A career catapult for some of today's most ferocious wordsmiths, the Blaze Battle is returning to TV after an almost two-year hiatus.

On July 9 at New York's Hammerstein Ballroom, 16 nonprofessional lyrical grapplers will battle each other in a Rap Battle Federation showdown until one is crowned champion. The show, whose full title is "RBF/Blaze Battle — The Takeover," will air on the Urban In Demand pay per view network on August 24.

The last Blaze Battle — and the first to air on TV — was shown on HBO in November 2000. The battles began in July 1998 and were put on by now defunct hip-hop publication Blaze magazine. Several former Blaze Battle participants have signed deals with major labels after getting exposure at the forum, including Bathgate, who was picked up by Virgin; E-Dubb, who has secured a home with MCA; and Shells, who records for J Records. During a few of the early battles, signed rap stars such as the RZA also competed.

This year's contestants are still being chosen, and the show's Raymond O'Neal Jr. said he and other organizers will be looking at rappers' street cred based on how much people are feeling their mixtape freestyles. For those who haven't been able to garner a street buzz, O'Neal's Nu America Agency is taking videotaped submissions of one to three minutes. Rappers can e-mail him at roneal@nuamericaagency.com.