Bellator MMA in 2016

Bellator MMA
Genre	Sports
Created by	Bjorn Rebney
Country of origin	United States
Production
Running time	120 minutes
Release
Original network	Spike
Original release	January, 2016 – TBA
Chronology
Preceded by	Bellator MMA in 2015
Followed by	Bellator MMA in 2017

2016 will be the eighth year in the history of Bellator MMA, a mixed martial arts promotion based in the United States. This year will mark the second time that Bellator MMA has done monthly shows as opposed to a seasonal format.

Background

In June 2014, Bellator MMA underwent significant change in their executive ranks. Founder and CEO Bjorn Rebney parted with the company. Former Strikeforce founder Scott Coker was announced as the new President of Bellator MMA. As a result of the changes, it was announced that Bellator MMA would drop the weekly, seasonal format in 2015 and instead focus on larger, individual events per month.

In August 2015, Coker said Bellator MMA would hold 22 to 24 events in 2016 and would look to explore international markets by holding events outside of the United States and Canada.

Events list

Bellator 148

Bellator 148: Daley vs. Uhrich
Information
Date	January 29, 2016
Venue	Save Mart Center
City	Fresno, California
Attendance	5,425
Total gate	$267,809

Bellator 148: Daley vs. Uhrich took place January 29, 2016 at the Save Mart Center in Fresno, California. The event aired live in prime time on Spike TV.

Background

The main event was a Welterweight fight between Paul Daley and Andy Uhrich.

The event was expected to be headlined by a welterweight bout between UFC veteran Josh Koscheck and Matt Secor. However Koscheck pulled out of the bout due to an injury. As a result, Paul Daley vs. Andy Uhrich was elevated to the main event

Also on the card Paul Bradley faced Chris Honeycutt in a rematch. Bradley and Honeycutt first squared off at Bellator 140, where their bout ended in a no contest in the second round due to an accidental clash of heads opening a cut on Bradley that forced a stoppage.

Results

Fight card
Weight class				Method	Round	Time	Notes
Welterweight	Paul Daley	def.	Andy Uhrich	KO (punch)	1	2:00
Welterweight	Paul Bradley	def.	Chris Honeycutt	TKO (punches)	1	0:40
Lightweight	Patricky Freire	def.	Ryan Couture	KO (punch)	1	3:00
Heavyweight	Tony Johnson	def.	Raphael Butler	TKO (punches)	3	4:24
Preliminary card (Spike.com)
Featherweight	Justin Smitley	def.	Art Arcienega	Decision (unanimous) (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)	3	5:00
Women's Flyweight	Ilima MacFarlane	def.	Amber Tackett	Submission (armbar)	1	2:09
Heavyweight	Carl Seumanutafa	def.	Javy Ayala	TKO (punches)	2	3:46
Postliminary card (Dark Bouts)
Bantamweight	Josh San Diego	def.	Paul Ruiz	Decision (unanimous)	3	5:00
Flyweight	Matt Perez	def.	Eugene Cancino	Decision (split)	3	5:00
Featherweight	Te Edwards	def.	Nick Bustamante	KO	1	0:43
Light Heavyweight	Jermaine McDermott	def.	Eric Huggins	Submission (kimura)	1	1:53

^[1]

Bellator 149

Bellator 149: Shamrock vs. Gracie III
Information
Date	February 19, 2016
Venue	Toyota Center
City	Houston, Texas
Attendance	13,209
Total gate	$1,188,951

Bellator 149: Shamrock vs. Gracie III took place February 19, 2016 at the Toyota Center in Houston, Texas. The event aired live in prime time on Spike TV.

Background

The main event and co-main event of Bellator 149 were announced on the air during Bellator 145. President Scott Coker announced the main event fight would feature trilogy bout between combat sports legends Ken Shamrock and Royce Gracie. Gracie initially beat Shamrock in fifty-seven seconds via rear-naked choke at their first meeting at UFC 1 in 1993. Subsequent to that bout, the duo fought to a thirty-six minute draw at UFC 5 in 1995.

