When dealing with Strikeforce, you can never quite be sure where title contenders will come from.

At the "Overeem vs. Werdum" event tonight (June 18, 2011) in Dallas, Texas, it was more or less confirmed that the winner of K.J. Noons vs. Jorge Masvidal would earn a crack at the lightweight crown.

It helps if one puts in a dominant performance.

That's what Masvidal did, soundly defeating Noons by way of unanimous decision thanks to a more evolved all around mixed martial arts game.

He even out-boxed the boxer.

Masvidal wasn't expected to spend a whole lot of time standing with the supposedly superior striker but that's exactly what he did.

And while Noons landed plenty of punches, it was "Gamebred" that hit harder and with more meaning. He also blasted "King" with a kick in the opening frame that nearly put the former welterweight title contender out for good.

Noons' chin, though, is rock solid and he battled his way back to keep himself alive.

In the end, it didn't matter. Masvidal put the stamp on his win by executing multiple takedowns and outworking his opponent.

There's also the matter of the pizza face Noons ended up with by the time it was said and done.

Were you watching, Gilbert Melendez?