Ricardo Arona vs. Marvin Eastman, Paulo Filho vs. Alex Schoenauer, Antonio Rogerio Nogueira vs. Alex Stiebling, and Pedro Rizzo vs. Jeff Monson are among the fights slated to take place at Bitetti Combat on September 12 in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.

[Pictured: Muhammed "King Mo" Lawal]

8,867 fans attended the Showtime-televised event at the Scottrade Center in St. Louis, Missouri.

Following the win, which improved Shields’ record to 23-4-1, the former EliteXC welterweight champion called for a middleweight title bout against Strikeforce champ Cung Le. Le, however, is not expected to defend his title for the indefinite future while pursuing a movie career and Shields may be forced to face another opponent for an interim title before Le returns. Lawler, a former EliteXC middleweight champion, falls to 18-5 following the defeat.

Heavyweight contender Brett Rogers needed just 22-seconds to knockout Andrei Arlovski with a flurry of punches in the Strikeforce: Lawler vs. Shields co-headliner. Rogers, who improved to 10-0 with the win, will next meet Strikeforce heavyweight champion Alistair Overeem on a future Strikeforce card, while Arlovski’s future is less certain after falling to 15-7 with his second-straight knockout loss.

In other main card action, Nick Diaz overwhelmed Scott Smith with punches over two full rounds before forcing Smith to tap to a rear naked choke in the third and Joe Riggs and Mike Whitehead picked up unanimous decision victories over Phil Baroni and Kevin Randleman respectively.

SEE ALSO: Carano-Cyborg, Thomson-Melendez II Set For August 15 Strikeforce Event

The Strikeforce: Lawler vs. Shields results were:

• Jake Shields def. Robbie Lawler via submission (guillotine choke) — Round 1. 2:02
• Brett Rogers def. Andrei Arlovski via KO (punches) — Round 1, 0:22
• Nick Diaz def. Scott Smith via submission (rear naked choke) — Round 3, 1:41
• Joe Riggs def. Phil Baroni via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
• Mike Whitehead def. Kevin Randleman via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
• Jesse Finney def. Josh Bumgarner via submission (kimura) — Round 1, 1:55
• Mike Kyle def. Rafael “Feijao” Cavalcante via TKO (strikes) — Round 2, 4:05
• Booker DeRousse def. James Wade via TKO (strikes) — Round 1, 4:06
• Tyron Woodley def. Sal Woods via submission (north-south choke) — Round 1, 4:20
• Lucas Lopes def. Scott Ventimiglia via DQ (illegal knee) — Round 1, 3:26
• Pat Benson def. Dave Cochran via submission (triangle choke) — Round 1, 2:18

[Pictured: Jake Shields]

The event’s preliminary card is scheduled to begin at 7:45pm ET with the main, Showtime-televised card, headlined by a catchweight showdown between Robbie Lawler and Jake Shields, commencing at 10pm ET.

Stay tuned to MMAFrenzy.com all night for live results, plus stop by after the fights for extensive post-fight coverage.

STRIKEFORCE: LAWLER VS. SHIELDS RESULTS

• Jake Shields def. Robbie Lawler via submission (guillotine choke) — Round 1. 2:02
• Brett Rogers def. Andrei Arlovski via KO (punches) — Round 1, 0:22
• Nick Diaz def. Scott Smith via submission (rear naked choke) — Round 3, 1:41
• Joe Riggs def. Phil Baroni via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
• Mike Whitehead def. Kevin Randleman via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
• Jesse Finney def. Josh Bumgarner via submission (kimura) — Round 1, 1:55
• Mike Kyle def. Rafael “Feijao” Cavalcante via TKO (strikes) — Round 2, 4:05
• Booker DeRousse def. James Wade via TKO (strikes) — Round 1, 4:06
• Tyron Woodley def. Sal Woods via submission (north-south choke) — Round 1, 4:20
• Lucas Lopes def. Scott Ventimiglia via DQ (illegal knee) — Round 1, 3:26
• Pat Benson def. Dave Cochran via submission (triangle choke) — Round 1, 2:18

[Pictured: Robbie Lawler and Jake Shields]

The official Strikeforce: Lawler vs. Shields weigh-in results were:

MAIN CARD

• Robbie Lawler (182.75) vs. Jake Shields (181.75)
• Andrei Arlovski (244) vs. Brett Rogers (262)
• Nick Diaz (179) vs. Scott Smith (179.5)
• Phil Baroni (168.75) vs. Joe Riggs (170)
• Kevin Randleman (204) vs. Mike Whitehead (206)

