Ovince St. Preux Desires Strikeforce Fight with Gegard Mousasi

Strikeforce light heavyweight Ovince St. Preux – or O.S.P., as he has become known – is a fighter that’s made a pretty decent impact since showing up on the mixed martial arts map.

As early as his debut at Strikeforce: Nashville against Chris Hawk on the event’s undercard, St. Preux has left a mark on every cage he’s competed in.

Most recently, O.S.P. made his return to the Strikeforce cage against Joe Cason at Strikeforce Challengers: Bowling vs. Voelker 3. In the fight, the former college football player made short work of his opponent, finishing Cason in the first round by submission due to punches.

Going forward, St. Preux seems to be moving on up and wanting bigger challenges. According to his management, the young mixed martial artist desires a fight with high-profile light heavyweight and former Strikeforce champion Gegard Mousasi.

“We want Gegard Mousasi,” Nima Safapour of Alchemist MMA told MMAWeekly.com. “We think Gegard is one of the most accomplished fighters in this business.

“We think it will be an exciting fight for the fans and it’ll be the right kind of evolution because both those guys are coming off a win. If the stars align, I think Gegard would be the best fight, for both fighters, to be honest with you.”

Mousasi was last seen in a Strikeforce cage in San Diego at Strikeforce: Diaz vs. Daley. In his fight, Mousasi fought a Keith Jardine who was making his return to fighting in a Zuffa LLC promotion for the first time since being cut by the UFC in June of 2010. The two fought a grueling three-round fight that left Jardine bloodied and busted up, but the judges assigned by the California State Athletic Commission saw the fight as a draw.

A speechless Mousasi moved on from there to fight in the Japanese promotion Dream, but hasn’t been scheduled to another Strikeforce fight since. Being a former Strikeforce light heavyweight champion and current Dream light heavyweight champion, Mousasi is a tall order for any fighter calling him out. But thats’s the kind of thing that St. Preux’s management expects him to consume going forward.

They saw the kind of potential that makes a champion when they first signed him.

“I knew that he was headed for really big things,” Safapour said about his client. “I looked at the 205 division in Strikeforce and I just saw his athleticism and what he brought to the game. There was no doubt in my mind that he was probably one of the hottest prospects to sign in the Strikeforce platform. He brings too much to the table.

“I think has every opportunity to become champion of the Strikeforce division. I think he’s, realistically, one to three fights away from a title shot.”

Getting to the top of the Strikeforce ladder is a challenge, but one that St. Preux’s people wholeheartedly trust he’ll overcome.

“It’s a challenge that we really believe in.”

Follow @Erik_Fontanez on Twitter or e-mail Erik Fontanez.
For more UFC News and UFC Rumors, follow MMAWeekly.com on Twitter and Facebook.