SAN JOSE, Calif. - Here's my rundown of the five scheduled matches to be televised on SHOWTIME (9 p.m. ET) during tonight's EliteXC and Strikeforce co-promotion featuring Frank Shamrock vs. Cung Le.

Before I get to the fights, I wanted to let everyone know that Dave Meltzer of the Wrestling Observer is reporting that an opponent for Kevin "Kimbo Slice" Ferguson during EliteXC's debut on CBS on May 31 has been finalized. The word making the rounds right now is that Slice could be in San Jose and appear on tonight's telecast and reveal his opponent.

I've heard two names rumored. I don't want to comment on the names because the information is highly speculative and I wasn't able to get anything confirmed. It's very possible neither of the names I've heard mentioned will be signed for the fight. I will say this: it won't be Ken Shamrock or Don Frye. 

Now, here's my thoughts on tonight's fights, with predictions. 

Joey Villasenor vs. Ryan Jensen - Even though Joe Riggs and Evangelista "Cyborg" Santos were forced to pull out of this scheduled bout, Jensen is here representing Strikeforce so this bout is still technically an "EliteXC vs. Strikeforce" bout.

Jensen is grateful for this opportunity to be fighting on a big show once again but there will be a lot of pressure on him. As of now, the word is that he's on a one-fight deal with Strikeforce. The deal could be extended, but he needs to win here.

Doing so against a fighter the caliber of Villasenor will not be easy. While Jensen has better technique on the ground, and possibly on the feet, I expect Villasenor to have a significant strength and speed factor.

In my eyes, Villasenor is the better athlete while Jensen is the better technician. That being said, Villasenor is not exactly sloppy. He's a well-rounded fighter who is continually improving in all facets of the game. Jensen is the kind of guy that is easy to root for, but I'm afraid this could be a one-sided bout in Villasenor's favor.

Prediction: Joey Villasenor via first round TKO 

Mike Kyle vs. Wayne Cole - I just wanted to go on the record to say that Kyle is not representing Strikeforce in this fight. He is an EliteXC fighter.  A lot of people are really unsure why Kyle is on this card, and I am one of them.

I believe everyone deserves a second chance, but you could make the case that Kyle already used his second chance up and that this is either a third or fourth chance for him. Putting him in this spot is a huge risk because if he loses it on camera, it could really come back to haunt EliteXC.

I am not suggesting that Kyle should never be allowed to fight again. However, I don't believe that his first match off suspension should be for a major national promotion on premium cable television. Let him earn his way back up the ladder on smaller shows and make him prove that he's a changed man.

Kyle has been very polite and professional thus far, but it's really easy to say the right things when you're not faced with any kind of adversity. I am real curious to see how he handles himself if something goes wrong during tonight's fight.

EliteXC really needs to adopt a code of conduct policy. If you keep trying to book guys like Charles "Krazy Horse" Bennett and Kyle, then you're brand is going to carry a negative stigma. If you send the message that character is not a qualification to fight for your promotion, you're going to be MMA's version of the '90's Portland Trail Blazers.

As far as the fight goes, I think this is Kyle's fight to lose. Sometimes it's easy to forget that he's a tough guy with good striking. He can be very dangerous. In spite of Cole's amateur wrestling credentials, he likes to throw down. If this fight stays standing, I give a decisive advantage to Kyle.

It will be interesting to see what happens if Kyle wins tonight. My understanding is that he wouldn't be here if there hadn't been injuries. A lot of the blogs are speculating that he could be a future opponent for Kimbo. Maybe it's something possible down the line, but nobody is talking about him as a possibility for anything like that anytime soon.

Prediction: Kyle via first round knockout 

Gilbert Melendez vs. Gabe Lemley for Melendez's Strikeforce lightweight title - Nobody is giving Lemley much of a chance, and I think Gabe is included in that company. He's acknowledged he's intimated by Melendez and just seeing him around, he just doesn't have the eye of the tiger. Do you know when you hear about a fighter losing a fight before he gets into the cage? I think that's what we have here. 

Lemley will have Pat Miletich in his corner, so hopefully Miletich talks to him before the fight and gets his confidence level up. He needs to believe in himself because even if he has the confidence, he could still find himself over-matched. And if he has a defeatist attitude about this opportunity, then he won't make it out of the first round.

Look for Melendez to come out fired up. He said during the press conference that he's not just fighting for himself in this one, but also teammates Jake Shields and Nick Diaz. If he wins this fight, I expect him to fight Jorge Masvidal next. Possibly in June.

