Daniel Cormier vs. Frank Mir, Luke Rockhold vs. Lorenz Larkin Booked For Nov. 3 Strikeforce Event

Two major fights have been added to the freshly announced Strikeforce event Nov. 3 in Oklahoma City, OK.

Strikeforce Heavyweight Grand Prix champion Daniel Cormier will meet former UFC heavyweight champion Frank Mir in a three-round main event at the Chesapeake Energy Arena in Oklahoma City.

In the co-main event the Strikeforce middleweight championship is up for grabs as reigning champ Luke Rockhold attempts to defend his belt for the third time against Lorenz Larkin.

Both bouts were originally reported by MMAJunkie.com and were later confirmed by Strikeforce officials.

Cormier (10-0) has only been professional in the sport for less than three years and is already one of the best fighters in the world. The former Olympic wrestler has finished seven of his 10 opponents in the first round and is rapidly developing his striking to the point where it is just as dangerous as his wrestling. Being so green in the sport, Cormier is always a new and improved version of himself every time he competes. After his dominant win against Josh Barnett earlier this year to win the Strikeforce Grand Prix title, it will be interested to see how Cormier fairs against another former UFC champion.

Mir (16-6) makes the transition from the UFC to Strikeforce for just one fight after failing to capture the UFC heavyweight championship from Junior dos Santos last May. Prior to the defeat, Mir had won three fights in the a row including a brutal disfiguration of Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira’s arm at UFC 140. Mir is the longest reigning active heavyweight on the UFC roster and will look to halt the rise of one of the heavyweight division’s rising stars when he moves over to Strikeforce to fight Cormier.

Rockhold (10-1) was rumored to take on Ronaldo “Jacare” Souza in his next fight until Strikeforce executives opted to match him up with Lorenz Larkin. The 27-year-old has won nine fights in a row –all in Strikeforce– including successful title defences against Keith Jardine and Tim Kennedy. Rockhold has eight finishes in 10 career wins with six of those victories coming by submission.

Larkin (13-0, 1 NC) successfully dropped to the middleweight division in July with a unanimous decision win over Robbie Lawler. After fighting his first 13 professional fights in the light heavyweight division, Larkin picked up an impressive win over a tough veteran and earned himself a title shot. ‘The Monsoon’ holds eight career (T)KO wins and will look to become the first man to defeat Rockhold in Strikeforce.

For the latest on Strikeforce: Cormier vs. Mir, click here. For up-to-date versions of all upcoming fight cards, head over to the rumors section.

Mike Bohn, founder and lead writer of FightCove.com, wrote this article. You can follow Mike on Twitter at @FightCoveMike. Also, be sure to follow @FightCove on Twitter and “Like” Fight Cove on Facebook.