SARAH KAUFMAN, TAKAYO HASHI, TREVOR PRANGLEY,

  KARL AMOUSSOU, LUKE ROCKHOLD, PAUL BRADLEY

AND STRIKEFORCE: CHALLENGERS FIGHTERS

SELECTED FINAL QUOTES AND WEIGHTS

Thursday, Feb. 25, 2010,

Hilton San Jose, San Jose, California

STRIKEFORCE: Challengers ON SHOWTIME®

Friday, Feb. 26, 2010; Telecast Begins at 11 p.m. ET/PT

Sarah Kaufman (left) and Takayo  Hashi fight for the first-ever women's STRIKEFORCE 135-pound world  championship in the main event omorrow/Friday, Feb. 26, on  STRIKEFORCE: Challengers on  SHOWTIME® (11 p.m. ET/PT, delayed on  the West Coast). Kaufman weighed 134 pounds; Hashi 132 Thursday. Photos: Esther Lin/STRIKEFORCE

Karl Amoussou (left) weighed 184 1/2  pounds for his match with Trevor Prangley (185 pounds) at the  San Jose Civic Auditorium. Photos: Esther Lin/STRIKEFORCE
 

Paul Bradley and Luke Rockhold will collide in one of the featured bouts on SHOWTIME. Bradley  weighed 186; Rockhold 185. Photos: Esther Lin/STRIKEFORCE

Tarec Saffiedine and James Terry face off at Thursday's  weigh-in at Hilton San Jose.  Saffiedine tipped scale at 170; Terry 169. Photos: Esther Lin/STRIKEFORCE
 

Yancy Medeiros and Raul  Castillo will meet in the opening fight on the telecast. Medeiros  weighed 185 1/2 pounds; Castillo 183Photos: Esther Lin/STRIKEFORCE.
 

SAN JOSE, Calif.  – The 24 mixed martial arts fighters all made weight for the historic STRIKEFORCE: Challengersfight card tomorrow/Friday, Feb. 26 on SHOWTIME® (11 p.m. ET/PT, delayed on the West Coast) at the San Jose Civic Auditorium.

In the main event, unbeaten Sarah Kaufman (10-0) of Victoria, British Columbia and Takayo Hashi (12-1) of Tokyo, Japan, will collide in the first-ever STRIKEFORCE women’s world 135-pound (welterweight) championship. The eagerly awaited matchup is scheduled for five, 5-minute rounds.

Other fights on SHOWTIME (all slated for three, 5-minute rounds): Trevor Prangley (22-5) vs. Karl Amoussou (11-2-1) at 185 pounds; Luke Rockhold (6-1) vs. Paul Bradley (12-1) at 185 pounds; James Terry (7-1) vs. Tarec Saffiedine (7-2)  at 170 pounds; and Raul Castillo (6-0) vs. Yancy Medeiros (4-0) at 185 pounds.

Tickets for the first STRIKEFORCE Challengers event of 2010, priced from $30, are on sale at The San Jose Civic Auditorium box office, Ticketmaster (800-745-3000) and online at Ticketmaster.com and STRIKEFORCE.com. 

Doors will open at 5:15 p.m. PT. The first preliminary bout will begin at 6 p.m. and the first main card bout will begin at 8 p.m.

What the fighters said at Thursday's weigh-in:

SARAH KAUFMAN

“I’m excited and honored to fight for STRIKEFORCE’s inaugural 135-pound women’s title.  I just want to go out there, have fun, and make it the fight of the night.  Don’t miss this fight.  It could be over at any moment.’’

TAKAYO HASHI

“I am very honored to fight for STRIKEFORCE on SHOWTIME for the first 135-pound title for STRIKEFORCE.  I feel I am representing Japan.  I want to win the title for my career path, but I really want to bring this title back to motivate the female fighters of Japan.’’

TREVOR PRANGLEY

“I feel it’s a privilege to be able to do what I do.  I thank God every day for blessing me this much.’’

LUKE ROCKHOLD

“I’m happy to be healthy.  It was a hard camp and I’m injury prone but my health is great and I’m ready to get out there and show it.  I’ve been working on my standup and takedown defense.  My kickboxing has gotten really strong.  I can’t wait to show it to the world.’’

PAUL BRADLEY

“Fatigue makes cowards out of us all.  You won’t see any fatigue out of this guy.  I’m ready.’’

TAREC SAFFIEDINE

“I trained hard for this fight.  I made a lot of sacrifices for this fight and am excited to showcase my skills and do what I’ve trained so hard for.’’

YANCY MEDEIROS

”I’m proud to be a part of STRIKEFORCE and I’m here to represent Hawaii.  I’m dedicating this to my Uncle Martinand Auntie Sheila Buell.  A win for them and my family means everything.’’