Now White, along with Strikeforce CEO Scott Coker and Showtime executive Stephen Espinoza, are ready to talk in a bit more detail about what’s to come on the Strikeforce front.

The trio will shed some light on the subject at 3:00 PM EST during a conference call with media and, as always, Five Ounces of Pain will be on hand to relay relevant information and interesting soundbytes back to readers.

Check out the highlights below:

Dana White

*”I’m fired up about this deal and the guys in Strikeforce are fired up about it as well. They’re very happy about this new deal.” Alludes to Strikeforce fighters fighting UFC fighters.

*Strikeforce will do away with the heavyweight division after the GP, but doesn’t say all the fighters will be moved to the UFC.

*”The women’s division is very popular. We’re going to keep it. We’re keeping one division…and Cyborg.”

*Says that Gilbert Melendez is pumped to stay in Strikeforce and will continue to defend his title in Strikeforce.

*Doesn’t commit to Strikeforce running PPV.

*Will be at Strikeforce events but Coker will run the day to day operations.

*Has a good relationship with the new Showtime regime. “If I wasn’t happy with the deal, I wouldn’t have involved myself in it.”

*Says that both companies will be looking for the best fighters in the world.

*Will look to add depth to all the divisions.

*Is excited to make some tweaks and build up Strikeforce and Showtime.

*Has no clue what the future holds as far as UFC/Strikeforce cross promoting fights.

*”My schedule next year is ridiculous.”

*Says this is a partnership with Showtime. Will look to make some changes for the better.

*”Strikeforce guys are going to be legit champions and contenders.”

*When asked about Strikeforce Fight Night bonuses, Dana says that he doesn’t know yet but is leaning towards yes.

*Hasn’t made Fabricio Werdum’s UFC return official.

*Showtime wanted the HW GP winner fight one more time on their network and that’s why it’s happening.

*Says Strikeforce won’t be a feeder league. “Watch and see what we do over the next year.”

Scott Coker

*Says the winner of the Heavyweight Grand Prix will not be the new heavyweight champion and that they will focus on the other weight classes once the tournament wraps up. “The winner of the HW GP will fight another top heavyweight and then we’ll focus on the other weight classes.”

*There will continue to be two women’s divisions.

*Will eventually crown new champions in each division.

*Haven’t determined when the 8 shows will run. Has to work everything out with Showtime’s programming.

*Looking to run Daniel Cormier vs. Josh Barnett at the end of the first quarter 2012.

*Has not determine who or when Miesha Tate will fight next. Hopes to do a fight with Ronda Rousey, who is looking to fight at both 135 and 145.

Stephen Espinoza

*Announces that Strikeforce will run 8 events next year starting January 7 with an event headlined by Luke Rockhold vs. Keith Jardine.

*All preliminary fights will be aired on ShowtimeExtreme. Due to this, there will be no more Strikeforce Challengers events.

*Would consider running Boxing and MMA events on the same night, but only if it works out. Worries about overload.

*They could extend their deal with M-1 Global but isn’t concerned about that, only focussed on Strikeforce.

*Says Strikeforce is not a secondary brand.

*”Gina (Carano) at heart is a fighter. It would not surprise me at all to see her back in MMA.”

Showtime Sports

Fresh off the heels of Showtime’s Fight Camp 360: Inside the Super Six World Boxing Classic, to the networks General Manager Ken Hershman it makes sense, “The response to our inaugural episode of Fight Camp 360°: Inside The Super Six World Boxing Classic chronicling the boxing tournament has been overwhelming. Because of the subjects involved – the mysterious world champion set to fight a man living the American dream – we had to turn our lens in this direction.”

Director of the show Ron Yassan, who was allowed access to Fedors training camp in Russia, had this to add, “Fedor is beyond captivating as a fighter, and more so, as a man. It’s a pure joy to film him so intimately as he strives for perfection in life and sport with grace and charm. While training for this most important match, he kindly opened up his life to us in and out of the ring, without the ego that often comes with being the very best at one’s craft.”

The special will premier on Showtime November 3rd, with regular showings up until the event on November 7th. CBS will also make the show available in advance to its 200-plus affiliate stations.

