Bellator Fighting Championships has announced a blockbuster lightweight bout for their upcoming second season. Bellator Lightweight Champion and former DREAM and BodogFIGHT star Eddie Alvarez will battle UFC veteran Josh “The Dentist” Neer at a Bellator event in May.
The lightweight clash will be a non-title affair, but a victory for Neer would certainly set up a rematch for Alvarez’s championship belt. Bellator will hold eight-man tournaments during its second season in the featherweight, lightweight, welterweight and middleweight divisions.
Following his dominant victory over former number one contender Nate “The Great” Marquardt at UFC 109, middleweight wrestling powerhouse Chael Sonnen vaults into the top three at 185 pounds in the latest edition of the MMARising.com Top 10 Fighter Rankings.
A planned welterweight grudge match between Anthony “Rumble” Johnson and John “Doomsday” Howard on the debut “UFC On Versus” card has been cancelled after Johnson suffered a knee injury in training. Undefeated submission specialist Daniel Roberts will step in to face Howard at the March 21st event.
It took just 15 seconds for rising women’s MMA star Michelle “The Karate Hottie” Waterson to return to her winning ways tonight at Extreme Beatdown 6 in New Town, North Dakota. Waterson submitted MMA debutant Rosary “Ro” Califano with a flying armbar in the first round.
King of the Cage made its HDNet debut tonight with KOTC: “Vengeance,” which featured a trio of title fights. The Mark Burnett production concluded with a second-round stoppage victory for Mike “MAK” Kyle, while UFC veteran Rich “No Love” Clementi was upset earlier in the night.
One day after scheduled title challenger Vitor “The Phenom” Belfort was forced to withdraw due to injury, jiu-jitsu ace Demian Maia has stepped in to face Anderson “The Spider” Silva for the UFC Middleweight Championship at UFC 112. The promotion confirmed the fight earlier today.
The injury bug continues to cause problems for the UFC, as title challenger Vitor “The Phenom” Belfort has been forced to withdraw from his upcoming UFC Middleweight Championship bout with Anderson “The Spider” Silva. Tatame.com first reported on the cancellation of the UFC 112 fight.
Fresh off of his victory over fellow UFC Hall of Famer Mark “The Hammer” Coleman at UFC 109, former UFC Heavyweight and Light Heavyweight Champion Randy “The Natural” Couture may clash with former 185-pound champ Rich “Ace” Franklin at UFC 115 on June 12th. Sherdog.com first reported on the proposed light heavyweight bout.