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Press Release – Newport Beach, Cali. (August 21, 2012) — After hosting a collection of the most memorable and jaw dropping moments in Bellator history, Bellator Fighting Championships is returning to Casino Rama on November 2 for Bellator 79 LIVE on MTV2, The Score in Canada and in commercial free HD on EPIX beginning at 8 p.m. EST. Doors open at 6pm EST, with the event also being broadcast on mun2 in Spanish language, as well as streamed on Spike.com.
Tickets are on sale now and are available at Ticketmaster.com, Bellator.com and in-person at the Casino Rama Box Office. Tickets are priced from $25-$175.
“From Michael Chandler’s vicious knockout of MMA legend Akihiro Gono to Douglas Lima’s brutal finish over Ben Saunders, we’ve seen some tremendous fights at Casino Rama, and I expect the same on November 2,” said Bellator Chairman & CEO Bjorn Rebney. “Our fans in Ontario have always been top notch, and they are for another great night with names like Eduardo Dantas, Paul Daley and Ryan ‘The Real Deal’ Ford.”
Known as one of the greatest bantamweights in MMA, Eduardo Dantas burst onto the MMA scene in 2011 with three impressive victories to capture the Bellator Season 5 Bantamweight Tournament crown, and guarantee his shot against then Bellator Champion Zach Makovsky. With momentum clearly on his side, Dantas was in complete control and eventually secured a second round submission victory over Makovsky to become Bellator’s youngest champion. Only 23, Dantas is ready to defend his title at Bellator 79 on November 2.
After making quick work of Rudy “Bad News” Bears at Bellator 72, British knockout artist Paul “Semtex” Daley will return to the Bellator cage in welterweight action. Known across the MMA landscape as one of the hardest hitters in the sport, “Semtex” will be eyeing another victory as he prepares for his first Welterweight Tournament appearance in early 2013 on Spike.
With one of the largest fan bases in all of Canada, Ryan “The Real Deal” Ford is ready to collect another Bellator win as he re-enters the Bellator cage at Casino Rama. Ford made his Bellator debut at Casino Rama earlier in 2012, defeating 53-8 Luis Santos in dominating fashion. Ford had the Ontario faithful on its feet, and the Tristar Gym product will be looking for the same November 2.
For more information, visit Bellator.com, follow Bellator on Twitter @BellatorMMA, follow Bellator Chairman & CEO Bjorn Rebney @BjornRebney and check out Bellator on Facebook at www.facebook.com/Bellator
About Bellator Fighting Championships
Bellator Fighting Championships is the world’s largest tournament based Mixed Martial Arts organization. Televised to nearly 500 Million homes worldwide, Bellator’s majority owner is entertainment giant Viacom. In the United States, Bellator can be seen on MTV2, in commercial-free HD on EPIX. Starting in January of 2013 Bellator will be broadcast on MMA television leader, Spike TV. With over 150 world-class athletes under contract, Bellator is home to many of the sport’s top athletes. Bellator’s founder &CEO, Bjorn Rebney, an experienced fighting sports and entertainment executive with a deep commitment to the purity and integrity of the sport of MMA and its athletes, believed that title shots should be earned, not given. This belief gave rise to Bellator’s real sport, tournament-based format, which gives Bellator’s tournaments a true playoff feel that keeps the sport true and distances itself from the political/subjective side of fighting sports. Bellator Fighting Championships’ executive team is comprised of top industry professionals in television production, live event orchestration, fighter development/relations, venue procurement, sponsorship creation/development, international licensing, marketing, advertising, publicity and commission relations. Bellator is based in Southern, California.
About MTV2
Available in approximately 80 million homes MTV2 is man’s best friend. Since its launch in 1996, the network has reflected the subversive interests and behaviors of young men with a compelling and diverse programming line-up inspired by ordinary guys who do extraordinary things. MTV2 is part of Viacom Media Networks, one of the world’s leading creators of programming and content across all media platforms. For more information, go to www.mtvpress.com or follow us on Twitter @MTVPress.
About EPIX
EPIX, a joint venture between Viacom Inc. (NYSE: VIA and VIA.B), its Paramount Pictures unit, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios Inc. (MGM) and Lionsgate (NYSE: LGF), is a next-generation premium entertainment channel, video-on-demand and online service launched on October 30, 2009. With access to more than 15,000 motion pictures spanning the vast libraries of its partners and other studios, EPIX provides a powerful entertainment experience with more feature films on demand and online and more HD movies than any other service. It is the only premium service providing its entire monthly line-up of new Hollywood titles, classic feature films, original series, music and comedy specials through the linear channel, video-on-demand and online at EpixHD.com, the leading online destination for movies.
EPIX has made the commitment to deliver the industry’s most expansive online collection of movies, making more than 3,000 titles available on EpixHD.com. The service is available to over 30 million homes nationwide through distribution partners including Charter Communications, Cox Communications, DISH Network, Mediacom Communications, NCTC, Suddenlink Communications and Verizon FiOS.
About mun2
mun2 is the leading Hispanic cable network for young millennial adults 18-34. From reality to music, on-air to digital, mun2 creates original content that resonates across a multi-screen platform. Young, vibrant and unabashedly Latino, mun2 has a distribution to over 38 million households. The network is part of Telemundo Media, a division of NBCUniversal.
About Casino Rama
Operating since July 31, 1996, Casino Rama is Ontario’s only First Nations commercial casino and has earned a reputation for presenting exclusive world-class sporting, entertainment & television events. The Casino offers a complete entertainment experience with over 2,500 slot machines, more than 110 gaming tables, 10 unique restaurants, a world-class 5,000 seat Entertainment Centre, and a 300-room all-suite, full-service hotel, featuring spa and health club facilities. Casino Rama is operated by Penn National Gaming, Inc.