Below are the scheduled air times on Showtime and Showtime 2:

-Tuesday, Nov. 3 at 9:30 p.m. – Showtime

-Tuesday, Nov. 3 at 10:00 p.m. – Showtime 2

-Wednesday, Nov. 4 at 11 p.m. – Showtime 2

-Thursday, Nov. 5 at 10:00 p.m. – Showtime 2

-Friday, Nov. 6 at 10:00 p.m. – Showtime 2

-Saturday, Nov. 7 at 4:30 p.m. – Showtime

All times ET/PT

The appearance comes on the same day that Showtime made Brett Rogers official as his first opponent with Strikeforce.

Also in attendance were Strikeforce President Scott Coker, and M-1 Global President Vadim Finkelchtein.

Esther Lin from Strikeforce was on location in The Big Apple to capture the moment, and below are a few pictures from Fedor’s appearance in New York.

Scott Coker

Fedor hitting heavy bag

Fedor body punch

Vadim Finkelchtein

Good times with Fedor

Fedor signs autographs

Fans crowding around autograph table

The news was recently confirmed through Showtime, and although no location or exact date has been pinned down at this time the bout is expected to take place during an event in Fall.

The bout will be Fedor’s first since knocking Andrei Arlovski senseless during “Affliction: Day Of Reckoning” in January of this year. He had been scheduled to face off with Josh Barnett on August 1 before Barnett tested positive for steroids, and the “Affliction: Trilogy” event crumpled shortly thereafter.

Widely considered to be the best fighter on the planet by fellow mixed martial artists and fans alike, Fedor sports a record of 30-1, with the sole loss due to a cut being avenged by merciless beatdown. He has bested dangerous heavyweights such as Heath Herring, Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira, Mirko “Cro Cop” Filipovic and Andrei Arlovski to name just a few.

Rogers boasts an undefeated record of 10-0, with every one of his victories being finished through strikes. At 6’5″, 265 pounds, Rogers is known for his incredible finishing power and killer instinct. Rogers recently stunned critics by leaving former UFC champion Andrei Arlovski in a heap just 22 seconds into their meeting at “Strikeforce: Lawler vs. Shields” in June.

FiveOuncesOfPain

If you didn’t already know; Fedor, Vadim Finkelchtein of M-1 Global, Scott Coker of Strikeforce and Ken Hershman from Showtime will be holding a press conference this afternoon at 2 pm ET (or 11 am PT).

No news of the specifics of what will be discussed have been released but possible topics could be a first opponent for Fedor, a date and location for the Fall event that’s expected to feature both Jake Shields and Alistair Overeem, details of Strikeforce’s ground-breaking deal with the DREAM promotion and much more.

Be sure to keep it right here as we will update any relevant news right before your eyes as it breaks. Just be sure to keep refreshing the screen for the most current updates.

*Just informed that the conference will begin in just a few minutes. Stay tuned…. and we’re under way

*Fedor’s first fight with Strikeforce will definitely be in the Fall

*No first opponent has been decided for Fedor at this time

*Vadim states that Dana White’s  claims of the UFC making a better offer than Strikeforce are untrue

*Finkelchtein claims that Strikeforce was able to air their events on a global level, when the UFC could not

*Fedor states that he wants to develop MMA and make some money at the same time

*Coker is informed that Dana White just said that Fedor would put Strikeforce out of business and called Strikeforce – “Strikefarce”, Coker laughs it off and says he’s not surprised at the comments but says nothing negative about the UFC

*The UFC has tried to stop the fight between Mousasi and Babalu, but Mousasi has signed a deal with Strikeforce and he will honor it. The fight with Babalu will go down as planned

*Coker isn’t ruling out an immediate title shot for Fedor at this time

*Showtime has a media campaign planned to familiarize the American public further with Fedor

*Fedor states that he has full control of all of his contracts and gets financial reports at all times. Anything Fedor doesn’t like, he has Vadim stand for. He reiterates that he has complete and total control of his career

*Fedor states that the UFC doesn’t treat their fighters like human beings. He feels they have the wrong attitude torwards their fighters

*Emelianenko states that the offer he got from the UFC was “miserable”, and nowhere near the 6 fight, $30 million reports that circulated throughout the internet

*Coker says everyone has lost, and if Fedor loses it won’t ruin his legacy

*Date and location for October Strikeforce event will be announced in the next two days

*Vadim states that if the numbers about Fedor’s contract offer on the internet were true, they would have signed with the UFC

*Finkelchtein doesn’t believe that M-1 Global is portrayed  accurately in the press. M-1 Global is still a growing company and they don’t have a big PR machine.

