The San Jose-based mixed martial arts promotion Strikeforce will unveil its brand new “Challenger Series” — which focuses on up-and-coming talent — tonight live from Save Mart Center in Fresno, Calif., at 11 p.m. ET on the premium cable network Showtime.

The featured main event for Strikeforce: “Challenger Series 1″ will be a lightweight battle between Hawaiian native and BJ Penn trainee “Iron” Mike Aina and undefeated Muay Thai specialist Billy Evangelista. Also on the card will be a highly touted female scrap between Canadian Sarah Kaufman and Victory Athletics product Miesha Tate.

As always, MMAmania.com will provide detailed coverage of the main card bouts, beginning with the 11 p.m. ET telecast on Showtime.

Many of our readers check-in before, during and after the Showtime telecast to share their thoughts on the action. Therefore, feel free to leave a comment or 10 before you leave and chat with many of our readers during the show — it always turns out to be a great discussion.

Keep in mind that we will also be the spot for the latest news, recaps and post-fight analysis after the show.

Without further delay, see below for the latest results. (Note: This will go from the bottom up; therefore, scroll toward the bottom for the latest fight updates!)

STRIKEFORCE: “CHALLENGER SERIES 1″ QUICK RESULTS:

“Iron” Mike Aina defeats Billy Evangelista via disqualification (illegal knee) at 3:40 of round two
Sarah Kaufman defeats Miesha Tate via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
Lavar “Big” Johnson defeats Carl Seumanutafa via knockout (punch) at 0:18 of round one
Aaron Rosa defeats Anthony “A-Train” Ruiz via submission (rear naked choke) at 4:29 of round one
Bao Quach defeats Tito Jones via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
Ben “The Teacher” Holscher defeats Cody Cantebury via submission (rear naked choke) in round one
Thomas Diagne defeats Kaleo Kwan via unanimous decision
Fabricio “Morango” Camoes defeats Torrance Taylor via submission (rear naked choke) in round one
Spencer Herns defeats Chad Sutton via majority decision

STRIKEFORCE: “CHALLENGER SERIES 1″ MAIN CARD FIGHT COVERAGE:

“Iron” Mike Aina (11-6-1) vs. Billy Evangelista (9-0)

Fight recap:

Round one: Aina looked a litte crisper in the stand up early on. He scored on a number of kicks, and he countered pretty much everything Evangelista threw at him with some solid boxing. Evangelista started to warm up as the round wore on though, mixing him a few leg kicks before finally attempting a takedown. The Hawaiian fighter did a nice job defending, but a relentless Evangelista was eventually able to take Aina down one time before the round ended. Aina was able to pop right back up, but Evangelista landed some good knees and elbows from the clinch bringing the close round to a close. Very close round that could have gone either way. I don’t believe the takedown was worth much as Aina got right back up though, and the Hawaiian was more effective in the striking. I score it for Aina.

Round two: More good takedown defense from Aina in this round and more quality striking from the Hawaiian as well. Evangelista opened up his arsenal a bit more by mixing in some high kicks and jabs sporadically before finally putting Aina on his back with a double leg takedown. From there he worked some violent ground and pound for a while before Aina tried to work his way back to his feet. With a knee on the ground Evangelista nailed him with a nasty illegal knee to the head that caused a halt in the action. Aina was visibly hurt, and Herb Dean called a stop to the fight on the recommendation of the cageside doctor. Horrible way to end what was turning into a solid back and forth fight from two hungry and aggressive fighters. What a shame.

Final result: “Iron” Mike Aina defeats Billy Evangelista via disqualification (illegal knee) at 3:40 of round two

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Sarah Kaufman (8-0) vs. Miesha Tate (5-1)

Fight recap:

Round one: There was a good amount of boxing early on with Tate surprisingly holding her own with the hard hitting Canadian. However, it wasn’t long before Tate grew tired of eating Kaufman’s punches and started attempting takedowns. Kaufman held her off well though and was able to keep the fight standing until Tate was finally able to put her on her back with about 20 seconds remaining in the round. Close round with the takedown at the end for Tate, but that round probably went to Kaufman based on her aggressive striking.