Prediction: Melendez via first round TKO 

Jae Suk Lim vs. Drew Fickett - Man, Drew Fickett is a character. I've heard stories about the guy but seeing him here only confirms what I've been told. Give him credit, he didn't have to fight this weekend. I can't get a straight answer about whether Fickett will lose his EliteXC welterweight title shot if he loses here, but he's definitely taking a risk getting into the cage tonight.  

Lim is a good fighter but he's not someone I would consider to be a future star. He's a good kickboxer but just isn't anywhere near well-rounded as Fickett. He's certainly nowhere near as tested.

If Fickett stands, this could be a very entertaining fight. But if he plays it smart and takes it to the ground early, this could be a quick fight on a card that promises to have plenty of early finishes.

Prediction: Fickett via first round submission 

Frank Shamrock vs. Cung Le for Shamrock's Strikeforce middleweight title - If you want the big technical rundown of this fight, click here. Since writing my essay about "Why Cung Le will beat Frank Shamrock," I've lost a slight amount of confidence in the pick.

While Le is very relaxed, so is Shamrock. He's very confident about this fight. And I don't mean the kind of insecure confidence where it sounds like he's trying to convince everyone and himself that he will win. I truly believe Frank considers this his fight to lose. It's almost as if he considers it a forgone conclusion.

Normally I wouldn't care whether Shamrock was confident about this fight. But after watching how he handled himself prior to the Phil Baroni fight, I get the same sort of feeling. That being said, I am sticking with the pick.

I am expecting a great fight and the crowd should be going crazy. Speaking of the crowd, I am surprised only just over 14,000 tickets had been sold as of Friday. The HP Pavilion set a record for the Frank Shamrock vs. Cesar Gracie fight several years back and this is a much better fight. Le is a bigger name in San Jose than Gracie and the outcome of this fight isn't as obvious as that fight. 

A sellout is still possible because the weather here is nice and the fight has gotten a lot of local press. Shamrock vs. Le has been all over the local news telecasts and Le had a nice article written about him in the San Jose Mercury News on Friday.

I am anxious to see the outcome of this fight because I want to know where each fighter goes from here. If Le wins, a lot of his critics are going to be forced to acknowledge that he is legit. But where will he go after Shamrock? Strikeforce has some good middleweights under contract such as Jorge Santiago, Joe Riggs, Falaniko Vitale, and Cyborg. Trevor Prangley has also appeared on their shows. But Shamrock vs. Le is an epic. Le vs. those other guys? Not so much.

If Shamrock wins, his next adversary won't be immediately obvious either. Santiago won Strikeforce's middleweight tournament last year but I don't think he's a big enough name for Frank to want that fight. A fighter vs. Ken is really on the ropes. We've all heard Tito Ortiz's name brought up but a lot of things will have to happen for the rematch to be made. After this fight, I think Shamrock plans to sit back and wait to see if EliteXC's deal with CBS or Strikeforce's deal with NBC brings about a new star for him to call out. 

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Sam Caplan

Lead Writer/Editor - ProElite.com

SamCaplan.ProElite.com

There were some few minor issues pertaining to weight during Friday's weigh-in for tonight's SHOWTIME telecast of EliteXC and Strikeforce's co-promotion in San Jose, Calif.

Strikeforce middleweight champion Frank Shamrock came in over but made weight on his second attempt. Drew Fickett, Ryan Jensen, and Tiki Ghosn were all over as well but new agreements were worked out.

Here are the official results:

MAIN CARD (SHOWTIME)

• Frank Shamrock (185)* vs. Cung Le (183) - Strikeforce world middleweight title fight
• Drew Fickett (171)* vs. Jae Suk Lim (170)
• Gilbert Melendez (154.5) vs. Gabe Lemley (153) - Strikeforce world lightweight title fight
  
• Wayne Cole (209) vs. Mike Kyle (225)
• Ryan Jensen (186) vs. Joey Villasenor (185)
• Billy Evangelista (160.5) vs. Marlon Sims (162.5) -- swing bout
  

PRELIMINARY BOUTS (UN-TELEVISED)

• Tiki Ghosn (171) vs. Luke Stewart (171)
• Anthony Figueroa (133) vs. Darren Uyenoyama (136)
• Jesse Gillespie (180) vs. Jesse Jones (173.5)

* -- Made weight on second attempt

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Sam Caplan

Lead Writer/Editor - ProElite.com

SamCaplan.ProElite.com

With just less than 36 hours left until his Strikeforce middleweight title defense against Cung Le on Saturday in San Jose, defending champion Frank Shamrock was gracious enough to take time out and speak exclusively with ProElite.com (SamCaplan.ProElite.com). The transcription of that conversation is now available for your reading pleasure.

