Don't Miss The Thrilling Replay On Monday, Aug. 16, at 9:30 p.m. ET/PT on SHO 2

Miesha "Takedown" Tate

PHOENIX, ARIZ. (Aug. 13, 2010) - On the night that STRIKEFORCE crowned its first-ever Women's Welterweight Tournament Champion, hometown hero Joe "Diesel" Riggs upended tough up-and-comer Louis "Handgunz" Taylor and Ryan Couture won his Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) debut on Friday night on STRIKEFORCE Challengers on SHOWTIME®. 

Miesha "Takedown" Tate won two fights on the night, both by unanimous decision, to hoist the inaugural STRIKEFORCE Women's Welterweight Tournament belt and became the No. 2 contender behind Marloes Coenen in the competitive 135-pound division. She also may have earned a possible future date with current STRIKEFORCE Middleweight Champion Sarah Kaufman.

"Sarah Kaufman, you're amazing," Tate announced loudly to the near sold out Dodge Theatre crowd, seeking out Kaufman from the other side of the cage. "I can't wait to fight you again."

She later added: "It's a dream come true. I came here on a mission and I accomplished my goal. And now it's on to step two and getting that championship belt and getting another shot at Sarah Kaufman."

Tate (11-2) used her world-class grappling to control both fights. She beat Maiju Kujala (4-2; Strikeforce debut) in the first two-round semifinal, rested for a good 35 minutes and then went back at it, beating the scrappy Hitomi "Girlfight Monster" Akano (16-8) in the final by controlling the ground position and simply out-muscling her Japanese opponent. 

Akano submitted Carina "Beauty But the Beast" Damm (15-4) at 1:48 of the second round to earn her final shot at Tate. 

STRIKEFORCE Women's Middleweight (145 pounds) Champion Cris Cyborg liked what she saw from Tate on a night that celebrated women's MMA. "This was a great opportunity for women's fighting and I'm looking forward to seeing Miesha fight Sarah in the future," she said.

But Cyborg wasn't the most visible of fighters watching cage side. That distinction would have to go to Couture's famous father, MMA legend Randy Couture, who proudly took his spot in his son's corner for his successful MMA pro debut. "I'm very proud of him and he has a great passion for the sport," Couture told the nationally televised SHOWTIME audience.

STRIKEFORCE fans will undoubtedly be seeing more of Las Vegas' Couture in the near future. He used his signature triangle choke move at 1:15 in the first round to beat Lucas Stark of Chandler, Ariz., in a 155-pound lightweight match.

"It's kind of a load off to get the first win and I hope there won't be a long wait for the next one and I can show some new things next time," Couture told the media afterwards. "I thought once it hit the ground I would catch him but I didn't expect it to be that quick. I just lucked out that way I guess."

Couture said he couldn't find his jab early against the shorter Stark. "I decided to get where I was comfortable and get it to the ground," he said. "I'm a slow starter when it comes to the striking. I just locked it in and got the tap."

Down on the judges' scorecards early in his 182-pound catch weight fight, Riggs (33-11) knew he would have to come up with something special in the third round, and did just that, pinning Taylor (6-2) against the cage before the ref stopped the fight at 2:07 and Riggs was awarded the decision by submission by punches. 

"I felt great fighting and winning in front of Phoenix," Riggs said. "I love my fans."

He said STRIKEFORCE fans haven't seen the last of his tough opponent. "He's a prospect. He's a big guy. His standup was very athletic and he'll be a dangerous guy for anyone."

The fights will re-air as follows: 
Monday, Aug. 16, at 9:30 p.m. ET/PT SHO 2

Friday's fights will be available ON DEMAND beginning on Monday, Aug. 16 and through Aug. 29. 

STRIKEFORCE returns LIVE on SHOWITME® just one week from Saturday, Aug. 21 at 10 p.m. ET/PT (delayed on the West Coast) as STRIKEFORCE Houston will take place at the Toyota Center. The exciting night of fights will include a World Championship Doubleheader with undefeated STRIKEFORCE World Light Heavyweight Champion "King Mo'' Lawal (7-0) making the first defense of his crown against highly touted Brazilian Rafael "Feijao'' Cavalcante (9-2) in the main event. In a co-feature, world-class submission specialist Ronaldo "Jacare" Souza (12-2, 1 NC) and former Green Beret and American military hero Tim Kennedy (12-2) will battle for the vacant STRIKEFORCE Middleweight (185 pounds) title.

In another televised fight on SHOWTIME, ex-world champ KJ Noons (8-1) will face Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu blackbelt Jorge Gurgel (13-6) in a lightweight (155 pounds) match. In a featured televised bout, unbeaten rising heavyweight force and former WWE star Bobby Lashley (5-0) will take on MMA veteran and Tucson, Ariz., firefighter Chad Griggs (8-1).

Complete STRIKEFORCE Challengers Results:

Main Card:
Joe Riggs def. Louis Taylor by submission (punches) - Round 3, 2:07
Women's Welterweight Tournament Championship
Miesha Tate def. Hitomi Akano -- Unanimous Decision
Ryan Couture def. Lucas Stark via submission (triangle choke) - Round 1, 1:15
Women's Welterweight Tournament Semifinals
Hitomi Akano def. Carina Damm -- by submission - Round 2, 1:48
Miesha Tate def. Maiju Kujala -- Unanimous Decision

Preliminary Card:
Women's Reserve Fight: Liz Carmouche def. Colleen Schneider -- Unan. Decision 
Chris Gruetzemacher def. Ryan Diaz -- TKO (Cut) R1 (No Time Given)
Jason Richey def. Edmund Xehili -- Majority Decision 
Joel Champion def. Sean Scott -- KO (Punches) 1:06 R1 
Rob Anderson def. Alonzo Fears -- Unanimous Decision 
Andres Acuna def. Edwin Louis -- Unanimous Decision 
Frankie Saenz def. Jace Crawford -- Unanimous Decision

About STRIKEFORCE
STRIKEFORCE (www.strikeforce.com) is a world-class mixed martial arts cage fight promotion which, on Friday, March 10, 2006, 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 a sold-out, record crowd of 18,265. Since 1995, STRIKEFORCE, sanctioned by ISKA, has been the exclusive provider of martial arts programming for ESPN and, after 12 years of success as a leading, world championship kickboxing promotion, the company unveiled its mixed martial arts (MMA) series with "Shamrock vs. Gracie." In May 2008, West Coast Productions, the parent company of STRIKEFORCE, partnered with Silicon Valley Sports & Entertainment (SVS&E), an entity created in 2000 to oversee all business operation aspects of the San Jose Sharks and HP Pavilion at San Jose. In March 2009, STRIKEFORCE signed a multi-year agreement with SHOWTIME® to stage live events on the premium cable television network. The promotion has since also produced two live, primetime events on the CBS Television Network.