"You know what, every time you step in the cage, you always have to have some kind of concern and respect your opponent. Go out there and compete. I think it's a great match-up for the fans and for Strikeforce. The first two weeks were rough but training has been great. Always sore but the last six weeks, I've been feeling really good. I'm very excited and it's always fun to go in there and compete -- and now to have Dan Henderson with Strikeforce is great. All the great middleweights in there, it's good for the sport and good for MMA."  - Cung Le

The undefeated Cung Le (6-0) has been away from mixed martial arts since March 2008 in order to pursue his professional acting career. During the year-long hiatus, Le was forced to relinquish his Strikeforce middleweight title. In November, Jake Shields (24-4) defeated Jason Miller (22-7) to become the new champion at Strikeforce: "Fedor vs. Rogers."

Since Le's departure from the sport, Strikeforce has acquired a new middleweight: former PRIDE champion and Olympic wrestler, Dan Henderson. After months of back-and-forth negotiations between Henderson and UFC President Dana White, Henderson signed a four-fight, 16-month contract with Strikeforce this month. It has been reported that he is looking to make his debut with the organization in April against Shields.

Le is back and is ready to fight a game opponent in Scott Smith (16-6) at Strikeforce: "Evolution" on Dec. 19, in San Jose, Calif. Smith is coming off of a submission loss to Nick Diaz (20-7) at Strikeforce: "Lawler vs. Shields" in June 2009. Strikeforce: "Evolution" will air live on Showtime, and will feature additional bouts between Josh Thomson and Gilbert Melendez (for the lightweight championship belt); Ronaldo Souza vs. Matt Lindland; and Muhammed "King Mo" Lawal vs. Mike Whitehead.