Strikeforce officially announced January 7th as the first card of 2012. Luke Rockhold is set to defend his middleweight title against Keith Jardine in the main event of the evening at the Hard Rock in Las Vegas. The Hard Rock was the UFC’s home in Vegas prior to making the change of venue and settling in at the Pearl at the Palms Casino.
Rockhold was expected to defend his belt against Tim Kennedy but the Airborne Ranger is sidelined with an undisclosed injury. It was announced last week that Jardine would be taking Kennedy’s place as the number one contender. Tim Kennedy is expected to return sometime in March.
The Jan. 7, fight card will also feature two up-and-coming fighters taking on former champions when Robbie Lawler faces Adlan Amagov in a middleweight bout and “King” Mo Lawal takes on undefeated Lorenz Larkin in a light heavyweight bout. Also on the televised portion of the card, Tarec Saffiedine and Tyler Stinson will clash in a welterweight bout. A fifth yet-to-be announced fight will air on the SHOWTIME portion of the event.
The card will air on Showtime at 10 PM ET (sorry West Coast, you’re delayed).
Official Card:
-Middleweight Title Fight: Luke Rockhold vs Keith Jardine
-Middleweight: Robbie Lawler vs Adlan Amagov
-Light Heavyweight: Muhammed Lawal vs Lorenz Larkin
-Welterweight: Tarec Saffiedine vs Tyler Stinson
-TBA vs TBA