Sam Caplan: In a recent interview you made the accusation in an interview with MMAMadness.com that Ken Shamrock has been using steroids his whole life. MMAjunkie.com published a statement earlier this week in which Ken made a full denial of your claims. Do you stand by your statement?

Frank Shamrock: Oh yeah. Yeah. I apologize; I thought it was common knowledge. I don't know why Ken would lie about it. I was the guy who picked him up after he had his bitch tits removed. In our family it was common knowledge.

Sam Caplan: From my perspective, it just seems kind of crazy that you would throw your own brother under the bus like that. After making the accusation was there any second guessing on your part? Is there any remorse on your part or do you feel the comments were justified?

Frank Shamrock: (Laughs) Someone asked me a question and I answered what the truth was. If Ken has taken offense to it then he should own up to it. If he didn't do steroids he should say so. He shouldn't lie to the public and pretend like he didn't. We all knew that he did. My father knows that he did. It was common knowledge to anybody and everybody in our family and in our camp. But it's the past. I don't really care about it. I didn't say to try and hurt Ken. I said it because someone asked me about the steroid problem in the sport and if I knew anybody that had done it and I told him the truth. And I told him the reason why I would never do it and it was because I saw what had happened to Ken.

Sam Caplan: Have you spoken to Ken or anyone from his camp after you made the accusation?

Frank Shamrock: Uh, after I told the truth I have not spoken to anybody. It's not an accusation. It's the absolute truth and whether Ken wants to admit it or not, it's the truth.

Sam Caplan: There have been some people who feel the "Blood Brothers" aspect has been over-hyped. They claim that you weren't even introduced to Ken until later in life and because you were adoptive brothers and that the two of you were never really close. How do you respond to something like that?

Frank Shamrock: Well, that's the truth as well (laughs). Personally, Ken and I were never really close. I don't know; he's a difficult guy to build a close relationship with and we were just never tight. He was my mentor and my trainer but it just never went past that, unfortunately. I wanted us to be closer but it was what it was.
 
Sam Caplan: I wanted to ask if you have ever experimented with performance enhancers at any point in your career?

Frank Shamrock: I never have. One hundred percent never have and Ken is the reason why. I saw what it did to him psychologically and physically and I never wanted to experience that. You know, I've experimented with non-performance enhancing drugs quite a bit (laughs). But those were recreational drugs (but) never steroids. Never believed in them.

Sam Caplan: The March 24 print edition of the Wrestling Observer reported that there was a recent disagreement between you and Gary Shaw about the "Blood Brothers PPV." It claimed that with proper notice, you have the right to promote shows of your own but that since Shaw also has Ken under contract that he feels he has the right to promote the show. Is there any truth to the report?

Frank Shamrock: Well I don't think that they've made any claims to it. I know that Gary has mentioned it as a project he wants to do but they have never officially claimed it or tried to claim the property. It's definitely a property that I own, it was my idea. I've been working on it for about two years. But I fully intend to promote it. I also think we'll never a lot of promoters and promotions to do an event of this caliber.

Sam Caplan: There's been talk of you promoting "Blood Brothers" on your own and also a possible rematch vs. Tito Ortiz. The idea of fighters promoting their own fights is very intriguing. Can big matches do well on PPV though if a major promotional brand isn't there to promote and distribute it?

Frank Shamrock: Well I definitely think so, especially as the sport moves into the mainstream. Really the sport is about the talent. And it's just the current marketing of the sport is all UFC branded. But I know that there talents that are big enough and marketed enough now to promote pay-per-view events and have them be successful.

Sam Caplan: You're extremely accomplished as a fighter but you're also an accomplished businessman. What's your reaction when a fighter says it's not his job to promote a fighter and that the responsibility should be left up solely to the promoter?

Frank Shamrock: I see them as being uneducated fighters. Real talent has the ability to market, promote, fight and dictate and control their brand. I think the future of this sport is dependent these fighters and talent realizing that they are the show; they are the brand; and that they've got to walk it, talk it, sling it and carry all roles.

Sam Caplan: I believe you stated in the MMAMadness.com interview that nobody does a better job at marketing than pro wrestling. And you mentioned you were a pro wrestling fan. Growing up up as a wrestling fan, who were some of the wrestlers that you felt did the best job of getting their persona or personalities across to the general public?

