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James Thompson earned another victory in India, scoring a decision victory against Bobby Lashley in the main event of Super Fight League 3 Sunday from New Delhi, India.

Thompson controlled Lashley, a former Strikeforce fighter and ex-WWE superstar. On an earlier SFL show, Thompson defeated Bob Sapp.

In one of the more thrilling finishes you will see, Zelg Galesic nailed Doug Marshall with a flying knee just 34 seconds in their fight, scoring a knockout.

SUPER FIGHT LEAGUE 3 RESULTS

James Thompson def. Bobby Lashley via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)

Joanne Calderwood def. Lena Ovchynnikova via unanimous decision (30-26, 30-26, 30-26)

Anup Kumar def. Chatmongkhon Simma via TKO (punches) at 4:55 of round one

Kultar Gill def. Quinton Arendse via KO (punches) at :51 of round one

Trevor Prangley def. Baga Agev via KO (punches) at 2:03 of round three

Lakwinder Sekhon def. Vladimir Todorov via TKO (retirement) at end of round two

Gurdarshan Mangat def. Lio Si Siong via submission (rear-naked choke) at 2:37 of round two

Zelg Galesic def. Doug Marshall KO (flying knee) at :34 of round one

Photo credit: Showtime

Former WWE superstar Bobby Lashley will return to MMA this Sunday at Super Fight League 3 against veteran bruiser James Thompson.

Lashley and Thompson will serve as the main event to Super Fight League 3 from New Delhi, India. The complete card will air for free on YouTube at the SFL channel. Action begins at 10:15 a.m. ET.

Lashley is 7-1 in his MMA career, including recent victories over Karl Knothe and John Ott since a TKO loss to Chad Griggs in 2010. Thompson (17-14) earned a win over Bob Sapp at the first SFL event earlier this year.

Other fights set for the card include Trevor Prangley-Baga Agaev, Doug Marshall-Zelg Galesic, and Lena Ovchynnikova-Joanne Calderwood.

Photo credit: ShoSports.com

The Super Fight League announced that Bobby Lashley will take on James Thompson in the main event of Super Fight League 3 from New Delhi on May 6.

Lashley, a former Strikeforce fighter and one-time WWE superstar, holds a record of 7-1 in MMA. Thompson (17-14) was also in the main event of SFL 1, defeating Bob Sapp via first round submission.

Lashley left pro wrestling and entered MMA much like former UFC heavyweight champion Brock Lesnar did. However, Lashley did not have the same kind of immediate impact, and has bounced around a few smaller organizations. He had been rumored as a possible opponent for Fedor Emelianenko in June, but that appears unlikely with the announcement of this fight.

The SFL also signed Trevor Prangley, a former UFC, Strikeforce and Bellator competitor, to meet Baga Agaev on the card. The event will be streamed live via the SFL’s YouTube page.

Could Bobby Lashley be Fedor Emelianenko’s next opponent?

Well, according to Lashley, it’s a possibility. He told Fighters Only recently that he’s on M-1 Global’s list of potential opponents for Fedor and he’s definitely down if they want to book the fight.

Lashley also spoke about the possibility of a fight with the legendary Fedor Emelianenko. “The guy’s got a tremendous amount of fights under his belt… I’d like to fight him.”

According to Lashley, Fedor’s managers are currently looking for the Russian MMA veteran’s next opponent, and his name is on the list of potential matchups. “I’m going to throw everything at him that I can. Of course, my wrestling’s there, I don’t give a damn what he’s doing. I’d put my wrestling up there with almost anyone right now.

“I think that my wrestling would trump some of the things that he has. I know he’s a great fighter, but if I fought him then of course I’m going to try and wrestle him down… If it was Dave [Bautista], I’m standing and banging with him. I’ve been doing a lot of boxing.”

“I wanna fight the best, so if I have an opportunity to fight Fedor, let’s do it. If I have an opportunity to fight anyone right now let’s just damn do it.”

Fedor Emelianeko vs. Bobby Lashley? Gee, can’t wait for that one. (rolls eyes)

Lashley also says he has an offer on the table from Bellator, but he doesn’t know all the details yet. Nevertheless, Lashley says he would “love to fight for them.”

Image via Esther Lin for Strikeforce/Showtime

Update: M-1′s Evgeni Kogan tells USA Today that any Fedor vs. Lashley rumors are premature:

“There are currently no concrete conversations about Bobby being the next opponent for Fedor,” Kogan wrote, adding that Emelianenko probably will fight two or three times this year.