*Vadim states that Fedor’s name outside of the United States is much bigger than the UFC. If Fedor comes to the UFC he would make the UFC famous outside of the United States.

*The fact that M-1 Global has already put on shows all over the world was a factor in Strikeforce forming a partnership with M-1 Global

*Fedor feels that he’s sorry that the fight with Brock Lesnar didn’t come to fruition , but he would also like a little respect for his decisions on his future

That’s a wrap folks.

FiveOuncesofPain.com is live on location and will be providing reports and exclusive video leading up to fight time.    The FiveOuncesofPain.com  Live Event Chat Room is now open, so stop by for Live coverage of this event and discuss the fights with other readers and fans.

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MAIN CARD (BEGINNING AT 10:00PM – EST – 7:00PM – PST):

Nick Diaz def. Frank Shamrock via TKO- 3:57, Round 2.

Gilbert Melendez def. Rodrigo Damm via KO- 2:02, Round 2.

Scott Smith def. Benji Radach via KO – 3:24, Round 3.

Cris “Cyborg” Santos def. Hitomi Akano via TKO- :35, Round 3.

Brett Rogers def. Ron “Abongo” Humphrey via TKO- 1:38, Round 2.

UNDERCARD (BEGINNING AT APPROXIMATELY 8:00PM – EST -5:00PM – PST)

Luke Rockhold def. Buck Meredith via submission – 4:07, Round 1.

Eric Lawson def. Waylon Kennell via TKO – 4:54, Round 1 .

Raul Castillo def. Brandon Michaels via RNC-1:45, Round 1

James Terry def Zak Bucia via unanimous decision

Shingo Kahara def. Jeremy Tavares via knockout – 0:04, Round 2.

“We are very excited to have the opportunity to deliver live Strikeforce events on the Showtime premium television platform,” Strikeforce Founder and CEO Scott Coker is quoted as saying in a joint press release. “Showtime is a forward-thinking innovator with a reputation for producing outstanding original programming in sports and entertainment.  They have been a phenomenal partner in the past and we are looking forward to growing our relationship with them and bringing the Strikeforce brand of MMA to millions of Showtime subscribers.”

“Strikeforce has a history of presenting high-quality, compelling mixed martial arts events and we are thrilled to be able to bring their world-class events to our subscribers,” said Ken Hershman, Senior Vice President and General Manager of Sports and Event Programming for Showtime.

The news comes on the heels of Strikeforce’s formal announcement that it has acquired select assets from ProElite, Inc., the parent company of EliteXC, which formerly had its events televised on Showtime.

According to the press release, Showtime will televise up to 16 events a year including Strikeforce world championship events as well as a series dedicated to showcasing up-and-coming fighters int he sport.

Today’s release confirmed previous reports that indicated Strikeforce’s first broadcast with Showtime under the terms of the new deal will take place on April 11 at the HP Pavilion in San Jose, Calif.

While the release states that a fight card will be released at later date, FiveOuncesOfPain.com has confirmed that middleweights Benji Radach and Scott Smith will be in action with former Strikeforce middleweight champion Frank Shamrock and current Strikeforce lightweight champion Josh Thomson also expected to compete in separate bouts as well.

April 11 will not be the first time Showtime and Strikeforce have worked together. The two companies were involved in the Frank Shamrock vs. Phil Baroni event that was distributed on Showtime PPV in June of 2007. Additionally, Showtime also televised last March’s Strikeforce middleweight title fight between Shamrock and Cung Le.

While it is expected that CBS will televise Strikeforce events on a quarterly basis, no mention of a deal between the two companies was made in today’s announcement.

“Showtime Networks Inc. has adjourned the previously announced public sale of personal property of ProElite, Inc. and certain of its subsidiaries scheduled for November 17, 2008,” the release states.  “Showtime reserves all of its rights, including the right to further adjourn or cancel the public sale and thereafter dispose of such property in a public or private sale or in any other manner provided under its agreements with ProElite and by applicable law.”

The most notable asset that had been scheduled to be auctioned off were the contracts of the 80-plus fighters that are still signed to ProElite even in spite of a massive downsizing by the company last month.