The co-main event featured a heavyweight bout between former Miami-Dade County street fighters Kevin Ferguson, aka "Kimbo Slice" and Dhafir Harris, aka "Dada 5000"

During intermission after the Kimbo Slice vs. Dada 5000 fight and shortly before the Ken Shamrock vs. Royce Gracie bout, Bellator MMA ring announcer Michael C. Williams announced to the live Toyota Center crowd attendance of 13,209. Thus making Bellator 149 the largest attended show in Bellator MMA history, beating out Bellator MMA & Glory: Dynamite 1 previous live attendance of 11,732.

Following the event it was announced that both Ken Shamrock and Kimbo Slice had failed their pre-fight drug tests. Shamrock tested positive for the anabolic steroid nandrolone, the opioid methadone, and an elevated (T/E) ratio of 12.4:1. Meanwhile Slice also tested positive for nandrolone and having an elevated (T/E) ratio of 6.4:1. The maximum allowed (T/E) ratio by both the Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation and the World Anti-Doping Agency is 4:1. ^[2] On May 2, 2016, it was revealed that Slice had settled with the Texas Athletic Commission with a fine of $2,500 and a revoking of his license in the state of Texas. The result of the bout has also been changed to a no contest. ^[3]

Results

Fight card
Weight class				Method	Round	Time	Notes
Light Heavyweight	Royce Gracie	def.	Ken Shamrock	TKO (knee and punches)	1	2:22
Heavyweight	Kimbo Slice	vs.	Dada 5000	No Contest (overturned)	3	1:32	[lower-alpha 1]
Lightweight	Derek Campos	def.	Melvin Guillard	TKO (punches)	2	0:32
Light Heavyweight	Linton Vassell	def.	Emanuel Newton	Decision (unanimous) (30-26, 29-27, 29-27)	3	5:00
Catchweight (150 lbs)	Emmanuel Sanchez	def.	Daniel Pineda	Decision (split) (28-29, 29-27, 29-28)	3	5:00
Preliminary card (Spike.com)
Middleweight	Isaac Villanueva	def.	Richard Knepp	TKO (punches)	1	0:42
Bantamweight	Jeremy Mahon	def.	Davis Sylvester	TKO (punches)	2	4:22
Featherweight	Adrian Yanez	def.	Ryan Hollis	Decision (unanimous)	3	5:00
Lightweight	Jason Langellier	def.	Anthony Ivy	Submission (anaconda choke)	1	2:09
Heavyweight	Justin Wren	def.	Juan Torres	Decision (unanimous)	3	5:00
Lightweight	Mike Trinh	def.	Joe Zamora	Submission (armbar)	1	3:49
Middleweight	Clovis Hancock	def.	Ruben Esparza	Submission (rear naked choke)	3	1:26
Bantamweight	Manny Lozoya	def.	Jake Norsworthy	Submission (guillotine choke)	1	2:33
Postliminary card (Dark Bouts)
Bantamweight	Leomana Martinez	def.	Casey Jones	TKO (punches)	1	1:21	[lower-alpha 2]
Flyweight	Chris Soliz	def.	Alex Macedo	Decision (unanimous)	3	3:00	[lower-alpha 3]
Flyweight	Shawn Solis	def.	Jonathan Davis	Decision (unanimous)	3	3:00	[lower-alpha 4]
Lightweight	Ricardo Deluque	def.	Hunter Scott-Gregg	Submission (rear-naked choke)	1	N/A	[lower-alpha 5]

1. Originally ruled a TKO (punches) victory at 1:32 of round 3 for Slice; result changed to "No Contest" after Slice tested positive for nandrolone and an elevated (T/E) ratio of 6.4:1.
2. Amateur bout
3. Amateur bout
4. Amateur bout
5. Amateur bout

^[4]

Bellator 150

Bellator 150: Kongo vs. Spartan
Information
Date	February 26, 2016
Venue	Kansas Star Casino
City	Mulvane, Kansas
Attendance	3,288
Total gate	$215,185

Bellator 150: Kongo vs. Spartan took place February 26, 2016 at the Kansas Star Casino in Mulvane, Kansas. The event aired live in prime time on Spike TV.

Background

The event was expected to be headlined by a rematch between Marcos Galvao and Eduardo Dantas for the Bellator Bantamweight Championship. The bantamweight title rematch was originally scheduled for Bellator 144, but was postponed when Dantas was forced to withdraw after suffering a rib injury in training. Dantas defeated Galvao via second-round knockout in their first meeting at Bellator 89 when “Dudu” was the promotion’s reigning 135-pound champ. However, due to an illness throughout the week leading to the fight, Galvao was pulled from the card the day of the weigh ins.^[5]

The co-main event featured local favorite David Rickels facing off against Bobby Cooper.