Possible locations for the summer fight include Monaco and Russia, according to Kogan.

Speaking to MMA Junkie, Kogan added that they’re leaning towards “an European fighter” to fight Fedor next.

“It’s hard when you have your first fight. And that first fight is on TV. You have a lot of publicity around you. It’s kind of hard. Other guys, they get a handful of fights before they ever see any competition or are even on TV or anything like that. My first fight was on a major card and I’ve been on TV my whole career. Everybody was like ‘Who are you going to fight next? Are you going to fight Fedor?’ And man, I’ve only got one fight under my belt!… I’m not giving up. I know what I’m capable of…There’s going to be a lot less pressure. Because I’m not undefeated anymore. That’s going to alleviate a lot of pressure for me. I don’t have to worry about keeping this undefeated streak or anything like that. I can just go out there and be more comfortable. I think you’re going to see a much better fighter, because I think they’re going to let me fight every couple of months. I’m just going to get better and better and better.”

—Bobby Lashley talking to Bloody Elbow about the pressure he faced early in his MMA career

In an interview with Pro MMA Now, Bobby Lashley confirmed that he has left Strikeforce and it doesn’t sound like he’ll ever fight for the promotion again. Instead, he’s heading back to the regional MMA scene where he’ll have the opportunity to develop his skills without all the media attention and immense pressure from fans to perform at a level he’s not at yet. His first fight will come on March 25 when he takes on James Jack at Titan Fighting Championships 17. The event airs live on HDNet.

Image via Esther Lin for Strikeforce/Showtime

Bobby Lashley to make his return on March 25 at Titan FC 17 | Five Ounces of Pain

UFC Vet Dan Lauzon Stabbed During Fight Outside a Pub in Bridgewater, Massachusetts | Cage Potato

Dana White Predicts Josh Barnett As Strikeforce Heavyweight Tournament Winner | SB Nation

Better Decade: Fedor Before Werdum, or Silva Through Belfort? | MMA Fighting

Jorge Rivera: I got under Michael Bisping’s skin (Exclusive Interview) | LowKick

Michael Bisping Has No Love for Jorge Rivera | MMA Scraps

Lyoto Machida: UFC “Won’t Feel Sorry for Me” if I Lose to Randy Couture | 5thRound

Bob Arum still insists the growth of UFC is limited to white males | MiddleEasy

MMA Hot List: News of the Weird Edition | Versus’ MMA Beat

Bellator Lightweight Tourney Kicks Off On March 12 in Louisiana | FIGHT! Magazine

Image via Esther Lin for Strikeforce/Showtime

One thing is clear. Alistair Overeem is going to fight at Dynamite!! 2010 on NYE. What’s uncertain is who his opponent will be. Todd Duffee was rumored all day after he posted a message on Facebook earlier today claiming he was fighting at Dynamite. That message however was quickly taken down, but not before it put various media members on the hunt to confirm the news. Sherdog spoke to Duffee’s people and at the time they said it was “50-50.”

Speaking with sources close to Duffee, Sherdog.com has confirmed that the 25-year-old has been offered the bout by Dream officials and negotiations are currently underway. According to those sources, Duffee’s scheduled bout on a Jan. 29 Titan Fighting Championships card in Kansas should not interfere with his ability to make the New Year’s Eve date. When pressed on the odds of the matchup coming to fruition, one source asserted that bout with Overeem has a “50-50 shot” of taking place.

Ariel Helwani has since heard that it’s more like “99%,” but obviously when you’re talking about Japan anything can happen.

Bobby Lashley was rumored at one point, but his asking price was apparently too rich for FEG’s blood. People are still talking about him though, so he might not be completely off the table.

Complete match-ups that were made official for Dynamite!! 2010 today include Jerome Le Banner vs. Satoshi Ishii and Sergei Kharitonov vs. Tatsuya Mizuno.

Image via Sherdog

Update: Ariel Helwani says Ubereem vs. Duffman is set for Dynamite!! 2010. I wasn’t expecting to look forward to Overeem’s NYE fight, but now I do. Nicely done FEG.

If you haven’t heard, Bobby Lashley’s Strikeforce contract has expired. He’s currently in an exclusive negotiation period with the organization, but Dave Meltzer is hearing Strikeforce isn’t terribly interested in re-signing him after his loss to Chad Griggs.

