After his recent X-1 middleweight title defenses over Kala Hose and Kalib Starnes, Vitale is ready for a big step up in competition – namely, he would like a rematch with current Strikeforce middleweight contender Jason “Mayhem” Miller or a fight with current Strikeforce world champion Nick Diaz. In fact, Vitale is ready to take on all challenges: “I would really like to take on all challengers at 170 and 185 pounds,” he said.

Having competed as high as 205 pounds, Vitale has decided to cut weight in order to compete in the middleweight and welterweight divisions. Vitale plans on coupling his brute strength with the speed of a 170 pounder: “I feel just as strong at 170 pounds as I did when I was 205lbs,” Vitale said.

Stars MMA, Vitale’s current management agency, is in negotiations with top MMA organizations in order to secure a multi-fight contract, which will allow him to pursue his goal of taking on elite fighters.

Niko Vitale is an experienced jiu-jitsu practitioner and wrestler who represents 808 Top Team, one of the toughest fight gyms in Hawaii. The pride of the Aloha State has appeared in major promotions such as the UFC, Strikeforce, International Fight League, King of the Cage, Rage in the Cage, SuperBrawl, and Icon Sport. With 29 wins to only nine losses, Vitale’s record is a testament of his talents as a mixed martial artist, and he has showcased these talents in matches against Robbie Lawler, recent Strikeforce middleweight title challenger Jason “Mayhem” Miller, MMA pioneer Jeremy Horn, Strikeforce/UFC veteran Trevor Prangley, and UFC veteran Frank Trigg. As a recognizable name in the sport, Vitale has gained this admiration through notable victories over UFC veteran Aaron Riley, former UFC middleweight champion Dave Menne, UFC middleweight contender Yushin Okami, 2000 Olympic Silver Medalist Matt Lindland, and UFC veteran Kalib Starnes.

On March 20,2010, Vitale defeated Kalib Starnes via submission to become the X-1 Middleweight Champion. In September, Niko defended his middleweight title at X-1: Heroes, where he submitted Kala “Kolohe” Hose via Ezekiel choke.

For more information about Stars MMA or Niko Vitale please contact Stars MMA:

info@starsmma.com

415.421.6272 or 323.962.1800

23 Grant Avenue, 4th Floor

San Francisco, CA 94108

www.starsmma.com

Bio/Profile

Intro

Kulia i ka nu’u, strive for excellence, is a motto that Falaniko “Niko” Vitale models his life after. The pursuit of excellence occurs in all aspects of Vitale’s life, from being an attentive father to being a strategic submission and knockout practitioner in the cage. Vitale is a Hawaiian native, born and raised in Waipahu, Hawaii, and he is arguably one of the most revered Hawaiian fighters to date. The moniker, “The people’s champion,” expresses Vitale’s love for his community and Samoan heritage. This nickname also holds true because Vitale has expressed that he fights to make the lives of his family, friends, and community better off.

Personal Journey

Vitale learned at an early age that he excelled at sports, and he decided that it might be his ticket to success. While attending Waipahu High School, Vitale was part of the football, wrestling, and track teams. He excelled in wrestling, becoming an Oahu Interscholastic Association champ.

After high school, Vitale played football at Snow College in Utah for two years before returning to the islands. He returned home to attend the University of Hawaii, where he continued his football career for two more years. It’s important to mention that Brigham Young University, the University of Southern California, and the University of Kansas also recruited Vitale, but he decided to play for the University of Hawaii so his family would be able to witness his accomplishments. Vitale hoped to play professional football, but he was unsuccessful in his tryouts with the Dallas Cowboys, Baltimore Ravens, and a couple of Canadian teams. Niko played arena football for the Hawaii Hammerheads and Islanders before discovering MMA.

Vitale was 22 years old by the time he started training jiu-jitsu in 1997. Due to his extensive wrestling background, he excelled in the sport. After only two ears of training, Vitale won his first fight by TKO, in 1999.

