Press Release – CHICAGO, Ill. (June 2, 2011) — Bellator Fighting Championships announced today that it will host an open tryout from Hollywood, Florida on June 18th that will provide a once-in-a-lifetime chance for an undiscovered professional fighter to earn a spot in one of the organization’s upcoming area events.
The tryout will take place at The Hard Rock Live at the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino in Hollywood, Florida on Saturday, June 18th with registration starting at 1 p.m. EST and tryouts beginning at 2 p.m. EST. All fighters from the state of Florida will be eligible to win a spot on the undercard of Bellator 50, which take place on September 17th from the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino. Non-Florida fighters are encouraged to tryout and will be scouted for other potential future roster openings. In addition to eligible aspiring fighters, the tryouts are open to media.
“The Seminole Hard Rock has been like a second home to Bellator,” said Bellator Chairman and CEO Bjorn Rebney. “We’ve had tremendous success with our open tryouts in the past, actually leading to a fighter securing a spot in a nationally televised Bellator Tournament. I expect another group of great fighters will be at the tryout June 18th in Hollywood.”
Bellator’s open tryouts have produced a number of fighters that have appeared at Bellator events, including Kenny Foster, Tyler Stinson, Anthony Lapsley, Anthony Leone, Jose Vega, John Orr, Jared Downing, and more.
The Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino is located on 1 Seminole Way, Hollywood, Florida 33314. Fighters must bring MMA gloves, boxing gloves, an athletic protector, and a mouthpiece. There will be no live striking, but there will be live grappling. The tryouts are only open to professional fighters and they must be prepared to present their MixedMartialArts.com ID. Fighters must also be an unrestricted free agent and cannot have any contractual obligations to another mixed martial arts promotion.
Bellator will kick off its Summer Series from The Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino in Hollywood, Florida on June 25th. The event will host the start of Bellator’s Featherweight Tournament, and feature UK-based submission specialist Ronnie “Kid Ninja” Mann, Brazilian knockout artist Marlon Sandro, and Season 2 Lightweight Tournament winner Pat Curran.
For more information, visit Bellator.com, follow Bellator on Twitter @BellatorMMA or on Facebook at www.facebook.com/Bellator
About Bellator Fighting Championships
Bellator Fighting Championships is a Mixed Martial Arts promotional company headquartered in Chicago. Bellator’s founder/CEO, Bjorn Rebney, is an experienced fighting sports and entertainment professional with a deep commitment to the purity and integrity of the sport of MMA and its athletes. Bellator Fighting Championships’ executive team is comprised of top industry professionals in the areas of live event production, television production, fighter relations, venue procurement, sponsorship creation/development, international licensing, marketing, advertising, publicity and commission relations.
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