“The Collateral includes all contracts between any Debtor and mixed martial arts fighters (including, but not limited to, Kevin Ferguson a.k.a. “Kimbo Slice“, Gina Carano, Jake Shields, Robbie Lawler, Frank Shamrock, Antonio Silva, Brett Rogers, Dave Herman, Scott Smith, Nick Diaz, Cristiane Venancio Justino a.k.a. “Chris Cyborg“, Eddie Alvarez, Yves Edwards and Wilson Reis) and all of each Debtor’s video library, still photographs and home videos (e.g., DVDs and VHS tapes),” reads an excerpt from an advertisement placed on Nov. 5 by Showtime on NoticeOfPublicSale.com.

Showtime had been planning the auction in an attempt to recoup some of the $6.3 million it had loaned and given ProElite prior to CBS and Showtime’s decision to call in a note after ProElite’s liquid savings fell below $550,000. The decision to use fighter contracts as assets to be auctioned drew great criticism from the MMA community with several major agents and managers representing the fighters in question having joined together to denounce Showtime’s intentions.

Despite the auction’s postponement, many of the fighters remain in limbo as they are still contracted to ProElite.

According to a report by SI.com’s Josh Gross, Affliction Vice President Tom Atencio is quoted as saying that a planned Monday announcement will reveal that Showtime will both distribute and produce Affliction’s “Day of Reckoning” pay-per-view event on Jan. 24 from The Honda Center in Anaheim, Calif.

Showtime’s production team not only handled all ShoXC and EliteXC broadcasts on the network, but also handled the production of all EliteXC events on CBS. The network previously distributed one other MMA pay-per-view; Strikeforce and EliteXC’s co-promotion in June of 2007 that featured Frank Shamrock and Phil Baroni vying for the then-vacant Strikeforce middleweight title.

Voicemails seeking comment by FiveOuncesOfPain.com from officials at Showtime have thus far gone unanswered.

The Jan. 24 Affliction event will feature WAMMA heavyweight champion Fedor Emelianenko defending his title against former UFC heavyweight champion Andrei Arlovski.

Dave Herman vs. Kerry Schall

Mamed Khalidov vs. Jason Guida

Anthony Lapsley vs. Mike Stumpf

Alexander Shlemenko vs. Robert McDaniel.

Lyle Beerbohm vs. Rafaello Oliveira

Click here for full event results!

Photos: Esther Lin/EliteXC

The promotion is back at it tonight (11 p.m. ET, SHOWTIME), promoting its third event in three weeks. On paper, it appears that tonight’s lineup could be just as strong as the ShoXC event two weeks ago at the Chumash Resort & Casino in Santa Ynez, Calif.

Below is preview with predictions for the five bouts that are scheduled to be televised.

Dave Herman vs. Kerry Schall

Herman is one of the most unconventional athletes in all of MMA. Evoking some shades of the late-Evan Tanner, Herman has taken a solid amateur wrestling background and has coupled it with self-taught MMA training on his way to a 11-0 start to his MMA career.

Currently 2-0 while competing under the EliteXC banner, Herman is coming off his most notable win to date this past June during the promotion’s “Return of the King” event in which he TKO’d former PRIDE and UFC veteran Ron Waterman at 2:19 of round 1.

For this fight, Herman deviated a bit in his preparation, as he elected to spend some time out of his home state of Indiana in order to get in some training with a former UFC heavyweight champion.

“I am still training alone and, no, I’m not really worried about joining a camp or team although I went and trained for a week in Las Vegas a few weeks ago,” Herman told reporters on Thursday. “I worked on striking and how to block a punch … without using my face. I sparred with Frank Mir. That was fun.”

The 37-year old Schall is a veteran from the second season of Spike TV’s hit reality show The Ultimate Fighter. He departed the show without having competed after injuring his knee. That’s just one example of how the 10-year veteran has dealt with bad luck throughout his entire career.

His string of bad luck dates back to 2001 while competing for the Rings promotion in Japan. Rings officials approached Schall’s manager, Monte Cox, with a proposed match against a short, inexperienced, and unassuming Russian heavyweight. Cox and Schall ventured to Japan under the impression they were looking at a layup victory against a tomato can. Unfortunately, the unassuming Russian heavyweight turned out to be a then 25-year old Fedor Emelianenko, who was competing in just his sixth pro fight.

