Strikeforce results: Luke Rockhold knocks out Keith Jardine to defend middleweight championship

The main event of Strikeforce: "Rockhold vs. Jardine" tonight (Sat., Jan. 7, 2012) in Las Vegas, Nevada, featured, well, Luke Rockhold vs. Keith Jardine. It was the first title defense for the former, as he put his middleweight strap on the line against an opponent many felt unworthy.

That's because "The Dean of Mean" had never even fought at 185-pounds before tonight and failed to establish himself in his one fight under the Strikeforce banner. Nonetheless, he was the guy to get the shot.

Those who made the case that he never should have only had it bolstered when Rockhold landed multiple punches that put Jardine on his butt and sent him off to la-la land. The younger, better fighter won tonight.

Rockhold may or may not be ready for Anderson Silva but having him knock out Keith Jardine likely didn't bring us any closer to answering that question. Then again, he was expected to win by blowout and that's exactly what he did.

Rockhold had the early edge, as he was clearly the faster of the two. Word around the water cooler all week was that Jardine had struggled greatly to get down to the 185-pound limit, despite the fact that he weighed in wearing a hat and his fight shorts.

The Greg Jackson trained fighter was loose and bouncing around the cage but he was showing little in the way of offense. Luke, on the other hand, was landing some of those "cute" kicks Jardine said he didn't want to let him get off with.

It wasn't long after that Rockhold proved most of the pundits in the game right when he started finding a home for both his right and left hand. Jardine's shaky chin once again failed to hold up and he was knocked out multiple times before the referee finally, mercifully stepped in to call it.

Nothing to see here, folks, move along.