Strikeforce has reason to fight in Ohio

Officials from Strikeforce, which is one of the top mixed-martial-arts promotions behind the Ultimate Fighting Championship, have talked openly about wanting to enter new Midwest markets, including Ohio.

And following this past weekend’s latest event in Portland, Ore., they now have a perfect reason.

In a Showtime-televised fight at the May 21 Strikeforce Challengers 8 event, undefeated area prospect Roger Bowling and veteran Bobby Voelker engaged in an epic scrap that sadly ended early.

Bowling, a native of the tiny Clermont County village of Neville who trains with Cincinnati’s Team Vision, dazzled in his promotional debut and displayed his trademark heavy hands. Bowling battered the 29-fight veteran in the opening round, but Voelker’s resiliency kept him in the fight.

But in the third and final round, a bizarre injury incurred. The fighters were clinched against the cage and in a stalemate, and referee Shawn Gregory intervened for a restart. However, Voekler’s glove scraped his opponent’s eye during the separation, and after a nearly 10-minute medical break, a ringside physician determined Bowling couldn’t continue.

In the event of a third-round injury stoppage, the judges score the partial round and tally the totals. And Bowling (8-0) got the technical-decision victory over Voelker (21-8) with 29-28 scores.

A ruthless crowd mightily booed the decision, and it was hard for Bowling not to take it personally.

“Bobby, let’s do it again, brother,” he said while fighting off tears. “I’m sorry, Portland. I gave it my all and wanted to finish. I just can’t open my eye, and they wouldn’t let me continue.”

With Bowling on board and fans calling for the rematch, why not do it in Ohio, where Bowling has already proven a top draw?

Bellator books Zachrich for Louisville show

Bellator Fighting Championship will make its Kentucky debut on June 24 at Fourth Street Live! in Louisville, and Cincinnati fighter Luke Zachrich is on the card.

Zachrich (9-2), who appeared on the seventh season of the UFC reality series “The Ultimate Fighter,” said he’s scheduled to fight Louisville-based Mike Fleniken (2-1) in a featured preliminary-card matchup.

“It’s nice to be able to fight close to home,” said Zachrich, who’s training for the fight at the Jorge Gurgel MMA Academy in West Chester Twp.

The show, which concludes Bellator’s 12-week second season, airs live on Fox Sports Net and features the finals of two of Bellator’s four eight-man tourneys.

Dann Stupp is editor-in-chief of MMAjunkie.com, voted best media outlet in the 2008 and 2009 World MMA Awards. For the latest mixed-martial-arts news, go to www.MMAjunkie.com.

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