STRIKEFORCE: FEDOR VS HENDERSON was held Saturday, July 30, 2011, at the Sears Centre Arena in Hoffman Estates, Illinois, a suburb of Chicago.

In the main event, Strikeforce Light Heavyweight Champion Dan "Hendo" Henderson put on an extra 2 pounds to move up to heavyweight at 207-pounds to take on the MMA legend Fedor "The Last Emperor" Emelianenko. In MMA, the heavyweight division ranges from 206 to 265 pounds. Fedor weighed in at 223 pounds, however, the fighters appeared very close in size.

Henderson (28-8, 3-1 SF) brought a violent end to a brief but violent fight, as he stopped the Russian icon on first-round punches. A series of right hands from the two-time Olympian and former two-division Pride champion polished off Emelianenko and forced referee Herb Dean to intervene on his behalf 4:12 into round one.

“I’ve been a huge fan of Fedor’s forever,” Henderson said. “I respect him so much. That’s a huge accomplishment compared to a lot of the things I’ve done.”

With that, a man many consider to be the greatest heavyweight mixed martial artist of all-time had lost for the third time in as many appearances, leading to intensifying speculation that “The Last Emperor” may have fought his last fight.

“As a fan of Fedor’s,” Henderson said, “I hope he keeps fighting.”

Tate Submits, Dethrones Coenen - Miesha Tate submitted Marloes Coenen with a fourth-round arm-triangle choke to capture the Strikeforce women’s welterweight championship in the co-main event. The competitive fight came to a dramatic close 3:03 into round four after Tate forced Coenen to tap out with an arm-triangle choke, Tate fell to the ground overwhelmed by emotion, having now achieved her goal of becoming a world champion.

STRIKEFORCE RESULTS: FEDOR VS HENDERSON

Dan Henderson (28-8) won by TKO over Fedor Emelianenko (31-4)

[4:12] - Round 1 - punches

{Womens Welterweight Championship}

Miesha Tate (12-2) won by SUB over Marloes Coenen (19-5)

[18:03] - 3:03 Round 4 - arm-triangle choke

Tim Kennedy (14-3) won by UD over Robbie Lawler (18-8)

[15:00] - 3 Rounds - (30-27 all)

Tyron Woodley (9-0) won by UD over Paul Daley (27-11)

[15:00] - 3 Rounds - (29-28 all)

Tarec Saffiedine (11-3) won by UD over Scott Smith (17-9)

[15:00] - 3 Rounds - (30-26, 30-27, 30-27)

Gesias Cavalcante (16-4) won by SD over Bobby Green (15-5)

[15:00] - 3 Rounds - (29-28, 29-28, 28-29)

Tyler Stinson (21-7) won by KO over Eduardo Pamplona (15-3)

[0:15] - Round 1 - punch

Alexis Davis (10-4) won by UD over Julie Kedzie (16-9)

[15:00] - 3 Rounds - (30-27, 30-27, 29-28)

Derek Brunson (8-0) won by SUB over Lumumba Sayers (4-2)

[4:33] - Round 1 - rear-naked choke

Gabriel Salinas-Jones (5-0) won by SUB over Bryan Humes (6-2)

[11:19] - 1:19 Round 3 - Brabo choke

Boxers of Yesteryear

A series of historical and biographical articles exploring the rich history of boxing and honoring the great pugilists of yesteryear. Boxing is the ultimate challenge. There's nothing that can compare to testing yourself the way you do every time you step in the ring. Sugar Ray Leonard