Jacare-Lindland Signed for Dec. 19 Strikeforce

Dream middleweight grand prix finalist Ronaldo “Jacare” Souza will meet Matt Lindland in a featured bout at the year-end Strikeforce show on Dec. 19 at the HP Pavilion in San Jose, Calif. Strikeforce CEO Scott Coker informed Sherdog.com of the matchup on Thursday.

Souza, a two-time Brazilian jiu-jitsu champion and two-time winner of the Abu Dhabi Combat Club Submission Wrestling World Championships, has not competed since his rematch with Jason “Mayhem” Miller ended in a no contest at Dream 9 in May. Miller struck Souza with an illegal kick 2:33 into the match, resulting in a fight-ending cut. Souza, 29, has delivered nine of his 10 victories by submission and has become one of the sport’s most-feared grapplers.

The 39-year-old Lindland, meanwhile, has lost two of his last three fights, including a brutal knockout loss to Vitor Belfort at Affliction “Day of Reckoning” in January. The 2000 Olympic silver medalist holds wins against Pat Miletich, former UFC welterweight champion Carlos Newton and Jeremy Horn; he remains one of only two men to submit Brazilian jiu-jitsu black belt Travis Lutter.