Results

Fight card
Weight class				Method	Round	Time	Notes
Heavyweight	Cheick Kongo	def.	Vinicius Queiroz	Decision (split) (30-27, 28-29, 29-28)	3	5:00
Lightweight	David Rickels	def.	Bobby Cooper	TKO (knee and punches)	1	3:49
Middleweight	Kendall Grove	def.	Francisco France	KO (punches)	2	0:35
Featherweight	Chuka Willis	def.	Gaston Reyno	Decision (unanimous) (29-28, 30-27, 30-27)	3	5:00
Women's Flyweight	Rebecca Ruth	def.	Lena Ovchynnikova	Decision (unanimous) (29-28, 30-27, 29-28)	3	5:00
Preliminary card (Spike.com)
Lightweight	Henry Lindsay	def.	Marcio Navarro	TKO (punches)	1	2:30
Middleweight	Chris Harris	def.	Julian Marquez	Decision (unanimous) (29-28, 30-27, 30-27)	3	5:00
Welterweight	André Fialho	def.	Manny Meraz	KO (punches)	1	0:29
Middleweight	Gregory Babene	def.	Brandon Farran	Submission (rear-naked choke)	1	3:37
Featherweight	Thai Clark	def.	Deron Carlis	Decision (unanimous) (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)	3	5:00
Heavyweight	Kyle Noblitt	def.	David Hammons	KO (punches)	1	0:45

^[6]

Bellator 151

Bellator 151: Warren vs. Caldwell
Information
Date	March 4, 2016
Venue	WinStar World Casino
City	Thackerville, Oklahoma
Attendance	1,152
Total gate	$103,710

Bellator 151: Warren vs. Caldwell took place March 4, 2016 at the WinStar World Casino in Thackerville, Oklahoma. The event aired live in prime time on Spike TV.

Background

The event was headlined by an Bantamweight bout between Joe Warren and undefeated rising star Darrion Caldwell. A former two-division champion, Warren has won six of his last seven fights in Bellator MMA. The 39-year-old last appeared at Bellator 143 on Sept. 25, when he captured a unanimous verdict against L.C. Davis. The 27-year-old Caldwell is 8-0 in his burgeoning career, including five triumphs under the Bellator banner. In his last outing, the former NCAA national champion wrestler choked out Shawn Bunch inside of a round at Bellator 143.

Michael Page was originally scheduled to face Fernando Gonzalez at this event but was pulled out of the bout in early February 2016. He was replaced by Resurrection Fighting Alliance welterweight champion Gilbert Smith.^[7]

Results

Fight card
Weight class				Method	Round	Time	Notes
Bantamweight	Darrion Caldwell	def.	Joe Warren	Technical Submission (rear-naked choke)	1	3:23
Welterweight	Fernando Gonzalez	def.	Gilbert Smith	Decision (split) (28-29, 29-28, 29-28)	3	5:00
Featherweight	Bubba Jenkins	def.	Goiti Yamauchi	Decision (unanimous) (29-28, 30-27, 29-27)	3	5:00
Bantamweight	Joe Taimanglo	def.	Sirwan Kakai	Decision (unanimous) (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)	3	5:00
Preliminary card (Spike.com)
Featherweight	Treston Thomison	def.	Aaron Roberson	Submission (guillotine choke)	2	2:20
Middleweight	Jermayne Barnes	def.	Derek Palmer	Submission (punches)	2	1:17
Welterweight	Neiman Gracie	def.	Roger Carroll	Decision (unanimous) (30-26, 30-27, 30-27)	3	5:00
Bantamweight	Ricky Turcios	def.	Steve Garcia	Decision (split) (29-27, 28-29, 30-27)	3	5:00
Welterweight	Justin Patterson	def.	Chance Rencountre	Decision (split) (29-28, 28-29, 29-28)	3	5:00
Featherweight	Ray Wood	def.	Chris Jones	TKO (strikes)	1	3:10

^[8]

Bellator 152

Bellator 152: Italy
Information
Date	April 16, 2016
Venue	Pala Alpitour
City	Torino, Italy
Attendance	13,867
Total gate	$907,758 (Italian Lira Euro Dollars) $1,027,536 (United States Dollars)

Bellator 152: Italy took place April 16, 2016 at the Pala Alpitour in Torino, Italy. The event aired on Spike TV.