Life as a fighter

Niko Vitale is an experienced jiu-jitsu and wrestling practitioner, who represents 808 Top Team, one of the toughest fight gyms in Hawaii. Vitale has had an illustrious mixed martial arts career spanning well over a decade, and he has appeared in major promotions such as the UFC, Strikeforce, the Fight League, King of the Cage, Rage in the Cage, SuperBrawl, and Icon Sport. With 29 wins to only nine losses, Vitale’s record is a testament of his talents as a mixed martial artist.

Vitale has showcased these talents in matches against Elite XC and Icon Sport middleweight champion Robbie Lawler, recent Strikeforce middleweight title challenger Jason “Mayhem” Miller, MMA innovator Jeremy Horn, Strikeforce/UFC veteran Trevor Prangley, and UFC fighter Frank Trigg. As a recognizable name in the sport, Vitale has gained this admiration through notable victories over UFC veteran Aaron Riley, former UFC middleweight champion Dave Menne, UFC middleweight contender Yushin Okami, 2000 Olympic Silver Medalist Matt Lindland, and UFC veteran Kalib Starnes. On March 20,2010, Vitale defeated Kalib Starnes via submission to become the X-1 middleweight champion. Recently, Vitale defended his middleweight title at X-1: Heroes, where he submitted Kala “Kolohe” Hose via Ezekiel choke.

Marketable Opportunities

With a million-dollar smile and great physique, it’s hard to envision that Vitale is a professional fighter. Being a professional athlete who is constantly in the limelight, Vitale has developed great communication skills. He has showcased his talents on a recent episode of Hawaii Five-0, entitled “Ko’olauloa.” He appeared in two scenes as one of the lead character’s bodyguards, and he anticipates several more cameos on Hawaii Five-O in the coming months. His demeanor, physical tributes, and experience truly make Niko Vitale a mass marketable athlete.

About STARS MMA
The Mixed Martial Arts division of the almost 30-year old San Francisco-based talent agency, STARS the Agency, STARS MMA is dedicated to advancing and preserving the sport of mixed martial arts through full agency servicing and leveraging the current commercial rise of mixed martial arts and its athletes into other mainstream opportunities.  STARS MMA seeks to provide MMA athletic talent inroads into television, film, commercial/print advertising and modeling prospects.

For more from STARS MMA, visit www.starsagency.com, or follow us on Twitter (@StarsMMA) and Facebook (facebook.com/StarsMMA).

About STARS the Agency
STARS the Agency, now celebrating over twenty years in business, is a full service talent agency located in the heart of downtown San Francisco.  STARS, which has consistently enjoyed the reputation as one of the largest, most successful and respected agencies in the world, provides a comprehensive list of services, representing men, women and children for on camera, voice-over and theatrical work and screenplay writers. The agency is state licensed, a member of the Association of Talent Agents (ATA) and franchised by the performers unions including American Federation of Television and Radio Artists (AFTRA), Actors Equity Association (AEA), Directors Gild of America (DGA) and Writers Guild of America (WGA). Although Screen Actors Guild (SAG) has not had a franchise agreement with agents since 2001, STARS continues to provide talent with opportunities to audition for and book SAG work.

STARS the Agency is recognized worldwide in Europe, Asia and Australia, providing numerous international opportunities for its talent.

Photo courtesy of Stars MMA

But a scuffle during an event is fairly commonplace (it’s in the hockey rule book and the main attraction for many fans) and is usually explained by very competitive athletes losing it a bit in the heat of competition. Sweet chin music and hard fouls are merely part of their respective games.

In a sport as physical as mixed martial arts, things get heated and trash talk are part of the show. Saturday night’s StrikeForce event in Nashville was no exception. What makes this totally different than your average baseball bean brawl or pushing and shoving at a boxing press conference is because it happened during a MMA event on national television.

Jake Shields had just won his bout against Dan Henderson to improve his record to 21-4-1 and was being interviewed in the cage by CBS’ Gus Johnson, one hell of a basketball announcer but is out of his element calling MMA fights. Jason “Mayhem” Miller, who lost via decision to Shields back in November, somehow entered the cage and interrupted the live interview.