Round two: Tate picked it up right where she left off round one by taking Kaufman right to the mat to start round two. She worked some hard ground and pound from there. Kaufman fought her way back to full guard and showed some decent work from her back. The round ended with Tate taking Kaufman’s back trying to lock in a choke. Much better round for Miesha Tate. This fight is probably all locked up heading into the final round.

Round three: Kaufman stayed aggressive with her boxing by continuing to walk forward, but she was a lot more aware of Tate’s takedown attempts in this round as opposed to round two where she spent most of the round on her back. She defended everything Tate threw at her in this round though, and she out-boxed the Victory Athletics product for the majority of the three minutes. Towards the end, the Canadian fighter found herself on top of Miesha Tate on the ground. From there she pounded away with ground strikes until the final bell rang. Sarah Kaufman is going to take this decision. Good effort from both women though.

Final result: Sarah Kaufman defeats Miesha Tate via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)

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Lavar “Big” Johnson (11-3) vs. Carl Seumanutafa (4-2)

Fight recap:

Round one: This one was exactly as advertised. It was two large men who were coming in with one punch knockout power and one punch knockout intentions. It kind of had that feel like whoever got off first was going to walk away with a highlight reel win, and that’s exactly what happened. Unfortunately for Carl Seumanutafa, it was “Big” Johnson who got off first. Surprisingly Seumanutafa shot in for a half hearted single leg takedown attempt almost right away, and he ate a devastating right hand uppercut from Johnson that knocked him out cold just 18 seconds after the opening bell.

Final result: Lavar “Big” Johnson defeats Carl Seumanutafa via knockout (punch) at 0:18 of round one

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Aaron Rosa (11-2) vs. Anthony “A-Train” Ruiz (21-12)

Fight recap:

Round one: Ruiz came out quickly with some big right hands. Rosa weathered the storm and was able to initiate a clinch that lasted for a couple of minutes. A few nasty exchanges followed from that position with both guys swinging for the fences. Eventually Rosa found an opening and was successful on a big takedown. From there, he easily took a full mount on Ruiz. An aggressive Ruiz fought his way out, but gave up his back to the bigger Rosa in the process. From there it was only a matter of time before Ruiz found himself in a deep rear naked choke. He slowly slipped into unconsciousness. The referee recognized he was in trouble and was forced to stop the bout. Big win for Rosa.

Final result: Aaron Rosa defeats Anthony “A-Train” Ruiz via submission (rear naked choke) at 4:29 of round one

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Tito Jones (6-2) vs. Bao Quach (15-9-1)

Fight recap:

Round one: The entire first round was fought on the feet. Both guys came out using a variety of kicks, but it was Quach who landed the majority of them, including a ton of low leg kicks. Jones started off slow, but got more comfortable as the round progressed, landing a few nice punches and even attempting a late takedown that was unsuccessful. However, Quach’s numerous kicks probably won him the round.

Round two: Quach stayed aggressive with the leg kicks, punishing Jones’ lower limbs throughout the second round, much like the first. Jones maintained the center of the cage, but a circling Quach controlled most of the striking with his movement and kicks. Jones was slow to pick up his pace in this round, too, but he was able to mix in a few hard punches. But Quach picked him apart with the kicks and is more than likely up two rounds to one heading into the third frame.

Round three: Quach came out with more leg kicks, but Jones capitalized on the predictable attack early in the round by flooring his opponent with two huge right hands on separate occasions. He momentarily had Quach’s back on the ground, but somehow Bao was able to recover from the punishment and get back to his feet. From there he fought his way through the last couple of minutes of the fight by keeping Jones away with more kicks and jabs. Surviving that round will probably be good enough to earn himself the decision victory, but that round certainly could have been a 10-8 for Tito Jones. It wouldn’t be too far fetched to see this one end in a draw. Let’s go to the scorecards.

Final result: Bao Quach defeats Tito Jones via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)

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