If that’s the case, then who is Lashley supposedly fighting for in Dec.? Last night, he announced he has a fight lined up for Dec. 10 or 11, but didn’t say for who. Sherdog followed up with him to find out who the mystery organization is.

“I have to stay busy after my last fight. This year has been tough with the injuries I’ve had; plus I got mono. I’ve started back with my training and there have been a couple of fights come up that I’ve given a thumbs up to, and I’ve tentatively got a fight scheduled. It’s December 10th or 11th, but I have to wait on saying who it’s with. There’s two different organizations that I’m talking to. I have to get out there and fight. I asked Strikeforce for a rematch (with Griggs), but I’m not sure if it’s in the works.”

So wait, Bobby Lashley is in an exclusive negotiation period with Strikeforce, but he’s talking to other organizations and even tentatively lining up a fight? How does that happen? Well, I imagine it’s a pretty easy mistake to make when you don’t know what’s in your contract.

“I don’t really know what’s in my contract,” said Lashley, who has four finishes (two knockouts, two submissions) among his five professional MMA wins. “The last thing I want to do is do something to violate my contract. After my last fight, I owe it to Scott Coker and to the world to come back stronger.”

If Lashley doesn’t want to violate his contract, he might want to get on the same page with Strikeforce before he goes any further with this Dec. fight. Scott Coker says Lashley would need their approval to fight outside the organization while they still have exclusive negotiation rights.

“I haven’t heard anything about it and we don’t have an event [on Dec. 10-11],” said Coker. “Any kind of an announcement on Bobby’s part might be a bit premature. Bobby can take a fight in a smaller place or another promotion, but I think he’d need to get our approval first. We do let our fighters under contract fight for other organizations, but we have a lot invested in them and should have the right to approve where and when they fight.”

While many fans and writers would probably disagree, Coker thinks there’s still “a lot of fight left in Bobby.” The problem is Strikeforce and Lashley’s camp seem to have a difference of opinion on Lashley’s “value.” If they’re going to re-sign him, it sounds like Lashley will need to lower his asking price first.

Image via Esther Lin for Strikeforce/Showtime

It looks like frustrated Strikeforce heavyweight Antonio Silva will fight again this year after all. Silva, who was heavily rumored to be Fedor Emelianenko’s next opponent, was also rumored to take on Alistair Overeem’s brother,Valentijn, on Dec. 4. Then word came that the fight fell through and it appeared Silva was once again searching for a fight. Well, whatever it was that put the Overeem fight on ice must have been worked out because the fight is back on for Strikeforce “Henderson vs. Babalu” and it is official.

Top contender and former EliteXC champion Antonio “Big Foot’’ Silva has recently been calling out the biggest names in a STRIKEFORCE heavyweight division which arguably is, top to bottom, the most talented and deepest in Mixed Martial Arts (MMA).

Silva won’t yet get the fighters he’s most often mentioned – most notably, STRIKEFORCE champion Alistair Overeem or Fedor Emelianenko. But Silva gets perhaps the next best thing when he faces Alistair’s older brother, Valentijn “The Python’’ Overeem, in one of the principal bouts Saturday, Dec. 4, at Scottrade Center in St. Louis live on SHOWTIME® (10 p.m. ET/PT, delayed on the West Coast).

With this latest addition, it looks like the only missing piece of Strikeforce’s Dec. card is Herschel Walker’s opponent (by the way, Walker wants a recognizable name this time around). Other than that, the televised card consists of Dan Henderson vs. Renato “Babalu” Sobral, Paul Daley vs. Scott Smith, Robbie Lawler vs. Matt Lindland and of course, Antonio Silva vs. Valentijn Overeem. Not a bad card to end the year on.

Image via Esther Lin for Strikeforce/Showtime

Earlier this week, it looked like former WWE superstar Dave Batista had changed his mind about MMA. He was quoted as saying, “I will not be doing MMA/Strikeforce any time soon. So you can see me in the future of the WWE.” On The MMA Hour, Scott Coker told Ariel Helwani “movie offers” were tying up his time, so bullet dodged, right? Well, maybe not. In the video interview above, Batista tells MMA Prime’s Aaron Tru he plans on talking to Strikeforce again this weekend in San Jose, and he hopes they can “get something on paper.” So apparently there’s still a chance. Fans may cringe, but that should put a smile on Scott Coker’s face. He still thinks Dave Batista vs. Bobby Lashley is a fight that “should happen.”

Dave Batista is in San Jose this weekend with the Cesar Gracie fight team to corner Nick Diaz.