PRELIMINARY CARD

• Josh Bumgarner (173.5) vs. Jesse Finney (175.75)
• Rafael “Feijao” Cavalcante (205.5) vs. Mike Kyle (202.5)
• Booker DeRousse (204.25) vs. James Wade (205.25)
• Tyron Woodley (170.5) vs. Sal Woods (169.25)
• Lucas Lopes (186) vs. Scott Ventimiglia (185)
• Dave Cochran (153) vs. Pat Benson (155.75)

PHOTO GALLERY

Kevin Randleman

PRESS RELEASE — Two-time NCAA Division I National Wrestling Champion and former UFC Heavyweight Champion Kevin “The Monster” Randleman (17-12) will make his long-awaited return to mixed martial arts (MMA) action when he squares off with fellow grappling expert Mike Whitehead (23-7) during the live SHOWTIME® telecast of Strikeforce: “Lawler vs. Shields” from the Scottrade Center in St. Louis, Mo. on Saturday, June 6.

Making his first appearance in over a year and his debut with Strikeforce, the 37-year-old Randleman of Columbus, Ohio will attempt to reclaim the glory he achieved almost a decade ago when he was crowned UFC heavyweight champion after scoring a knockout on Pete Williams at UFC 23 on November 19, 1999.

A tremendous athlete with explosive power, Randleman captured back-to-back NCAA national wrestling titles in 1992 and 1993 while competing for Ohio State University. His stellar collegiate career gained him entry into the school’s Hall Of Fame in 2004.

On October 22, 1996, Randleman made his professional MMA debut in Brazil where he stopped Luiz Carlos Macial in the first round of action. After amassing a 6-2 record, he entered the octagon for the first time at UFC 19 on March 5, 1999 and pulled off a stunning upset of MMA and kickboxing legend Maurice Smith.

After retaining his UFC title with a unanimous decision over Pedro “The Rock” Rizzo on June 9, 2000, Randleman was stopped by Randy “The Natural” Couture two months later.

In 2002, Randleman joined the ranks of Japan’s elite Pride Fighting Championship and enjoyed initial success by overcoming his first three opponents.

Randleman’s career came to a screeching halt three and a half years ago when he contracted a severe fungal lung infection that required surgery. The illness return shortly thereafter, thus delaying his return further.

Like Randleman, the 27 year old Whitehead has shined on the mats, achieving NJCAA All-American honors in 2001 while wrestling for North Idaho Junior College and, later, two-time All-American honors while competing for Southern Oregon University.

In his last start on October 29, 2008, Whitehead submitted Leo Pla in the first round of their matchup in Kansas City, Missouri. The victory returned Whitehead’s name to the win column one month after he gave up a unanimous judges’ decision to Renato “Babalu” Sobral. The loss to Sobral ended Whitehead’s 13 fight win streak that dated back to March 2006.

A native of Oregon, Whitehead has taken residence in Las Vegas, Nevada, the fight capital of the world to train amongst the sport’s best competitors. He recently parted ways with the Xtreme Couture camp and found a new home at the all-new training ground of superstar and former world champion Wanderlei “The Axe Murderer” Silva.

In 2005, Whitehead was cast on the second season of Spike TV’s smash-hit reality series The Ultimate Fighter. He has since conquered fellow octagon veterans Krzyysztof Soszynski and Vernon “Tiger” White as well as former UFC champion and HBO documentary subject Mark Kerr, whom Whitehead stopped with strikes in the first round of their meeting in Portland, Oregon on November 2, 2006.

Tickets for Strikeforce: “Lawler vs. Shields” are on sale at the Scottrade Center box office as well as at all Ticketmaster locations (800-745-3000), Ticketmaster online (www.ticketmaster.com), and Strikeforce’s official website (www.strikeforce.com).

The live SHOWTIME telecast of the event begins at 10 p.m. ET/PT (delayed on the West Coast). In the highly anticipated main event, “Ruthless” Robbie Lawler (16-4) will face off with fellow top-ranked superstar Jake Shields (22-4-1) in a 182-pound catch weight fight.

Fresh off their respective thrilling Strikeforce wins on April 11, Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu black belt and boxing stylist Nick Diaz (19-7) and knockout artist Scott “Hands of Steel” Smith (17-5) will face off with each other special 180-pound showdown

Additionally, “The New York Badass” Phil Baroni (13-10) will collide with Joe “Diesel” Riggs (29-10) in a 170-pound contest.