Fedor ended up demolishing Schall, submitting him at 1:47 of round 1. The rest, shall we say, is history?
While Schall is a respected journeyman who knows his way around the cage, it’s hard to envision him being able to hang with Herman for very long. Both come from a wrestling base but Schall is notorious for exercising poor judgment in his game plans and has routinely stood in the pocket and traded with fighters as opposed to trying to take them to the ground.

Tonight looks to be no different, as Schall will almost certainly try and stand and trade with Herman. Despite Herman’s wrestling background at Indiana-Bloomington, it’s his standup which has turned heads thus far. The lanky Herman has no formal striking training but has proved dangerous with knees from the clinch as well as kicks. If Schall is properly conditioned, he might want to pressure Herman and test his stamina by taking him to the ground in an attempt to try and gas him early. Maybe going to the ground with Herman doesn’t sound like a great strategy, but it will give him better odds of winning than if he elects to just stand with him.

Prediction: Herman TKOs Schall in the first round, setting up one half of what potentially could be a future EliteXC heavyweight title shot against Brett Rogers.

Mamed Khalidov vs. Jason Guida

A lot of people think Guida was signed by EliteXC because the promotion intends to develop him after all the attention he garnered following his ill-fated attempt to qualify for the eighth season of The Ultimate Fighter.

Maybe that’s really the case, but I’m not so sure. I believe more than likely Guida was chosen for this fight because he is from the area and could be a ticket seller in a bout that is probably really more of a showcase for Khalidov than anyingth else.

Guida, who is listed as 17-17, according to Sherdog’s fight finder, could actually be somewhere around 25-17. While speaking to reporters on Thursday, he acknowledged that the inability to make weight for TUF 8 was his fault and that he’s rectified the situation.

“I know what I’m capable of and I’ve changed my diet,” said Guida. “I know what I need to do. I got lazy; the training was there but I just wasn’t disciplined or focused and I wasn’t mentally there. I am now.”

Khalidov, 17-3-1, is a native of Grozny, Chechnya who fled to Poland due to his objection of fighting for the Chechen national army. While Khalidov considered himself to be a fighter, he did not consider himself to be a killer. But don’t let his decision to evade military service fool you, he does not lack a killer instinct when it comes to fighting in the ring, as he did not earn the nickname “Cannibal” by accident.

An intriguing prospect who could factor into the EliteXC light heavyweight title picture sooner rather than later, Khalidov is still untested. Dominating the Polish MMA scene is one thing while making your mark in the U.S. is another. However, Guida should be a relatively easy test. While Guida’s strength is wrestling, Khalidov is very capable when it comes to submissions. Khalidov’s standup has made strides in recent fights and while he still has much room for improvement in that department, his striking could already been better than Guida’s.

Prediction: Khalidov via second round submission.

Anthony Lapsley vs. Mike Stumpf

In a promotion starving for 170 pound prospects to step up and challenge current EiteXC welterweight champion Jake Shields, Lapsley probably would already have competed for the promotion had it not been for his questionable judgment in the past.

The current King of the Cage welterweight champion, Lapsley, 13-3, has been plagued in his career by inconsistency. The father to six children, Lapsley also spent time on the sidelines following a six month suspension handed down by the Nevada State Athletic Commission after he tested positive for marijuana following a victory over Jaime Jara at King of the Cage’s “Arch Rivals” event in Oct. of 2007. He paid an even bigger price after NSAC overturned the victory and ruled it a no contest. It’s a win that would look pretty good on his resume in light of Jara handing Giva Santana his first-ever loss at EliteXC’s ShoXC event from two weeks ago.

A top-shelf athlete, the 28-year old former amateur wrestler needs to step up and show improved striking in this bout. Lapsley is aware that he needs to become a more technical striker and has been working with a boxing coach in recent months.

He’ll have his work cut out for him tonight against the 10-1 Stumpf, who is a student of Jeff Curran’s and every bit the prospect that Lapsley is. The 21-year old Stumpf is a good wrestler who is coming off the highest-profile victory of his career after TKO’ing Dom O’Grady at 3:52 of round 2 during Adrenaline MMA’s first-ever show on June 14, 2008.

This fight will be interesting because their wrestling backgrounds could neutralize each other’s attempts to bring the fight to the ground and turn this into a standup affair between two less-than-technical strikers. In the end, Lapsley’s experience and athleticism could prove to be the difference.

Prediction: Lapsley will swing for the fences and connect in the second round, winning via KO.