Background

The event was announced in Paris by Bellator MMA President Scott Coker joined by Oktagon Kickboxing President Carlo Di Blasi a co-promoted event set to take place on April 16 at the Pala Alpitour in Torino, Italy.

Bellator 152: Italy aired on SPIKE Saturday, April 16, while the debut of “Bellator Kickboxing: Torino” was televised Friday, April 22, immediately following the broadcast of Bellator 153: Koreshkov vs. Henderson on Spike TV.

Official fight card

Fight card
Weight class				Method	Round	Time	Notes
Lightweight	Patricky Freire	def.	Kevin Souza	Decision (unanimous) (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)	3	5:00
Light Heavyweight	Alessio Sakara	def.	Brian Rogers	KO (punches)	2	2:29
Featherweight	A.J. McKee	def.	Danilo Belluardo	TKO (punches)	1	2:44
Women's Flyweight	Anastasia Yankova	def.	Anjela Pink	Submission (armbar)	1	1:35
Featherweight	Daniele Scatizzi	def.	Daniele Miceli	TKO (punches)	1	3:20
Bellator Kickboxing bouts
Middleweight (Kickboxing)	Alexandru Negrea	def.	Melvin Manhoef	Decision (unanimous)
165-Pound (Kickboxing)	Karim Ghajji	def.	Mustapha Haida	Decision (split) (50-45, 50-45, 46-48))
Welterweight (Kickboxing)	Raymond Daniels	def.	Francesco Moricca	TKO (liver kick)	1	0:30
Bantamweight (Kickboxing)	Kevin Ross	def.	Matteo Taccini	Decisión (unanimous) (29-28, 30-27, 30-27)	3	3:00
Women's Flyweight (Kickboxing)	Denise Kieholtz	def.	Veronica Vernocchi	Decision (split) (28-29, 30-27, 30-27)	3	3:00

^[9]

Bellator 153

Bellator 153: Koreshkov vs. Henderson
Information
Date	April 22, 2016
Venue	Mohegan Sun Arena
City	Uncasville, Connecticut
Attendance	9,043
Total gate	$687,269

Bellator 153: Koreshkov vs. Henderson took place April 22, 2016 at the Mohegan Sun Arena in Uncasville, Connecticut. The event aired live in prime time on Spike TV.

Background

The event was headlined by a Welterweight Championship match between current champion Andrey Koreshkov and former UFC and WEC lightweight champion Benson Henderson. The 32-year-old Henderson recently ended a 14-fight run with the UFC by signing a multi-fight deal with Bellator MMA. A longtime 155-pounder, Henderson recorded back-to-back wins as a welterweight in 2015. Also on the card is the Bellator debut of Evangelista Santos taking on long time contender Brennan Ward.

Former Bellator Featherweight Champion Patrício Freire was originally scheduled to face John Teixeira. who had to pull out of the evening's co-feature bout with a broken rib.

Official fight card

Fight card
Weight class				Method	Round	Time	Notes
Welterweight	Andrey Koreshkov (c)	def.	Benson Henderson	Decision (unanimous) (50-45, 50-45, 50-45)	5	5:00	[lower-alpha 1]
Featherweight	Patrício Freire	def.	Henry Corrales	Submission (guillotine choke)	2	4:09
Welterweight	Evangelista Santos	def.	Brennan Ward	Verbal Submission (heel hook)	1	0:30
Lightweight	Brent Primus	def.	Gleristone Santos	Decision (split) (28-29, 29-28, 29-28)	3	5:00
Welterweight	Michael Page	def.	Jeremie Holloway	Submission (toe hold)	1	2:15
Preliminary card (Spike.com)
Featherweight	Matt Bessette	def.	Keith Richardson	TKO (doctor stoppage)	2	3:14
Light Heavyweight	Mike Zichelle	def.	Joe Cronin	Submission (rear-naked choke)	1	1:25
Welterweight	Chris Honeycutt	def.	Matt Secor	Decision (unanimous) (30-25, 30-27, 30-27)	3	5:00
Welterweight	Djamil Chan	def.	Richard Patishnock	KO (punch)	1	3:09
Featherweight	Chris Foster	def.	Vovka Clay	unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)	3	5:00
Lightweight	Sam Watford	def.	Dean Hancock	submission (armbar)	1	1:44
Middleweight	Tim Caron	def.	Justin Sumter	TKO (strikes)	2	3:38
Bantamweight	Blair Tugman	def.	Jay Perrin	split decision (30-27, 27-30, 29-28)	3	5:00