Doors at the Scottrade Center will open for Strikeforce: “Lawler vs. Shields” at 6:30 p.m. CT on Saturday, June 6. The first non-televised preliminary bout will begin at 7 p.m.

Fedor, who defeated Sylvia via submission just 36-seconds into the opening round, has been suspended for 180 days due to a right hand injury and Sylvia has also been suspended for 180 days due to a left elbow injury.

Fighters can be cleared for competition early by a doctor and both “Banned” headliners will need early clearance as Emelianenko is set to take on Andrei Arlovski in the main event of Affliction 2 on October 11th and Sylvia is also expected to compete on the card.

Vitor Belfort and Mike Whitehead also received 180 day suspensions.

The ten-bout card aired on pay-per-view and FSN.

Here is the complete list of medical suspensions issued by the CSAC:

• Fedor Emelianenko (defeated Tim Sylvia) — Suspended for 180 days due to a right hand injury.
• Tim Sylvia (defeated by Fedor Emelianenko) — Suspended for 180 days due to a left elbow injury.
• Ben Rothwell (defeated by Andrei Arlovski) — Suspended for 60 days due to an ear laceration.  Minimum 45 day suspension with no contact for 30 days due to a TKO loss.
• Pedro Rizzo (defeated by Josh Barnett) — Suspended for 45 days with no contact for 30 days due to a KO loss.
• Mike Whitehead (defeated by Renato “Babalu” Sobral) — Suspended for 180 days due to a left hand injury.
• Fabio “Negao” Nascimento (defeated by Matt Lindland) — Suspended for 45 days with no contact for 30 days.
• Edwin Dewees (defeated by Antonio Rogerio Nogueira) — Suspended for 180 days due to an undisclosed injury. Minimum 45 day suspension with no contact for 30 days due to a TKO loss.
• Vitor Belfort (defeated Terry Martin) — Suspended for 180 days due to an undisclosed injury.
• Terry Martin (defeated by Vitor Belfort) — Suspended for 45 days with no contact for 30 days due to a KO loss.

For more on Affliction “Banned” click here.

The ten-bout event took place on Saturday, July 19th, at The Honda Center in Anaheim, California.

Main event winner Fedor Emelianenko took home $300,000 for his 36-second knockout of Tim Sylvia, who received $800,000 for the first-round loss. Other notable salaries for the event included Andrei Arlovski, who earned $750,000, Ben Rothwell, who received $250,000, Josh Barnett, who took home $300,000, and Matt Lindland, who also earned $300,000.

“Banned” had a paid attendance of 11,242 and a total attendance of 14,832 for a live gate of $2,085,510.

The disclosed payroll for the event was $3,321,000.

The salaries listed below represent the official fighter salaries as reported by the promoter to the CSAC and do not include some bonuses, fees, or sponsorships.

Fedor Emelianenko def. Tim Sylvia
Emelianenko — $300,000 (no win bonus)
Sylvia — $800,000

Andrei Arlovski def. Ben Rothwell
Arlovski — $750,000 (includes $250,000 win bonus)
Rothwell — $250,000

Josh Barnett def. Pedro Rizzo
Barnett — $300,000 (no win bonus)
Rizzo — $70,000

Mark Hominick def. Savant Young
Hominick — $10,000 (includes $5,000 win bonus)
Young — $7,000

Renato “Babalu” Sobral def. Mike Whitehead
Sobral — $90,000 (includes $30,000 win bonus)
Whitehead — $50,000

Matt Lindland def. Fabio Negao
Lindland — $300,000 (includes $75,000 win bonus)
Negao — $20,000

Antonio Rogerio Nogueira def. Edwin Dewees
Nogueira — $50,000 (no win bonus)
Dewees — $15,000

Mike Pyle def. JJ Ambrose
Pyle — $20,000 (includes $5,000 win bonus)
Ambrose — $5,000

Vitor Belfort def. Terry Martin
Belfort — $140,000 (includes $70,000 win bonus)
Martin — $30,000

Paul Buentello def. Gary Goodridge
Buentello — $80,000 (includes $20,000 win bonus)
Goodridge — $25,000

Ray Lamaza vs. Justin Levens – Canceled due to time constraints
Lamaza — $3,000
Levens — $6,000

For a complete recap of Affliction “Banned” click here.