Alexander Shlemenko vs. Bubba McDaniel

This is a big spot for McDaniel, who is coming off a non-title victory against ICON Sport middleweight champion Kala Kolohe this past June during a non-televised bout at EliteXC’s “Return of the King” event.

McDaniel’s standup is still unproven, but his submission game makes him a very dangerous fighter. Ten of his 12 wins have come via tapout so Shlemenko needs to keep the native Texan on his feet or run the risk of suffering the same fate as Kolohe.

Shlemenko is a talented Russian fighter who is 29-5 in documented fights. However, he has competed in various forms of combat and has recorded even more victories in undocumented bouts. The 24-year old from Siberia has won his last six fights but still has yet to breakthrough as a big-time fighter. He attempted to do so in 2005-2006, as he ventured to Brazil in hopes of asserting himself against higher-profile opponents. However, he went 0-3 in fights against Brazilian icon Jose “Pele” Landi-Jons (twice) and DREAM middleweight Grand Prix finalist Ronaldo “Jacare” Souza.

Shlemenko is a knockout artist who can finish fights from the clinch. Known for having good cardio, his takedown defense is also considered an asset. It will come in handy tonight against a ground specialist such as McDaniel. Unless McDaniel gets the fight to the floor early, this could be a short fight.

Prediction: Shlemenko via first round TKO.

Rafaello Oliveira vs. Lyle Beerbohm

Oliveira is making his debut for EliteXC after accumulating a 5-0 MMA record while competing on a sporadic basis the past few years. Currently an instructor in Knoxville, Tenn., the native Brazilian once trained in Hawaii with B.J. Penn and still travels out to Hilo on occasion to help Penn prepare for his fights.

Beerbohm is also undefeated at 7-0 and has competed once before for EliteXC in a non-televised bout. A talented wrestler, Beerbohm is not known for having the most exciting fights and has yet to encounter an elite-level opponent.

It will be interesting to see how this opener plays out because the wrestler vs. jiu-jitsu expert matchup doesn’t always lend itself to a lot of action.

Prediction: Beerbohm via unanimous decision.

Wilson Reis vs. Abel Cullum

Jaime Jara vs. Giva Santana

Jaime Jara vs. Giva Santana

David Douglas vs. Malaipet

David Douglas vs. Malaipet

Matt Makowski vs. Erik Apple

Shane Del Rosario vs. Carl Seumanutafa

Photos: Tom Casino/EliteXC

ProElite is the parent company of EliteXC, King of the Cage, Cage Rage, and ICON Sport and has television deals with Showtime, CBS, and Fox Sports Net but has also absorbed losses of approximately $55 million since its inception in late 2006. Showtime is a subsidiary of CBS Corp. and owns an existing 20 percent stake in ProElite.

ProElite warned investors of financial instability in an SEC filing this past August, stating that the company did not have enough resources to function into next year without securing additional financing.

“(The company) expects to report in its Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q that its capital resources are sufficient only until the end of the year, and only if the Company makes significant reductions in operations and expenditures,” ProElite warned in a Aug. 15 NT filing that announced to investors and government officials that it would be late in filing its second quarter fiscal report.

The filing also indicated that ProElite believed it was close to securing an additional $3.0 million in financing needed to allow it to operate through the remainder of 2008. However, the filing also cautioned that the deal to raise the additional capital was not finalized and there was no guarantee that the deal would be closed.

“The Company is actively negotiating to consummate a financing of approximately $3.5 million in secured debt (with a funded amount of $3.0 million after an original issue discount of $0.5 million) and believes a successful closing is reasonably likely,” the filing stated. “But there is no assurance that it will be successful in doing so at all or on a timely basis. Any such failure to obtain financing in the immediate future would have a material adverse effect on the Company’s liquidity and capital resources and ability to continue as a going concern.”

On Wednesday, the company issued another filing revealing that it had been unable to close the deal and that it instead had received a $1 million loan from Showtime.

“The Company no longer believes that a successful closing of the $3.5 million secured debt (with a funded amount of $3.0 million) will occur,” the 8-K filing states. “Although the Company has received $1 million pursuant to the Note, such funds are less than the $3.0 million needed to avoid the consequences described in the preceding paragraph and in the Company’s prior reports filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The $1 million funding defers such consequences only for a brief period of time while the Company continues to evaluate its options on how to respond to its severe liquidity problem.”