1. For the Bellator Welterweight Championship.

^[10]

Bellator 154

Bellator 154: Davis vs. King Mo
Information
Date	May 14, 2016
Venue	SAP Center
City	San Jose, California

Bellator 154: Davis vs. King Mo is a mixed martial arts event will by held on May 14, 2016 at the SAP Center in San Jose, California, USA. The event will air live in prime time on Spike TV.

Background

Davis vs. King Mo was announced during Bellator 149 in Houston. The two men were supposed to face each other in the finals of the Bellator MMA & Glory: Dynamite 1 light heavyweight one-night tournament back in September, but "King Mo" sustained a hip injury after winning in the first round. Former UFC star Phil Davis won the tournament at Dynamite by submitting Emanuel Newton and knocked out reserve fighter Francis Carmont. Davis was originally scheduled to challenge light heavyweight champion Liam McGeary, but McGeary was injured. Lawal won the two-night, eight-man tournament at Rizin Fighting Federation on New Year's Eve in Japan. He knocked out Brett McDermott in the first round, beat Teodoras Aukstuolis in the semifinals by unanimous decision and knocked out Jiri Prochazka in the final. The winner of the main event will challenge for the title against the current champion.

Former Bellator Lightweight Champion Michael Chandler was scheduled to face former Strikeforce Lightweight Champion Josh Thomson in a lightweight bout. However, on May 2, it was announced that Thomson pulled out of the bout due to an undisclosed injury. As a result, Chandler was pulled from the card altogether.

Jordan Parsons was scheduled to face Adam Piccolotti in a featherweight bout on this card. That fight was cancelled after Parsons was involved in a hit-and-run accident that left him hospitalized before he passed away on May 4, 2016.

Official fight card

Fight card
Weight class				Method	Round	Time	Notes
Light Heavyweight	Phil Davis	vs.	Muhammed Lawal
Heavyweight	Sergei Kharitonov	vs.	Josh Appelt
Welterweight	Evangelista Santos	vs.	Saad Awad
Welterweight	André Fialho	vs.	Rick Reger
Lightweight	Adam Piccolotti	vs.	Ray Wood
Preliminary card (Spike.com)
Catchweight (160 lb.)	Joshua Hardwick	vs.	Jorge Acosta
Featherweight	Victor Jones	vs.	Anthony Taylor
Welterweight	Danasabe Mohammed	vs.	Martin Sano
Flyweight	Josh Paiva	vs.	Steven Gruber
Welterweight	Sam Spengler	vs.	Doyle Childs
Bantamweight	Josh San Diego	vs.	Jeremiah Labiano
Catchweight (130 lb.)	Alvin Cacdac	vs.	Darren Uyenoyama
Featherweight	Thomas Diagne	vs.	Mark Dickman
Strawweight	Stephanie Frausto	vs.	Jamielene Nievara
Middleweight	Andres Alcantar	vs.	Nick Pica
Heavyweight	James Chapman	vs.	Sean Tucker

^[11]

Bellator 155

Bellator 155: Carvalho vs. Manhoef
Information
Date	May 20, 2016
Venue	CenturyLink Arena
City	Boise, Idaho

Bellator 155: Carvalho vs Manhoef will took place May 20, 2016 at the CenturyLink Arena in Boise, Idaho. The event will air live in prime time on Spike TV.

Background

The event is expected to be headlined by a match between Rafael Carvalho vs Melvin Manhoef for the Bellator Middleweight Championship.

Carvalho pulled off one of 2015’s biggest upsets when knocked out Brandon Halsey with a body kick in the second round to claim 185-pound gold at Bellator 144 last October. The Brazilian has not lost since his MMA debut in 2011 and has stopped 10 of his last 12 opponents.

