By FCF Staff Strikeforce has announced today that rising middleweight Luke Rockhold has injured his shoulder and will not fight the accomplished Matt Lindland as scheduled, October 9th. The extent of Rockhold’s injury is yet to be determined.(Pictured above: Tyron Woodley hitting Zach Light)
"There's not much I can do. Injuries are part of the game,'' Rockhold said in a press release from the promotion. 'But I feel bad for Matt, the fans, Strikeforce, everybody. I'd been working really hard and was really focused on this fight. Hopefully, I will be OK soon and Matt and I can get it on in the future.''
To fill the vacant spot for Strikeforce’s upcoming event, which will take place at the HP Pavilion, in San Jose, a welterweight tilt between Tyron Woodley and Andre Galvao has been added to the card.
"The fight between Tyron and Andre is a great matchup between two young fighters looking to take their careers to the next level," Strikeforce CEO Scott Coker was quoted saying. "We wish Luke a speedy recovery and are confident he will soon enough rejoin our growing crop of top prospects."
Woodley (8-0) continues to impress, as the former NCAA All-American wrestler has now won four straight bouts since signing with Strikeforce last year. Most recently, Woodley was awarded a Split Decision win over Nathan Coy in May, after submitting Rudy Bears in the first round last November.
Galvao (5-1) is coming off back-to-back wins over Luke Stewart and more recently Jorge Patino, while fighting under the Strikeforce banner. The renowned jiu-jitsu competitor’s only loss came against Jason High last July, who defeated Galvao by Split Decision at Dream 10.
The October 9th Strikeforce card will be headlined with a rematch between welterweight champion Nick Diaz and challenger KJ Noons. Other bouts scheduled for the card include 135lb. women’s champ Sarah Kaufman vs. Marloes Coenen and Gesias “JZ” Cavalcante vs. former lightweight champion Josh Thomson.
