SAN JOSE, Calif. -- Gilbert Melendez has been waiting almost two years to avenge his December 2007 loss to Mitsuhiro Ishida, and he finally got to do so on Saturday night. "El Nino" defeated Ishida via third-round TKO, and in the process retained his Strikeforce interim lightweight title.

Next, the much-improved Melendez hopes to avenge his loss to lightweight champion Josh Thomson, but if Thomson isn't medically cleared -- and Melendez wants to see an official doctor's note when he is -- he told FanHouse that he hopes to just continue building on Saturday's impressive win. Check out the full video interview below.