Cung Le Stops Frank Shamrock

In an early candidate for fight of the year, San Shou kickboxer and still undefeated Cung Le (6-0) became Strikeforce's new world middleweight champion by stopping -- and breaking the arm of -- former title-holder Frank Shamrock (24-9-1).

The fight, the biggest in the history of the suddenly surging Strikeforce organization, capped off Saturday's co-promoted event with EliteXC. A San Jose, Calif. crowd packed the HP Pavilion. The main card aired live on Showtime.

In the weeks leading up to the fight, Shamrock shared a bold game plan: he'd stand and trade with the famed stand-up fighter. Surprisingly, Shamrock, did just that -- and it eventually led to disaster.

"I guess he did keep his word," Le said.

After failing on an early takedown attempt, Shamrock never really again tried and was sporadically successful leg kicks and a series of rights. However, Le picked him apart with counter-punches, strikes to the midsection, and dangerous head kicks. Those kicks would take a toll, eventually breaking Shamrock's right arm. A final head kick sent Shamrock stumbling back to his corner after the third round.

He'd never return.

"I knew I caught him good in the hand," Le said of Shamrock's early attempts to fend off head kicks. "He kept blocking, so I kept aiming at that part of the wrist."

As the third round came to a close, Shamrock's arm injuries were obvious. In a fight that first played out like a chess match, with each fighter complimenting his opponent's successes, the smiles and handshakes were gone by the third round. Instead, Shamrock cracked Le with strikes that had the fighter staggering and in survival mode. But, just before the round came to a close, Le threw a final head kick. Shamrock blocked it -- but broke his arm in the process.

The injury forced a stoppage before the fourth round would get underway, and Le was thankful the punishment ended.

"Every time he dipped, I thought he was going to shoot in, so I couldn't move my head," Le said after the fight, with blood tricking from his mouth. "He caught me with some hard punches and rocked me a few times."

With the victory -- Le's first over a known, established top-tier opponent -- the 34-year-old fighter has solidified his superstar status. His fame will only grow next month when he's prominently featured in the debut of "Strikeforce on NBC," the first weekly MMA series to air on major U.S. network television.

Le, one of perhaps the organization's most marketed stars, is the focus of the April 12 premiere.

"This is a dream come true," Le said. "Coming (to the U.S.) from Vietnam under gunfire and now world champion, I love it.

Folks, Cung Le is the real deal and a force in MMA.

"The full results from Saturday included:


Cung Le vs. Frank Shamrock via TKO (injury) -- Round 3, 5:00 (for Strikeforce world middleweight title)
Drew Fickett def. Jae Suk Lim via submission (guillotine choke) -- Round 1, 1:14
Gilbert Melendez def. Gabe Lemley via TKO (strikes) -- Round 2, 2:18 (for Strikeforce world lightweight title)
Wayne Cole def. Mike Kyle via submission (armbar) -- Round 1, 0:42
Joey Villasenor def. Ryan Jensen via KO (punch) -- Round 1, 4:45
Tiki Ghosn def. Luke Stewart via unanimous decision (29-28, 30-27, 29-28)
Darren Uyenoyama def. Anthony Figueroa via submission (guillotine choke) -- Round 1, 1:27
Jesse Jones def. Jesse Gillespie via TKO -- Round 1, 0:35