Thursday, July 30, 2009

Jay Hieron replaces Joe Riggs, meets Nick Diaz for Strikeforce welterweight title on Aug. 15


Originally posted on MMAjunkie.com

After entertaining offers from both Strikeforce and the Ultimate Fighting Championship, notable welterweight Jay Hieron (17-4) ultimately chose the option that leads to an immediate title shot.

Hieron has agreed to a multi-fight deal with Strikeforce and replaces Joe Riggs in an Aug. 15 championship fight with Nick Diaz (20-7) for the organization's first-ever welterweight title.

Hieron's camp today confirmed the deal with MMAjunkie.com (www.mmajunkie.com), though it hasn't been officially announced by Strikeforce.

Earlier this week Hieron had reportedly already signed a deal with Strikeforce, though sources later told MMAjunkie.com he was still choosing between that contract and an offer from the UFC. Hieron had been slated to fight Paul Daley before the cancellation of the Aug. 1 "Affliction: Trilogy" event and was quickly contacted by multiple organizations.

The former IFL fighter competed in the UFC twice before and suffered losses to Georges St. Pierre (TKO) at UFC 48 and Jonathan Goulet at UFC Fight Night 2 (TKO due to a cut). However, the Xtreme Couture fighter is currently riding a five-fight win streak (with seven wins in his past eight fights) with wins over the likes of Jason High, Victor Moreno and Mark Miller.

Click here to read the entire article on MMAweekly.com

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