“Where’s my rematch, buddy?” Miller asked with a smile. Shields shoved him and a melee ensued. Miller’s corner men pulled him away while others went after Shields. The overhead camera clearly shows punches and kicks being thrown on a fallen Miller.

“Sometimes these things happen in MMA,” said Johnson, who was still in the crowded cage with his microphone, being heard not only over the television but also in the arena. “A lot of testosterone in the cage. Gentlemen, we’re on national television,” he futilely pleaded before announcing that they were going to step away for a commercial break.

What Johnson needed to do – and Monday morning quarterbacking is not our norm but in this case we feel the need to make an exception – was not to single out MMA. Saying that these things happen in sports would have sufficed. Even the testosterone remark can be overlooked. Hopefully the educated viewer understood what he meant and will not jump to any conclusions or accusations.

StrikeForce CEO Scott Coker reserved judgement on what action he would take until reviewing the video, although he said that he would indeed do so. “There is no place for that type of behavior in StrikeForce or any other MMA league,” said Coker, who was en route to the press conference area when the incident took place and did not witness it.

Coker also did not know why Miller (23-7), who had won an earlier fight against Tin Stout, was in the cage. “When you have the corner men that Jake has and something like that happens, you know there’s going to be an issue,” commented Coker. “I don’t know why [Miller] couldn’t have thought that out because I could have told you that prior to that. We should have kept them apart. I had no idea that he was going to do something like that but it will never happen again.”

Now we await the fallout from the mainstream media, who will undoubtedly use this incident as ammunition why MMA is ‘barbaric.’ “This is bad for the, which is still in its infancy,” Coker said. As it is, the media treats MMA as a second-class citizen and barely gives it a sniff. And having periodic network coverage result in an incident that even a member of their own announcing team mishandled will not do it any favors.

So the next time there is a fight on the basketball court or baseball diamond, listen to the reaction of the broadcast booth and see if there are any consistencies with Johnson’s rant.

Stock Photo: Esther Lin/StrikeForce

“We’re looking forward to delivering an explosive night of world class MMA action on CBS,” said Scott Coker, Founder and CEO of STRIKEFORCE.  “We have the world’s # 1 fighter, Fedor, making his network primetime debut against an undefeated powerhouse in Brett Rogers and, with the stars lined up for the remainder of the card, it is bound to be an exciting night of television.”

The following four primetime matchups are confirmed for CBS/ STRIKEFORCE/ M-1 GLOBAL SATURDAY NIGHT FIGHTS on Nov. 7:

* Fedor “The Last Emperor” Emelianenko vs. Brett “The Grim” Rogers

* Jake Shields vs. Jason “Mayhem” Miller (Middleweight Title Fight)

* Gegard “The Dreamcatcher” Mousasi vs. Rameau Thierry “The African Assassin” Sokoudjou

* Fabricio “Vai Cavalo” Werdum vs. Antonio “Big Foot” Silva

(All bouts are pending approval by the Illinois Athletic Commission.)

FEDOR “THE LAST EMPEROR” EMELIANENKO vs. BRETT “THE GRIM” ROGERS:

Simply referred to as “Fedor” by fans around the world, the 6-foot, 235-pound Russian is one of the most dominant fighters in the sport.  A master of the Russian military combat system, Sambo, he boasts a record of 30 wins, one loss, no draws with 16 wins by submission, seven knockouts and seven decisions.  His opponent, undefeated American, 28-year-old Brett Rogers (10-0) stands 6-feet, 5-inches tall, weighs 265 pounds and brings two of the heaviest hands in the sport to the cage.  Both Fedor and Rogers’ last victories came against former heavyweight champion Andrei Arlovski.

