A week and a half into the realization that he won't be going to the UFC, Gilbert Melendez (20-2 MMA, 10-1 SF) is getting used to the idea of fighting Josh Thomson (19-4 MMA, 10-2 SF) a third time.
"I guess it was inevitable," he told MMAjunkie.com Radio (www.mmajunkie.com/radio) with a laugh.
But the Strikeforce lightweight champ would be lying if he said he isn't disappointed.
"I was hoping for something better, for some top talent, and it didn't work out," Melendez said. "Something to raise my stock."
Nothing could do that better than a UFC import. Melendez heard the same names everyone else did when a crossover fight was first rumored. The most heavily rumored names included B.J. Penn and Anthony Pettis. They just never materialized.
Thomson did, and now he and Melendez meet in a rubber match at "Strikeforce: Heavyweight Grand Prix Finale," which takes place May 19 at HP Pavilion in San Jose, Calif. Melendez vs. Thomson serves as the main card's co-main draw, which airs live on Showtime. Preliminary-card fights air on Showtime Extreme.
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