Manhoef earned his shot at the belt by punching out Hisaki Kato in the opening round at Bellator 146.

The Bellator Middleweight Championship title match is Rafael Carvalho first title defense.

The co-main event features former Bellator Featherweight Championship Champion Pat Curran facing off against former World Series of Fighting featherweight champion Georgi Karakhanyan.

Official fight card

Fight card
Weight class				Method	Round	Time	Notes
Middleweight	Rafael Carvalho (c)	vs.	Melvin Manhoef				[lower-alpha 1]
Featherweight	Pat Curran	vs.	Georgi Karakhanyan
Heavyweight	Dan Charles	vs.	Augusto Sakai
Lightweight	Marcin Held	vs.	Dave Jansen
Heavyweight	Joey Beltran	vs.	Chase Gormley
Preliminary card (Spike.com)
Women's Featherweight	Marloes Coenen	vs.	Julia Budd				[lower-alpha 2]
Bantamweight	Joe Hamilton	vs.	Tyler Freeland
Women's Flyweight	Veta Arteaga	vs.	Jackie Vandenburgh
Featherweight	Vince Morales	vs.	Hamilton Ash
Bantamweight	Brendan Raftery	vs.	Casey Johnson
Lightweight	Scott Thometz	vs.	Josh Tyler
Middleweight	Sean Powers	vs.	Will Noland
Bantamweight	Ricky Steele	vs.	Eric Cronkhite
Bantamweight	Jesse Brock	vs.	Olly Bradstreet

1. For the Bellator Middleweight Championship.
2. For the Bellator Women's Featherweight Championship.

^[12]

Bellator 156

Bellator 156: Galvao vs. Dantas
Information
Date	June 17, 2016
Venue	Save Mart Center
City	Fresno, California

Bellator 156: Galvao vs. Dantas will by held on June 17, 2016 at the Save Mart Center in Fresno, California. The event will air live in prime time on Spike TV.

Background

Marcos Galvao will make the first defense of his Bellator Bantamweight Championship title against Eduardo Dantas .

Both fighters cut their teeth with Andre Pederneiras ’ Nova Uniao squad in Rio de Janeiro, until their paths crossed at Bellator 89 2013. Dantas took the victory that day with a second-round knockout.

Dantas, 17-4, went on to defend the title he won that day against Anthony Leone before losing it to Joe Warren at Bellator 128.

Galvao, 17-6, then pieced together three consecutive victories and was awarded a shot at Warren and his bantamweight crown. The matchup resulted in an impressive second-round technical submission (kneebar), and a new champion

Galvao-Dantas 2 was originally scheduled for Bellator 150, but was scrapped following a last-minute illness suffered by Galvao.

Official fight card

Fight card
Weight class				Method	Round	Time	Notes
Bantamweight	Marcos Galvao (c)	vs.	Eduardo Dantas				[lower-alpha 1]
Welterweight	Douglas Lima	vs.	Chidi Njokuani
Middleweight	Brandon Halsey	vs.	John Salter
Preliminary card (Spike.com)
Light Heavyweight	Jermaine McDermott	vs.	Blake Watkins
Catchweight (140 pounds)	Paul Ruiz	vs.	C. Buron-Navarro
Heavyweight	Javy Ayala	vs.	JR Lugo
Lightweight	Nick Bustamante	vs.	Antoine Smith
Lightweight	CJ Keith	vs.	Chris Avila
Light Heavyweight	Chris Lewis	vs.	Ernest James

1. For the Bellator Bantamweight Championship.

^[13]

Bellator 157

Bellator 157: Dynamite 2
Information
Date	June 24, 2016
Venue	Scottrade Center
City	St.Louis, Missouri

Bellator 157: Dynamite 2 will by held on June 24, 2016 at the Scottrade Center in St. Louis, Missouri The event will air live in prime time on Spike TV .

Background

The event is headlined by a Catchweight bout between former UFC light heavyweight champions Quinton Jackson and Japanese Olympic gold medalist Satoshi Ishii .

Jackson has not competed since April 2015, when he defeated Fabio Maldonado via unanimous decision at UFC 186. Prior to that, "Rampage" had a successful three-fight stint with Bellator MMA , going 3-0 with two knockouts against Joey Beltran Christian M'Pumbu and unanimous decision won over Muhammed Lawal. After facing Maldonado inside the UFC Octagon, a contract settlement brought him back to Bellator MMA , where he now faces Ishii.