Frank Shamrock: I think "Hacksaw" Jim Duggan was a wonderful character. "The Ultimate Warrior," who was actually a terrible wrestler did really, really well with his persona. Hulk Hogan of course did exceptionally well. And then as we moved into the late-90's, we had Duane Johnson, "The Rock," who was phenomenal. We had Steven Austin, who was phenomenal. All these guys had tried other roles in the past but it was one certain type of role and one certain type of actions associated with that role that made it stick and made it hugely successful.

Sam Caplan: How do you think Vince McMahon would do as an MMA promoter?

Frank Shamrock: Well I think he would do well. I think he would do very well. What's amazing about the sport is that we're in the business of combative sports entertainment but at the end of the day people go there to see the entertainment value of it. The storyline and the promotion of the fight is really first and then the fight is secondary. The fight kind of closes the story out. So I think Vince would be a wizard at it.

Sam Caplan: I've interviewed you in the past and you said that the only way you'll fight for the UFC is if you owned it. However, if the UFC offered you an obscene amount of money to fight Anderson Silva, would you do it?

Frank Shamrock: Probably not. If it were something that involved other companies or involved the industry in a way then I could probably something with it. But I spent a lot of time building the UFC brand and I invested a lot of energy into the UFC brand and just as soon as I wasn't valuable to them they threw me away and tried to erase me. If that were my boss, I wouldn't go back and work for them. I just have no intention of continuing to build their brand. I would like to fight Silva but when they're done with him maybe they will throw him away and maybe then I'll have a crack at him.

Sam Caplan: Do you feel the UFC is maybe trying to throw away Tito Ortiz?

Frank Shamrock: Oh yeah. They will throw him away and make him disappear and erase him and do everything they can to ruin his image just like they did the last time when he had a disagreement with them.

Sam Caplan: I wanted to go back to Anderson Silva. After Silva's win over Dan Henderson at UFC 82, Dana White made the statement that he considers Silva to be the number one pound-for-pound fighter in the world. Do you agree with that assessment?

Frank Shamrock: I would say he's the best marketed fighter in the world right now (laughs). I don't know if he's the best pound-for-pound guy. He's certainly very good. But you know, I've been here a long time and every year or so or every year and a half there's a new best pound-for-pound fighter in the world. So unlike boxing where you had a Sugar Ray Robinson and you had exceptional fighters who really were the best pound-for-pound fighters in the world... I just don't see that happening with the way the sport is promoted through the UFC. Because the truth is that as soon as he loses there's going to be another best pound-for-pound fighter in the world.

Sam Caplan: When you watch Anderson Silva fight do you notice any flaws in his game?

Frank Shamrock: I do. His flow between the striking and the ground game, I think is a little bit soft. I think his transitions on the ground are a little passive; he's vulnerable to some holds. But all-in-all he's a very well-rounded fighter. He's a very good fighter.

Sam Caplan: There have been reports in the past that the UFC has current litigation against you in regards to your use of footage from when you were in the UFC. The word is that they are suing you over the footage even though Bob Meyrowitz signed over permission to you. Can you comment on this at all?

Frank Shamrock: I can't. I can say that the suits have been settled and they've been settled to the satisfaction of both parties. So unfortunately I can't comment on that anymore.

Sam Caplan: Is the settlement recent?

Frank Shamrock: It's very recent. Yes.

Sam Caplan: What kind of reaction do you expect Saturday? Both you and Cung Le are hometown heroes. Do you think the both of you will be cheered or you do think there's a chance the crowd might turn on one of you?

Frank Shamrock: I don't think they are going to turn on either of us. The town is split on who they want to win. The fanbase is split. And a lot of people don't even know what's going on. They love the sport and they are either in it or connected to it. I just think you're going to see huge support for both of us. Even when a winner surfaces I still think you're going to just see two guys that are hugely supported by their city.

Sam Caplan: You and Le have both stated on the record that he had the advantage against you when the two of your sparred several years back. You mentioned you still weren't an accomplished striker and that it was San Shou striking. However, Cung Le uses a lot of traditional martial arts in his MMA fights. If he used it effectively while sparring, is there a chance he could give you problems on Saturday?

Frank Shamrock: I don't think so. I've dissected his style. It's good and functional. It's not perfect. Some of the kicks are a little too round. He's weak on the hands. All-in-all he's got a good style but I just don't think he matches up well with a clean, power-based style that I have. He's got a shot. Any time you play the striking game there is danger and there's a chance someone could get caught. But if Cung Le thinks I'm the fighter he sparred nine years ago then he's going to get knocked out in the first round.