Indications that ProElite was looking for either a merger or acquisition partner came to light in a Sept. 11 column by CBS and SHOWTIME broadcaster Mauro Ranallo on the website for The Fight Network.

“I contacted Pro Elite head honcho (CEO and Chairman) Chuck Champion and he told me that he had held preliminary talks with a variety of promotions including Affliction,” wrote Ranallo in a blog entry that speculated on a promised major announcement by Affliction last week.

When contacted by FiveOuncesOfPain.com, Showtime Director of Sports Communications Chris DeBlasio declined comment and e-mail and phone messages left for Champion were not immediately returned.

We here are Five Ounces of Pain are dubbing it the “Aokiplata” (read more here)

UPDATE- some clarification on the move requested by readers – Aoki is in the mount position. Opponent on his back. Aoki wrapped his right leg UNDER the left shoulder of Nagata, then placed the top of his right foot on Nagata’s throat. He’s then pulling on the back of his opponents head, to force pressure on the throat into the foot.

Check out more DREAM 4 content on Five Ounces of Pain.

Nick Diaz on Aoki:

“You know, there’s a lot of other people I’d like to fight, just considering Mach Sakurai is a lot older than I am,” Diaz said. “He’s probably in his late 30s I’d imagine, so I’m going to have a lot of respect for him and everything he’s done. I tend to do better with people I have less respect for. To be honest, I’d rather be fighting Shinya Aoki or Kawajiri — somebody other than the guy that got knocked out by someone I already beat [Gomi].

“I know the only way to win is not care to win or lose,” he said. “That’s why I’m not afraid of anybody and why I want to fight the best. I think Shinya Aoki is the best fighter here. I want to fight this guy — I think I can beat him.

Jason “Mayhem” Miller on Sakuraba:

“My biggest dream ever was to fight Sakuraba,” Miller said. “He was my hero growing up. I’m lucky that in my business, I’m allowed to beat my heroes up in the same way I beat my dad up now.

“Sakuraba is my hero, and the prospect of being able to fight my hero is huge. It’s my dream, and hopefully I can accomplish my dream here. I’m happy that we’re in the tournament at the same time. No matter who they put in front of me, I want to defeat them in the most exciting manner possible. I’ve never seen Sakuraba tap out.”

Today, according to Sherdog, DREAM announced that Aoki will continue on in the tournament but that his second round bout against Katsuhiko Nagata will not take place at DREAM 3 with the other lightweight matchups and will instead take place on June 15.

Aoki apologized to his fans and promised to deliver an exciting bout on June 15:

“I’m sorry that I won’t be able to fight on May 11, but I can promise that I will be back with a vengeance June 15,” Aoki said. “I will be 100 percent motivated when I step into the ring and I will make good for cancelling the May fight.”

Aoki “wants to go on, but it’s up to the doctors,” said Mike Kogan, head of U.S. promotion for Dream’s owner, Fight Entertainment Group. The examination is scheduled for later on Friday — keep in mind that Japan is a day ahead of North America — so Aoki’s fate could be known several hours from now.

I find it highly doubtful that Aoki will continue, especially seeing as how he stated even before the second JZ fight that he didn’t have much intention on continuing on in the tournament. Stay tuned…

Calvancante was approached about replacing the Japanese fighter, but the 24-year-old American Top Team representative could not come to terms with the promotion and has since left Japan.

That’s a bummer for DREAM, but that’s what happens when you don’t make a clear ruling on the first fight between the two. DREAM deciding that the first fight was a no contest put them in this position. Aoki had expressed a while back that he may not continue on in the tournament regardless of the outcome of the second fight with JZ or whether or not he was injured, so DREAM has no one to blame but themselves for this predicament.

The hotly anticipated Gesias “JZ” Calvancante (14-1-1) vs. Shinya Aoki (12-2) match-up — first promised to the world and then removed from a New Year’s Eve “Yarennoka!” card in Japan — has been reset for a March date in Japan.

American Top Team General Manager Richie Guerrero confirmed the K-1 sanctioned fight during his appearance on Wednesday’s episode of TAGG Radio.

While it seems like the Japanese had no intentions of ever putting this fight on the Yarennoka! card to begin with, it’s good to see that these two guys will eventually get it on inside the ring. This will be one of the most highly anticipated matchups in the first part of 2008 with both of these men ranked in almost everyone’s top ten lightweight rankings if not the top five.