A 2008 Olympic gold medalist in judo, Ishii brings a 14-5-1 record to his bout opposite Jackson. Throughout his professional MMA career – which began in December 2009 – Ishii has competed against fighters such as Fedor Emelianenko, Mirko Cro Cop, Jerome Le Banner, and Tim Sylvia.

Official fight card

Fight card
Weight class				Method	Round	Time	Notes
Catchweight	Quinton Jackson	vs.	Satoshi Ishii
Heavyweight	Matt Mitrione	vs.	Carl Seumanutafa
Preliminary card (Spike.com)
Welterweight	Kevin Engel	vs.	Chel Erwin-Davis
Bantamweight	Jordan Howard	vs.	Justin Robbins
Welterweight	Joaquin Buckley	vs.	Chris Heatherly
Women's Catchweight (130 pounds)	Michelle Royer	vs.	Katy Collins
Catchweight (180 pounds)	Brad Jones	vs.	Clay Mitchell
Middleweight	Jason Christeson	vs.	Jarrod Thomas
Welterweight (Kickboxing)	Elmir Kulosman	vs.	Darryl Cobb
Women's Flyweight (Kickboxing)	Tara Walker	vs.	Mimi Kutzin

^[14]

Bellator 158

Bellator 158: Kimbo vs. Thompson II
Information
Date	July 16, 2016
Venue	O2 Arena (London)
City	London, England

Bellator 158: Kimbo vs. Thompson II will by held on July 16, 2016 at the O2 Arena (London) in London, England. The event will air live in prime time on Spike TV.

Background

Bellator President Scott Coker announced on ESPN’s SportsCenter that Slice and Thompson will compete in the main event of Bellator 158, which takes place this July 16 at London’s O2 Arena (London).

Slice and Thompson first met in an infamous 2008 clash under the EliteXC banner. Thompson used a wrestling-heavy attack to wear down Slice over the opening two rounds of the contest. However, Slice landed a big shot in the third, rupturing Thompson’s cauliflower ear and sending blood splattering. Slice seized the opportunity with a few follow-up shots, earning him a controversial TKO win.

co-feature will see longtime rivals Josh Koscheck and Paul Daley meet an another high-profile rematch.

Daley and Koscheck previously fought at UFC 113, where Koscheck famously took home a unanimous decision and got sucker-punched by Daley after the final bell in Round 3. That punch led to Daley's UFC release.

Recently, however, the two have enjoyed opposite career arcs.

Daley has won five straight, four coming via knockout, while Koscheck has lost five in a row, four via knockout or submission. Koscheck will make his Bellator debut at the event.

Official fight card

Fight card
Weight class				Method	Round	Time	Notes
Heavyweight	Kimbo Slice	vs.	James Thompson
Welterweight	Josh Koscheck	vs.	Paul Daley
Welterweight	Michael Page	vs.	Fernando Gonzalez
Light heavyweight	Linton Vassell	vs.	Francis Carmont

^[15]

References

1. "Bellator 148: Koscheck vs. Secor". bellator.spike.com. 2016-01-29.
2. Raimondi, Marc (March 21, 2016). "Kimbo Slice, Ken Shamrock both test positive for steroids at Bellator 149". MMAfighting.com. Retrieved March 21, 2016.
3. Marrocco, Steven (May 2, 2016). "Bellator's 'Kimbo Slice' settles with Texas commission following failed steroid test". MMAjunkie.com. Retrieved May 2, 2016.
4. "Bellator 149: Shamrock vs. Gracie". bellator.spike.com. 2016-02-19.
5. "On eve of Bellator 150, Marcos Galvao vs. Eduardo Dantas title fight pulled from card". MMAjunkie.com. MMA Junkie Staff. 2016-02-25.
6. "Bellator 150: Galvao vs. Dantas". bellator.spike.com. 2016-02-26.
7. Bohn, Michael (2016-02-09). "Michael Page out of Bellator 151, RFA champ Gilbert Smith in vs. Fernando Gonzalez". MMAjunkie.com.
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15. "Bellator 158: Slice vs. Thompson". bellator.spike.com. 2016-07-16.