As expected, Strikeforce and NBC have struck a deal to air a weekly half-hour long mixed martial arts series dubbed “Strikeforce on NBC” on late night network television, beginning on April 12 at 2 a.m. ET.

Here’s a snip from Strikeforce Chief Executive Officer Scott Coker:

“It’s truly an honor to have the opportunity to bring the Strikeforce mixed martial arts product to one of the longest-standing and most well-respected national television platforms. NBC has a history of popular late Saturday TV and in the 80’s NBC’s ‘Saturday Night’s Main Event’ show helped catapult the popularity of professional wrestling. Strikeforce is looking to follow in suit and establish a legacy of its own on the network.”

According the release, “Strikeforce on NBC” will follow “Poker After Dark,” hitting a demographic (18 to 34-year-old males) that dovetails with its current target audience.

Episodes will be prerecorded and showcase some of the top fighters, fights and storylines of the San Jose, Calif.-based promotion. For example, the premiere episode is expected to shine the spotlight on Cung Le, airing his fight against Brian Warren, as well as providing a profile on the popular San Shou fighter-turned mixed martial artist.

This is big news for Strikeforce, which has only been promoting professional MMA bouts for little more than two years. However, the quality of the fights and fighters are solid.

And exposure on network television — regardless of the time slot — means that bigger and better things more than likely loom on the horizon.