(In an unprecedented move, Alistair’s first character witness will be this gigantic K-1 trophy.)

Following his alleged shoving of a woman at the Wynn Las Vegas hotel on January 2nd, UFC heavyweight #1 contender Alistair Overeem is scheduled to appear at a bench trial in Clark County, Nevada, on March 27th, where the verdict will be determined by a judge without a jury. Cross your fingers that the judge isn’t a die-hard Brock Lesnar fan.

Overeem faces one misdemeanor battery charge, which carries a potential $1,000 fine and up to six months in prison. While we expect his high-powered lawyer to smash these charges like an Uberknee to the ribs, it would be a disaster if this affected Overeem’s scheduled heavyweight championship bout against Junior Dos Santos at UFC 146 on May 26th. Stay tuned…

(Photoprops: FightoftheNight.com)

Two-and-a-half years after being accused of raping a former girlfriend, Jeremy Jackson‘s felony trial finally began earlier this month; the former UFC fighter and TUF 4 contestant had been in jail since his June 2008 arrest, unable to post the $1 million bond. But in a surprising turn of events, Jackson changed his plea to guilty midway through the trial, and now faces 25 years to life in prison. The Ventura County Star passes along more details:

The change of plea stunned [Jackson's] lawyer, Russell Baker, who is with the Public Defender’s Office. “It was against my advice. I tried to tell him not to do that,” said Baker in an interview, adding that he was extremely disappointed. “I feel that we could have beaten his case.”

The alleged victim testified that Jackson had threatened, intimidated and raped her on June 28, 2008. She said Jackson put a gun to her head. Prosecutors say it was a BB gun. She said Jackson wanted her to call another man and have sex in front of him. She said he threatened to kill her, her children and himself if she didn’t do what he said.