Tito Ortiz to Fight in Strikeforce? The “Huntington Beach Bay Boy” (15-6-1) Tito Ortiz is still looking for an employer, as he prepares to make his anticipated comeback into MMA — in approximately six months — after undergoing major back surgery in late 2008.
The former UFC light heavyweight champ has been negotiating with numerous organizations, which include Affliction and now Strikeforce, after departing from the UFC after a longtime beef with UFC president and former manager, Dana White. 
Ortiz, technically under contract with The Ultimate Fighting Championship until May of ‘09, was seen sitting cage-side in San Jose, CA, as he attended "Strikeforce: Shamrock vs. Diaz".
The ever-imposing Ortiz, who’s never been shy about voicing his opinion, was featured as a guest-speaker at the post-event’s press conference where he revealed to be "in dialogue" with the company.
"We are in dialogue, and we look forward to Tito fighting for Strikeforce," the company’s CEO Scott Coker said. "We'd love to have him here in San Jose. I think our fans would really appreciate Tito fighting in San Jose."
The Southern California native went on to disclose that he has already began strength-training routines. "I actually just got (cleared) from my doctor to start doing my weight training, which I've been doing the last seven days," he said. "I kind of need to hold myself back a bit because I want to go harder. But the doctor says, 'Take your time. Take your time.'
"I'm six months out now,” said Ortiz. “I've got about another month-and-a-half or two months and I can start wrestling again."
He also went on to express his excitement about the possibility of this becoming a reality. "I want to thank Showtime/CBS, Scott Coker, Ken Hershman, and all the rest of the gang for believing in me and giving me an opportunity to possibly be on free television on CBS and possibly here on Showtime — possibly pay per view, also," Ortiz said. "I'm excited to get back in a cage and compete and give all of my fans the best that I do."
"I want to compete," Ortiz said. "I want to be on CBS for free, give my fans a free fight, and get on pay per view and get a title around my waist again. 'Baba-who' is holding it on, so I would like to take it from him. He's a great fighter, but we have our words. It's going to be awesome to compete again and be 100 percent… I'm amped. I can't wait."
This weekend's UFC 97 will feature two great main events, headlined by the return of the reigning pound-for-pound king, (23-4) Anderson “The Spider” Silva [-675 ML] to the Octagon, as he defends his UFC middleweight title for a record 5th time against Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu black belt, (14-1) Thales Leites [+475 ML]. In the co-main event of the night, the “Iceman” (21-6) Chuck Liddell [-200 ML] is in desperate need of a victory, as he looks to remain relevant in the UFC. Liddell will be taking on Brazilian superstar, (17-3) Mauricio “Shogun” Rua [+160 ML], who’s coming off a rather lackluster TKO victory against 44-year-old, (15-9) Mark “The Hammer” Coleman.
