“A lot of mixed emotions with Strikeforce going down. I fought in the very first MMA Strikeforce card, I hold a lot of records there, I’m the champ there and I really appreciate what Scott Coker’s done. But, you know, also a new chapter in my life and it looks like my next fight will be in the UFC and that is exciting for me as well. So, I am pretty excited… Yes it does (mean a lot to me), I can finally say that. So when people tell me, “Yo, you fight UFC?” I can finally say, “Yes, I fight UFC now.” For a minute that was a hard question to answer, but, I think that might be the most rewarding thing about it.”

Speaking to sherdog.com, Strikeforce lightweight champion, Gilbert Melendez discusses the closure of Strikeforce and what it means for him to make the shift over to the UFC.