The Weekly Wrap: April 18 - April 24

Another Strikeforce co-main off

For a second time, Strikeforce's co-main event for a Showtime presentation has fallen through. A light heavyweight title fight between Renato "Sobral" Sobral and Rafael "Feijao" Cavalcante is off for June 6 from St. Louis after Sobral pulled out. Sobral withdrew to help his wife prepare for the birth of their daughter at the end of May. Sobral's manager, Richard Wilner, told MMAWeekly.com that Sobral had originally agreed to the fight with Cavalcante at a time when it was expected to take place on May 15, which is now the date Strikeforce plans to launch its ShoMMA series, featuring up-and-coming fighters.

Cavalcante, a training partner of Anderson Silva who was on track to challenge for EliteXC's first 205-pound title in November when the company folded, will now face Jared Hamman on the June 6 bill, Sherdog.com reported. Hamman, who trains with Vladimir Matyushenko, fought on three ShoXC cards that aired on Showtime in the Pro Elite era.

AOL’s MMA Fanhouse reported that new Strikeforce signee Kevin Randleman was first offered the fight with Cavalcante, but turned it down. The June 6 Strikeforce card will be headlined by a middleweight fight between Robbie Lawler and Jake Shields.

It’s the second time Strikeforce has had its second-billed fight for a Showtime event fall through. The promotion’s April 11 premiere was hampered by the loss of a lightweight title rematch between Josh Thomson and Gilbert Melendez after Thomson pulled out due to a fractured tibia. Thomson is expected to be ready in August, while Melendez stepped in against Rodrigo Damm and won via second-round knockout to claim the interim title. Speculation continues that Melendez will be matched up with Mitsuhiro Ishida before getting the Thomson fight.