The long saga of finding Bobby Lashley an opponent for next week's Strikeforce: Miami show has officially ended. Strikeforce director of communications Mike Afromowitz confirmed with MMA Fighting that UFC veteran Wes Sims has been approved by the Florida State Boxing Commission as the part-time pro wrestler's opponent. The news comes just eight days before Lashley's debut for the organization.
MMA Junkie first reported Sims' approval as an opponent, citing unnamed sources close to the organization.
Strikeforce ran into several road blocks in securing an opponent for Lashley, who is 4-0 since making his MMA debut in December 2008. The former WWE champion also currently works for TNA wrestling.
This marks the second time in Lashley's short career that he will be facing an opponent on less than two weeks notice. He defeated Jason Guida last march after Ken Shamrock was suspended for steroid use. The 33-year-old American Top Team member also holds victories over Mike Cook and Bob Sapp.
Sims was recently a cast member on the tenth season of The Ultimate Fighter, but was bounced from the competition in the first round when he lost to Justin Wren via submission. The veteran's most notable fights include two straight losses to Frank Mir and another to Tim Sylvia. He is officially riding a three-fight winning streak heading into this fight because his loss on TUF doesn't count on his record. This fight will mark his Strikeforce debut.
With this most recent fight announcement, the Strikeforce: Miami card is officially set. The event airs live on Showtime from Sunrise, Fla., next Saturday night.
Below is a look at the entire card:
Showtime card:
Nick Diaz vs. Marius Zaromskis -- vacant Strikeforce welterweight title
Cristiane "Cyborg" Santos (c) vs. Marloes Coenen -- Strikeforce women's featherweight title
Robbie Lawler vs. Melvin Manhoef
Bobby Lashley vs. Wes Sims
Greg Nagy vs. Herschel Walker
Undercard:
Jay Hieron vs. Joe Riggs
Sabah Homasi vs. John Kelly
Pablo Alfonso vs. Marcos da Matta
Michael Byrnes vs. David Zitnik
David Gomez vs. Craig Oxley
Hayder Hassan vs. Ryan Keenan
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