The Weekly Wrap: Sept. 19 - Sept. 25

Odds and Ends

• CBS and Strikeforce announced the Fedor Emelianenko vs. Brett Rogers fight on Nov. 7 will take place at the Sears Centre Arena in the Chicago suburb of Hoffman Estates, Ill. Four fights are guaranteed to air on the live broadcast, with one swing bout possible if the live fights run short. Tickets for the event go on sale Sept. 28.

• Chuck Liddell made his fox-trotting debut on ABC’s “Dancing with the Stars.” With UFC President Dana White, Lorenzo and Frank Ferttita and Jay Glazer on hand, Liddell and his partner, Anna Trebunskaya, hammed it up in a routine that drew loud applause but tepid judges’ reaction. Judges remarked on how “charming” the mohawked Liddell appeared in a ballroom dancing context. The exposure was significant for Liddell, drawing some 20 million viewers. He survived the first-week cut.

• The Dream promotion announced that fights at its Oct. 25 show will take place inside a cage. The structure has been called “The White Cage,” as well as “The Cage of the Rising Sun.” Alistair Overeem, Paulo Filho, Andrews Nakahara, Eddie Alvarez, Marius Zaromskis, Kiyoshi Tamura and Katsunori Kokuno are scheduled to compete at Dream 12.

• The athletic commission in Oklahoma released payouts and gate figures for UFC Fight Night 19 on Sept. 16. The highest earner of the night was Nate Quarry, who took home a $30,000 purse (not including his “Fight of the Night” bonus). Roger Huerta, in the last fight on his UFC contract, would have taken home the most money had he defeated Gray Maynard, as he earned $21,000 in defeat -- $3,000 less than Maynard. Headliner Nate Diaz took home a $24,000 purse, while his opponent, Melvin Guillard, notched $14,000. The event sold 6,687 for a $577,996 gate.

• World Extreme Cagefighting will take what traditionally has been the UFC’s annual slot the week of the Arnold Fitness Expo in Columbus, Ohio, in March. The UFC held pay-per-view cards on that weekend for three straight years, but UFC President Dana White said the WEC will hold an event that weekend instead.

• Darren Aronofsky -- who directed the Academy Award-nominated film “The Wrestler” and is currently working on a biopic about boxer Mickey Ward -- has signed to direct a film about Lee Murray, the mysterious UFC veteran who went on to orchestrate a massive 2006 bank robbery in England and flee to exile in Morocco.

• Veteran lightweight fighter and jiu-jitsu ace Vitor "Shaolin" Ribeiro has signed a multi-fight deal in Strikeforce. A date for his promotional debut was not announced.