JAKE SHIELDS vs. JASON “MAYHEM” MILLER

In the night’s middleweight title fight (185 pounds), Jake Shields (23-4-1) squares off against Jason “Mayhem” Miller (22-6).  Shields, widely considered one of the best fighters in the world, brings an impressive 12-fight win streak to the cage, six of his last seven coming by way of first round submission.  Most recently, he defeated world-ranked middleweight “Ruthless” Robbie Lawler in his STRIKEFORCE debut on June 6.  His opponent, Miller, a fellow submission expert, is one of MMA’s most exciting fighters.  The Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu and Muay Thai specialist is the host of MTV’s reality series “Bully Beatdown” and trains with two of the sport’s most recognizable fighters, Randy “The Natural” Couture and Quinton “Rampage” Jackson. He currently has 13 submission victories on his resume.

GEGARD “THE DREAMCATCHER” MOUSASI vs. RAMEAU THIERRY “THE AFRICAN ASSASSIN” SOKOUDJOU

Gegard Mousasi and Rameau Thierry Sokoudjou will face one another in the night’s light heavyweight (205 pounds) bout.  Mousasi (26-2-1) of Leiden, Netherlands, recently scored his 13th consecutive victory on August 15, 2009 by winning his US debut and the STRIKEFORCE light heavyweight title in a first round victory over defending champion Renato “Babalu” Sobral on SHOWTIME®.  Sokoudjou (7-4), known to his fans as “The African Assassin,” has scored six of his seven wins by knockouts and brings an impressive striking game to the cage.

FABRICIO “VAI CAVALO” WERDUM vs. ANTONIO “JUNIOR” SILVA

Fabricio “Vai Cavalo” Werdum will face Antonio “Junior” Silva in a matchup of two promising Brazilian heavyweights.  Werdum is a two-time Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu world champion and a submission expert while Silva has nine KOs in his 13 victories.  Werdum, a former PRIDE and UFC standout, is coming off an impressive first round submission victory in his STRIKEFORCE debut on Aug. 15 over veteran Mike Kyle.  Silva, a fellow 6-foot-4 Brazilian, will be making his STRIKEFORCE debut after compiling a remarkable 13-1 record since he turned pro in 2005.

SHOWTIME Sports will produce the four-fight event with host Gus Johnson calling the action and MMA legend Frank Shamrock and Mauro Ranallo serving as color analysts.  The executive producer is David Dinkins, Jr.

About STRIKEFORCE

STRIKEFORCE (www.STRIKEFORCE.com <http://www.strikeforce.com/> ) is a world-class mixed martial arts cage fight promotion which, on Friday, March 10, 2006, made history with its “Shamrock vs. Gracie” event, the first sanctioned mixed martial arts fight card in California state history.  The star-studded extravaganza, which pitted legendary champion Frank Shamrock against Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu black belt Cesar Gracie at San Jose’s HP Pavilion, played host to a sold out record crowd of 18,265.  Since 1995, STRIKEFORCE has been the exclusive provider of martial arts programming for ESPN and, after 12 years of success as a leading, world championship kickboxing promotion, the company unveiled its mixed martial arts series with “Shamrock vs. Gracie.”  In May 2008, West Coast Productions, the parent company of STRIKEFORCE, partnered with Silicon Valley Sports & Entertainment (SVS&E), an entity created in 2000 to oversee all business operation aspects of the San Jose Sharks and HP Pavilion at San Jose.

About M-1 Global

M-1 Global (www.m-1global.com <http://www.m-1global.com/> ) has been one of the leading Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) organizations in the world for over a decade. M-1 has promoted over 150 shows worldwide since 1995.  Billed as the “World Cup of Mixed Martial Arts,” the M-1 Challenge is a full season of MMA events that showcases some of the best up and coming MMA fighters in the world. Broadcast to over 90 countries around the world, including HDNet in the United States, the M-1 Challenge pits teams of five fighters representing their respective countries against each other for international bragging rights and the title of M-1 Challenge Champions. Fighters who succeed on the M-1 Challenge’s international breeding ground will earn the opportunity to participate in major MMA events presented by M-1 Global and their promotional partners such as STRIKEFORCE.