boss Robbie Lawler, reigning Dream welterweight titleholder Marius Zaromskis and Pride Fighting Championships veteran Hayato “Mach” Sakurai anchor the stellar Diaz resume.

Spawned by the Team Rough House camp, Daley has won eight of his last nine bouts, including four in a row. The 28-year-old has not competed since he took out reigning Deep champion Yuya Shirai with first-round punches under the British Association of Mixed Martial Arts banner last month. A destructive standup fighter, Daley has secured 20 of his 27 career victories by knockout or technical knockout. He holds notable wins against Brazilian jiu-jitsu black belt Dustin Hazelett, American Top Team’s Jorge Masvidal, UFC veteran Duane Ludwig and the world-ranked Martin Kampmann. Daley was cut by the UFC a little more than a year ago as a result of his post-fight sucker punch on Josh Koscheck in May. Koscheck defeated him by unanimous decision.

In the co-main event, Strikeforce lightweight champion Gilbert Melendez will put his title on the line in a blockbuster rematch with the world-ranked Tatsuya Kawajiri.

Melendez has not set foot inside the cage since April, when he dominated the highly regarded Shinya Aoki on his way to a unanimous decision at Strikeforce “Nashville.” A winner in four consecutive bouts, the 28-year-old Gracie protégé defeated Kawajiri by unanimous decision at Pride Shockwave 2006 a little more than four years ago. In 20 professional appearances, Melendez has never been finished. Widely regarded as one of the world’s Top 5 lightweights, he has avenged losses to the only two men to have beaten him, Josh Thomson and Mitsuhiro Ishida.

A former Shooto welterweight champion, Kawajiri last competed on New Year’s Eve, when he outpointed Thomson en route to a unanimous decision at K-1 “Dynamite” in Japan. The 32-year-old Japanese standout has rattled off five wins in six outings, losing only to Aoki in that span. Kawajiri has dotted his resume with quality victories: Vitor “Shaolin” Ribeiro, Yves Edwards, Gesias “JZ” Cavalcante and Luiz Azeredo.

Meanwhile, former Strikeforce light heavyweight boss Gegard Mousasi will butt heads with the American Kickboxing Academy’s Mike Kyle in a featured matchup at 205 pounds.

Mousasi, who has competed in three weight classes and held major titles in two of them, has delivered 17 wins in his past 18 appearances. Supremely talented, the 24-year-old judo black belt last fought at Dream 16 in September, when he submitted Tatsuya Mizuno with a first-round rear-naked choke to win the Dream light heavyweight crown at Nippon Gaishi Hall in Nagoya, Japan. Mousasi has secured 27 of his 30 career victories by knockout, technical knockout or submission and owns wins over reigning Bellator Fighting Championships middleweight titleholder Hector Lombard, current Strikeforce middleweight champion Ronaldo “Jacare” Souza, former Strikeforce light heavyweight king Renato “Babalu” Sobral and Dutch knockout artist Melvin Manhoef.

Enjoying a bit of a resurgence, Kyle has posted four wins in five outings. The 30-year-old Boise, Idaho, native last competed in December, when he succumbed to second-round punches from Antonio Silva at the Scottrade Center in St. Louis. Kyle, who has not lost consecutive fights in almost three years, currently holds titles inside the King of the Cage and the Australia-based Xtreme MMA promotions. Only three of his 28 career bouts have gone the distance.

Strikeforce “Diaz vs. Daley”
Saturday, April 9
Valley View Casino Center
San Diego

Strikeforce Welterweight Championship
Nick Diaz vs. Paul Daley

Strikeforce Lightweight Championship
Gilbert Melendez vs. Tatsuya Kawajiri

Gegard Mousasi vs. Mike Kyle
* Shinya Aoki vs. Lyle Beerbohm

* Not Official