Paul Daley Faces Evangelista 'Cyborg' Santos at Strikeforce: Fedor vs. Henderson on July 30
The last two fighters to face Nick Diaz in Strikeforce will now face each other on July 30 in Chicago.
Paul Daley has signed on to face Evangelista 'Cyborg' Santos on the upcoming Fedor vs. Henderson card set to go down at the Sears Center in Chicago.
Daley's management team, Fight Management announced the fight to MMAWeekly.com on Sunday.
Originally, Santos was scheduled to face Team Quest fighter Tarec Saffiedine, but it appears Strikeforce has opted to go a difference direction for the July 30 card.
Daley returns to action following one of the most action packed single rounds in MMA history in his war, albeit brief, fight with Nick Diaz back in April.
Before succumbing to the champion to close the fight, Daley dropped Diaz midway through the first round and almost finished him, but he survived to battle back and finish the Brit with just seconds remaining.
Daley will now face another striker in Chute Boxe fighter Evangelista 'Cyborg' Santos.
“I’m happy to be fighting again. It’s a big fight. For those who haven’t seen the Melvin Manhoef vs. Cyborg fight, watch it and expect the same outcome for Cyborg … He’ll be knocked out," Daley said.
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“Just like me, Cyborg’s been around since the Cage Rage days. He brings experience and power to the cage, like me. He’s an aggressive guy, like me. And it will be an entertaining fight, like mine always are.”
Santos hasn't fought since he lost to Diaz by armbar in January this year. Prior to that, Santos knocked out former Dream welterweight champion Marius Zaromskis in his first fight at 170lbs.
The bout between Daley and Santos will be a featured fight on the Chicago card coming up on July 30, headlined by the heavyweight super fight between Fedor Emelianenko and Dan Henderson.
Currently, the Strikeforce welterweight title remains up for grabs after Diaz vacated the belt to head over to the UFC to face champion Georges St-Pierre. While no announcement has been made if this fight has title implications, all signs would point to the winner being directly in the line for a shot at the belt in the future.
"Coming off the back of the Diaz fight, which a lot of people are talking about as one of the most exciting one round fights in MMA history, we’re looking forward to an equally if not more entertaining fight against another proven fighter in Cyborg," said Daley's manager Wad Alameddine. "These two guys are the top two Welterweights in Strikeforce behind Nick and it’s a fight all the fans are looking forward to. Let’s be honest, someone’s getting knocked out."
Strikeforce: Fedor vs. Henderson takes place on Saturday night July 30 in Chicago's Sears Center.
Damon Martin is the lead staff writer and radio host for MMAWeekly.com.
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