FanHouse MauroRanallo

Al Bernstein, the long-time boxing announcer, will return to the mixed martial arts broadcast booth on Nov. 6 for the Strikeforce Challengers event in Fresno, Calif.

The organization's regular play-by-play announcer for the Challengers events, Mauro Ranallo, will be in Chicago on Nov. 7 calling the action for the Strikeforce/M-1 Global event on CBS. FanHouse learned of the decision on Monday.

On this week's edition of The MMA Hour, we were joined by Strikeforce commentator Mauro Ranallo to talk about his career in MMA media and the future of the organization.

Later in the show, we spoke to the host of ESPN.com's MMA Live, Jon Anik, about the evolution of the program and the UFC 103 vs. HBO boxing pay-per-view clash coming up on Sept. 19. Check out the newest episode below.

You can add Mauro Ranallo's name to the growing list of MMA personalities who have agreed to be a part of EA Sports' new mixed martial arts video game. FanHouse has learned that the Strikeforce announcer and Fight Network Radio host will be the voice of the game, which is slated to be released in 2010. No word on who will be joining him in the virtual broadcast booth.

Ranallo could not be reached for comment, but he has dropped hints of his involvement in the game on his radio show.

On Saturday night, Strikeforce put on its first MMA show of 2009, and on Sunday night Strikeforce CEO Scott Coker talked to me about how he thinks the first show went and where he sees Strikeforce going in 2009.

Among the topics we discussed were the success of Nick Diaz, the future of Frank Shamrock, the weight of Cris Cyborg (and her likely future fight with Gina Carano), as well as the possibility that big names in MMA including Kimbo Slice, Tito Ortiz, Royce Gracie and Fedor Emelianenko could fight in the Strikeforce cage. The full interview is below.

Strikeforce will put on its first MMA event of the year Saturday night at the HP Pavilion in San Jose, and the fights will air on Showtime.

But watching on TV isn't the only way to see the fights if you won't be in the arena. It might not even be the best way.

The mixed martial arts commentator Mauro Ranallo is prone to hyperbole, and I don't have a problem with that: Hyperbole has been part of the fight game for as long as the fight game has existed.

But as far as I'm concerned, Ranallo lost all credibility with his comments at the end of tonight's EliteXC show on CBS.

After Kimbo Slice gave what may have been the most pathetic main event performance in the history of mixed martial arts, getting knocked out in 14 seconds by a low-level fighter named Seth Petruzelli, Ranallo was asked how we should react to seeing Kimbo flat on his back on the canvas.

Said Ranallo: "We give him a mulligan."

Said me: Give me a break. Kimbo doesn't deserve "a mulligan." He deserves to be finished in the sport of mixed martial arts.