Grappling machine Vitor "Shaolin" Ribeiro has joined the ranks of the Strikeforce roster, nicely augmenting their narrow but talented lightweight division alongside notable fighters such as Gilbert Melendez, Josh Thomson, and Mitsuhiro Ishida.  MMAJunkie broke the story. Shaolin boasts one of the most powerfully applied Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu attacks in MMA and a 19-3 record against phenomenal competition.  He lost his most recent fight in an uncharacteristic striking exhibition at DREAM 10 with Shinya Aoki, and Tatsuya Kawajiri and JZ Cavalcante mark his only other shortcomings.  Shaolin holds a win over Kawajiri from their first meeting, and other impressive victories litter his resume like Joachim Hansen, Eiji Mitsuoka, and fellow Strikeforce lightweight Mitsuhiro Ishida. Shaolin is a four-time winner of the Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu World Championships, and has been around the block in MMA promotions (Shooto, K-1, DREAM, Cage Rage, Rumble on the Rock).  This is one of the best possible additions Strikeforce could hope for to add legitimacy to their 155 pound class.  With the recent news of Josh Thomson breaking his leg again, it looks like he will be out of the LW title race for some time, so this respectable addition couldn't have come at a better time. No opponent has been mentioned for him yet, but look for Shaolin to start out taking on a mid-level Strikeforce LW, such as Mike Aina, Billy Evangelista, or Jorge Gurgel, and quickly work his way up to challenge for the title.

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