Strikeforce was an American mixed martial arts and kickboxing organization based in San Jose, California which operated from 1985 to 2013. It was headed by CEO Scott Coker. Its live events and competitions have been shown on CBS, debuting on November 7, 2009, and Showtime in the United States. Internationally, Strikeforce events have been broadcast Super Channel in Canada, Primetime in the United Kingdom, SKY PerfecTV! in Japan, HBO Plus in Brazil, Space in Latin America and the Caribbean, and on the American Forces Network. In early 2011, Strikeforce was purchased by American Ultimate Fighting Championship owner Zuffa LLC, which eventually closed the promotion and brought the remaining fighter contracts into the UFC roster. History Founded as a kickboxing organization, Strikeforce later expanded into mixed martial arts. Its first MMA event, Strikeforce: Shamrock vs. Gracie, was held on March 10, 2006, at the HP Pavilion in San Jose, California. The event was California's first regulated MMA event and broke the previous record for largest audience at a MMA event in North America, with its 18,265 in attendance. The record was since broken by UFC 129. Strikeforce spent much of its early days as a regional promotion, but one that had a higher level of talent than most promotions due to its California base. It made its television debut with Strikeforce: Shamrock vs. Baroni, a co-branded event with the EliteXC promotion which featured the Strikeforce-contracted Frank Shamrock in its main event. In February 2008, Strikeforce, in conjunction with Brian Halquist Productions, held its first event outside California with Strikeforce: At The Dome at the Tacoma Dome in Tacoma, Washington. This was also the promotion's first show on cable television, as it was aired as part of the HDNet Fights block. Starting in 2009, most Strikeforce events were held in other states (15 in total), including 5 events in Las Vegas, Nevada from 2011-2012. They still ran multiple shows a year from HP Pavilion, as the owners of that building's main tenant, hockey's San Jose Sharks, had purchased a significant share in the promotion. In March 2008, Strikeforce partnered with NBC to broadcast weekly highlight and fighter-profile series, Strikeforce on NBC from April 12. In February 2009, Strikeforce purchased several assets, including a video library and several fighter-contracts, including Nick Diaz, Jake Shields, Robbie Lawler and Scott Smith from ProElite, owner of the defunct EliteXC promotion. Days later it also announced it