Sam Caplan: Are you worried at all that he might try to control the striking from the outside?

Frank Shamrock: Well, I call it running. Yeah, I mean, he's going to run because he's not going to exchange with me. But you know there's only so long you can run before I cut you off before you get caught up and have to make exchanges. It's hard to maintain the pace of retreat and do any type of damage. So while I expect him to run I don't expect him to run for long.

Sam Caplan: Do you think his wrestling base will be a factor at all in the fight?

Frank Shamrock: I do, personally. I think that once we get into a few exchanges and realizes that he made some mis-calculations, I think he will go back to his roots, which are really wrestling. And I think that he'll wrestle and try to do the takedown and either damage me on the way down or breakaway for strikes in the middle phases.

Sam Caplan: Have you focused at all on takedown defense in your training for this fight?

Frank Shamrock: Nah, not really. Where I have advantage is that I understand the middle game and I accept it. And in accepting it there's a lot of holes in the transition between the standing to the ground. And when Cung Le decides that he needs to take me down, I'm going to threaten him with some very nice transitional holes that I don't think he's aware of.

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Sam Caplan

Lead Writer/Editor - ProElite.com

SamCaplan.ProElite.com

When the possibility of a match between Cung Le vs. Frank Shamrock began to be floated in early 2007 (and really, the two were talked about as possibly fighting each other long before that), my initial reaction was that Shamrock would tear through Le. The thing was, I was only looking at things on the surface and did not analyze things thoroughly.

To me, it was simple: Le is inexperienced in MMA and his ground game was unproven. There's no way he could beat a well-rounded threat such as Frank Shamrock.

But I've done a 180 since then and I think this is Cung Le's fight to lose. He's a dangerous opponent and his athleticism is going to cause Shamrock problems. Le, despite being the slightly older fighter, is simply faster, quicker, stronger, and more dynamic than Shamrock.

The biggest problem in this fight could be Frank Shamrock's ego. He rubs a lot of people the wrong way but I understand what he's about. Some fighters say their job is only to fight and it's the job of the promoter to promote their fight. It's hard to argue with that line of thinking. If I was an athlete, I wouldn't want to have to be distracted by a bunch of business-related drama.

That being said, pro athletes have a limited shelf life when it comes to peak earning potential. An average Joe like you and I in most cases can do what we do until it's time to legally retire. But unless an athlete makes a ton of money, they have to find a new occupation after their athletic peak is over. Shamrock understands that by trying to be promoter in addition to fighter he can maximize his earning potential. I think more fighters should take Frank's lead. It's not right that they have to try and sell their own fights, but trying to be more than just a fighter is in their financial best interest.

So while Frank rubs some people the wrong way, he doesn't rub me the wrong way. The man is a true showman and I appreciate that. But will his ego allow him to fight the right fight?

I ask that question because Shamrock enjoys beating a fighter at his own game. If he fights someone known for their wrestling ability, Shamrock wants to out-wrestle them. If someone is noted for being a good striker, such as Phil Baroni, Frank not only wants to win the fight, but he wants to win the fight on his feet.

Being the showman that he is, I believe Frank is going to want to knock Le out standing in front of a big crowd on hand to witness the Battle of San Jose. And that's simply the wrong strategy.

Shamrock is proud of his striking and believes he has made tremendous strides in that area. It's hard to argue. But Frank made his name in this sport as a submission wrestler. Based on his recent fights, it's easy to forget how highly regarded of a ground fighter he was at one point. If Frank wants to win, his best bet is to get back to his roots and put Le on his back. But as I said earlier, I don't think Shamrock is going to do that.

Before I go any further though, I want to make it clear that I don't consider Le's ground game to be as weak as other pundits. Le is an outstanding athlete and has a wrestling background. Those who say he hasn't had to fight on the ground must not have seen his fights. Le has gone to the ground several times and while he hasn't looked amazing, he hasn't exactly looked terrible either. I believe that Le will only be in trouble in this fight if Shamrock puts him on his back because I don't know whether his jiu-jitsu is good enough for him to have a back game that can pose a threat to someone as experienced as Shamrock.

If Le has top position on Shamrock, I think it's Shamrock who could be in trouble. Again, Le has a wrestling base and is very strong. I don't think he can submit Shamrock from top position, but he could hurt him with some ground and pound.

