November 12, 2006; New York, NY….In what is shaping up to be a star-studded affair, knockout artist Duane “Bang” Ludwig will attempt to rebound from his recent defeat when he squares off with fellow Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) veteran, Tony “The Freak” Fryklund, during Strikeforce’s “Triple Threat” world championship mixed martial arts fight card that will be presented by BodogFIGHT at the HP Pavilion in San Jose, California on Friday, December 8th.
The matchup, which will be contested at 170 pounds, marks a step up in weight for Ludwig, who has spent his seven-year professional career fighting in mixed martial arts’ 155 pound lightweight division as well as K-1’s 159 pound limit “Max,” or middleweight, class.
“I’ve always walked around at about 180 and making 155 has always been a really tough cut for me. I feel good now,” said the 28-year-old Ludwig regarding the transition. “I’m eating what I want and I’m lifting and stuff and doing calisthenics like cross-training, and I’m holding 185 solid. Sometimes, I go to bed at 190. It’s taken the stress off of me and put the fun back in fighting.”
Ludwig is looking to steer his career back on track after being choked into submission by rival star, Josh “The Punk” Thomson, on Friday, October 7th during Strikeforce’s first-ever fight card at the Save Mart Center in Fresno, California.
On January 16th of this year, Ludwig broke the all-time record for the quickest stoppage in mixed martial arts history when he finished Canada’s Jonathan Goulet with a hard right hand at the 11 second mark of their meeting at UFC “Ultimate Fight Night 3” in Las Vegas, Nevada.
Four and a half years ago, Bang was taken under the wing of mixed martial arts legend, Bas Rutten, who observed the young fighter’s talent and fighting spirit during a grappling event in which Ludwig was competing. A year after the two bonded, Ludwig made his first big mark in mixed martial arts by knocking out former UFC 155 pound limit champion, Jens “Little Evil” Pulver.
The 35-year-old Fryklund is a former member of Team Miletich, the Pat Miletich-headed elite squad of fighters that includes reigning UFC kings, Matt Hughes and Tim Sylvia.
A native of Boston, Massachusetts, Fryklund dove head-first into the world of mixed martial arts at UFC 14 on July 27, 1997. In his first effort during the single-elimination tournament format event, Fryklund came up big, choking out Donnie Chappell in a minute and a half. The following tournament round, Fryklund was dealt the same fate he had dished out one fight earlier when former 1992 Olympic Wrestling Gold Medalist, Kevin Jackson, submitted him.
The loss to Jackson proved to be a valuable lesson, however, as Fryklund reeled off victories in his next seven starts, including a technical knockout over Rodrigo Ruas at UFC 37.5 on June 22, 2002.
Fryklund has been successful in three of his four 2006 appearances, stopping each of three consecutive opponents in a single round of action. His only loss of the year came at the hands of Brazil’s Anderson Silva, who has since been crowned UFC middleweight champion.
“I think he’s more of a stiff striker – not as fluid as I am. I should be able to catch him,” said Ludwig of his opponent. “On the ground, I don’t think he’s a super Jiu-Jitsu stud, so I should be ok there as well.”
Tickets for Strikeforce “Triple Threat” are on sale at Ticketmaster (408-998-TIXS) and Ticketmaster online (www.ticketmaster.com) as well as at the HP Pavilion box office (408-287-7070). Tickets are priced at $200.00, $150.00, $100.00, $75.00, $50.00, and $40.00, and $30.00.
The December 8th card will feature Strikeforce’s first-ever 205 pound light heavyweight championship bout. Bobby Southworth, a veteran of the first season of The Ultimate Fighter, will face off with hard-hitting road warrior and K-1 and Pride Fighting Championship veteran, Vernon “Tiger” White, for the vacant crown.
Making his third-career mixed martial arts start, undefeated world San Shou kickboxing champion, Cung Le, will face his toughest test to date in Jason “Live Wire” Von Flue, a contestant on season two of The Ultimate Fighter.
Off the heels of his victory on October 7th, lightweight sensation, Josh “The Punk” Thomson, will be challenged by another dangerous adversary in 23-year-old rising star, Nam Phan.
Old rivals Eugene “The Wolf” Jackson and Ronald “The Machine Gun” Jhun will collide for the second time in their careers. Jhun is looking for payback eight years after Jackson submitted him with a forearm choke during a contest in Hawaii.
Strikeforce’s 155 pound lightweight champion, Gilbert Melendez, will attempt to extend his perfect record to 14-0 when the San Francisco, California native mixes it up with an opponent that has yet to be named.
Unbeaten submission wrestling stylist and former World Wrestling Entertainment “Tough Enough” reality show winner, Daniel Puder, will make his fourth career mixed martial arts appearance during “Triple Threat.”
The Strikeforce mixed martial arts event is being produced by Silicon Valley Sports and Entertainment (SVS&E, www.svse.net), a leading producer of major sporting and entertainment events and the exclusive producer of such events for San Jose, California’s largest entertainment venue, HP Pavilion. SVS&E’s many properties include “Fight Night at the Tank” professional boxing; the National Hockey League’s San Jose Sharks; and the annual ATP men’s professional tennis “SAP Open” event.
Strikeforce is a world-class mixed martial arts cage fight promotion that, on Friday, March 10th, made history with its “Shamrock vs. Gracie” event, the first sanctioned mixed martial arts fight card in California state history. The star-studded extravaganza, which pitted legendary champion Frank Shamrock against Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu black belt Cesar Gracie at San Jose’s HP Pavilion, played host to 18,265 fans, the largest-ever attendance at a mixed martial arts fight card held in North America.