The ten-bout event took place on Saturday, July 19th, in front of a sold out crowd of 13,988 at the Honda Center in Anaheim, California.

Sylvia came out punching at the opening of the bout but just seconds in Emelianenko floored Sylvia with several quick-but-powerful punch combinations. On the ground Fedor continued the barrage, pounding on Sylvia before sinking in hooks and securing a rear naked choke that forced Sylvia to tap out just 36 seconds into the championship contest.

Emelianenko, long-regarded as the best heavyweight but doubted over the strength of his opponents, was crowned the first-ever WAMMA heavyweight champion following the first-round submission victory while Sylvia looks to regroup after dropping his second straight bout and third of his past four.

“You never know how short or long the fight will be, but I just wanted to end it as quickly as possible. I just wanted to show the fans my skills,” said Fedor following the victory. “I would be very honored to fight Randy Couture.”

“I was amazed at how good he is. The guy’s a stud. I don’t think he’s human. He’s incredible. I don’t think anybody’s going to beat him for a while,” remarked Sylvia following the defeat.

Former UFC champion Andrei Arlovski displayed superior striking in his matchup with IFL standout Ben Rothwell, stopping his opponent with a right-uppercut combination early in the third round to earn the knockout victory.

“I think they got their money’s worth tonight. I did a lot of work on my boxing,” said Arlovski following the knockout win. “I want to fight Fedor, Josh or anybody Affliction chooses.”

Following a slow first round between Josh Barnett and Pedro Rizzo the pace picked up in the second as both fighters were content to trade. Barnett connected with a vicious left hook that dropped Rizzo to the canvas and finished him off with several more shots on the ground before Referee Herb Dean halted the bout at 1:44 of the second.

After a paced opening frame featherweight Mark Hominick submitted Savant Young via armbar at 4:25 of the second.

Former UFC light heavyweight title challenger Renato “Babalu” Sobral was victorious in his return, defeating Mike Whitehead via unanimous decision by utilizing crisp and accurate striking.

Matt Lindland overwhelmed Fabio Negao to earn a unanimous decision victory with scores of 30-27, 30-27, and 30-26.

“He was so damn tough. He was the real deal,” said Lindland of his opponent following the bout.

As expected, heavy favorite Antonio Rogerio Nogueira stopped Edwin Dewees with a combination at 4:06 of the opening round.

Vitor Belfort stopped Terry Martin in the second round of their middleweight contest with a flying knee followed by an uppercut-left combination that collapsed Martin into the ropes.

Paul Buentello was unable to finish off late replacement Gary Goodridge but did enough to earn a unanimous decision victory.

Mike Pyle defeated JJ Ambrose with a rear naked choke at 2:51 of the opening round.

A scheduled bout between Ray Lamaza and Justin Levens was canceled due to time constraints but both fighters were paid their base salary as well as a bonus.

QUICK RESULTS

Former PRIDE heavyweight champion and top-ranked heavyweight Fedor Emelianenko took on former UFC heavyweight champion Tim Sylvia in the “Banned” main event. Andrei Arlovski vs. Ben Rothwell, Josh Barnett vs. Pedro Rizzo, Mike Whitehead vs. Renato “Babalu” Sobral, and Matt Lindland vs. Fabio Negao were also featured on the main, pay-per-view card while Terry Martin vs. Vitor Belfort and Gary Goodridge  vs. Paul Buentello were featured on a preliminary Fox Sports Net broadcast.

Continue reading for MMAFrenzy.com’s live coverage of Affliction “Banned”…

QUICK RESULTS

• Fedor Emelianenko def. Tim Sylvia via submission – Round 1, 0:36
  WAMMA Heavyweight Championship
• Andrei Arlovski def. Ben Rothwell via KO – Round 3, 1:13
• Josh Barnett def. Pedro Rizzo via KO – Round 2, 1:44
• Mark Hominick def. Savant Young via submission – Round 2, 4:25
• Renato “Babalu” Sobral def. Mike Whitehead via unanimous decision
• Matt Lindland def. Fabio Negao via unanimous decision
• Antonio Rogerio Nogueira def. Edwin Dewees via TKO – Round 1, 4:06
• Mike Pyle def. J.J. Ambrose via submission – Round 1, 2:51
• Vitor Belfort def. Terry Martin via KO – Round 2, 3:12
• Paul Buentello def. Gary Goodridge via unanimous decision
• Ray Lazama vs. Justin Levens