The more and more I look at this fight, I would not rule out the possibility of it going to the ground at some point. But if it does, I believe it will be Le who tries to take it to the mat. The problem is, it's in Shamrock's best interests to be the one who initiates the decision to go to the ground.

On their feet, I'm not sure Frank can handle Le's ability to strike from the outside. The two used to spar together and both fighters have stated that Le dominated those exchanges. Shamrock has countered that the style of sparring was San Shou as opposed to MMA and that he has gotten much better since then. Well, I believe that Le has also improved. Furthermore, I'm not buying the whole "it was San Shou" argument. Anyone who has seen Le knows that he has successfully incorporated a lot of traditional martial arts into his MMA game and can execute a lot of those strikes very effectively.

When it comes to fighting on the inside, I think Shamrock will have the advantage. He could change the course of the fight if he tries employ a lot of hooks and upper cuts and uses dirty boxing tactics. Le could also be at a huge disadvantage if Shamrock puts his back to the cage. That said, I believe Le can keep a good distance between the two as long as he circles properly and is prepared for what Shamrock might throw at him.

Preparation could be a question. "Could" is the operative word. If you saw the Le vs. Sammy Morgan fight from this past November, you know that Le did not look good. My understanding is that he had a lot going on in his life outside of the cage at the time and did not train all that hard. But do you really think that Le is going to take Shamrock lightly? There's simply too much at stake here and this is a big fight. If a fight vs. Frank Shamrock doesn't get you motivated, what will?

An in shape and prepared Le poses a tremendous danger to Shamrock. If Le utilizes his superior athleticism and controls the range between the two, he will control the fight. If Shamrock takes two steps forward, Le needs to take two steps back and two to the right. He must constantly stay in motion and make Shamrock chase him in order to hit him. Le needs to pick and choose his spots and close the distance whenever he feels he has an opening. Once that opening closes up, he needs to disengage and keep Shamrock away from him.

I believe that the strategy outlined is a winning one and if I know that this is the right way to approach the fight, you've got to think Le has known this for months.

What I see happening is Le staying mobile and throwing a lot of unanswered strikes from the outside. I see him scoring a lot of points with the judges and Shamrock having trouble timing all of his unorthodoxed strikes. Shamrock is right in his assessment that Le's striking is not typical MMA striking but that is to Le's benefit. While they've sparred together in the past and Shamrock has a better understanding of what Le will throw at him than the usual opponent does, I don't think he will be ready to handle everything Le can throw at him while the two are fighting at full speed.

I see this fight ending in the fourth round when Shamrock starts to show signs of fatigue as a result of trying to catch Le so he can hit him. I think Le might take a risk and try to come inside and get caught by Shamrock. From there, I envision Le responding by taking Shamrock off his feet and finishing via ground and pound.

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Sam Caplan

Lead Writer/Editor - ProElite.com

SamCaplan.ProElite.com

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Sam Caplan

Lead Writer/Editor - ProElite.com

SamCaplan.ProElite.com

Former UFC light heavyweight champion and current Strikeforce middleweight champion Frank Shamrock announced in a new interview with MMAWeekly.com that he will be fighting his older, adoptive brother Ken Shamrock during the first quarter of 2009.

"Oh yeah. Unless I die, it's going to happen," Frank Shamrock is quoted as saying in the interview.

The bout is expected to be made available through pay-per-view.

Shamrock, a middleweight, also revealed that the fight against his brother will be contested at light heavyweight (186-205 pounds). Ken Shamrock has competed primarily as a heavyweight but his most recent bouts have been at light heavyweight.

"I do know the weight will be at 205," the younger Shamrock told MMAWeekly.com. "That's what Ken wanted. The where doesn't matter. The when will be the first quarter of 2009. The how will be right hand, left hook, right hand, and then that will be it."

Frank Shamrock plans to devote much of the next 12-14 months to promoting the fight against his brother and former mentor. He indicated that he will be performing commentary on Showtime during the next EliteXC show on February 16 and hinted at a possible reality show that would mimic HBO's 24/7 docudrama that has been utilized to promote Floyd Mayweather's last two pay-per-view fights.

Frank Shamrock is scheduled to defend his Strikeforce middleweight title against Cung Le on March 29 on a card co-promoted by Strikeforce and EliteXC that will be televised on Showtime.

Meanwhile, Ken Shamrock is scheduled to make his debut under the EliteXC banner when he competes for Cage Rage against Robert "Buzz" Berry on March 8 in London.

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Sam Caplan

Lead Writer/Editor - ProElite.com

SamCaplan.ProElite.com