Kyoji Horiguchi will look to become a two-promotion champion in June at Madison Square Garden.
The rematch between Darrion Caldwell and Kyoji Horiguchi is set.
Caldwell will defend his Bellator bantamweight title against Horiguchi at Bellator 222 on June 14 in New York City. Rizin FF head Nobuyuki Sakakibara noted that the fight was a go after Rizin FF 15 on April 21, and Bloody Elbow has since confirmed the news. According to a Rizin official, verbal agreements were quickly obtained between all parties, and contracts were officially signed a few days after Sakakibara’s statements.
ESPN first reported that the fight was a done deal Sunday night. Bellator 222, which marks the promotion’s second event in New York, takes place at Madison Square Garden.
Caldwell and Horiguchi first met at Rizin FF 14, the Japan-based promotion’s New Year’s Eve show in 2018. Horiguchi submitted the Bellator champ in the third round to capture the inaugural Rizin FF 135-pound title. There was a provision that if Horiguchi won, the pair would have a rematch in Bellator.
Since that fight, Horiguchi has fought once, while Caldwell has yet to return to the cage. Horiguchi is coming off a quick knockout win over former UFC flyweight Ben Nguyen two weeks ago. Horiguchi, a former UFC title challenger, has won 12 in a row and nine since he left the UFC in late 2016.
Caldwell won the Bellator title in 2017 by defeating Eduardo Dantas in a competitive decision. “The Wolf” has defended it once, last year against Leandro Higo, whom he submitted early in the first round. He moved to 145 pounds after that to fight Noad Lahat in a non-title bout and finished Lahat by TKO last August.
He was targeting a superfight against current featherweight champ Patricio Freire, but then accepted the Horiguchi fight in Japan in a co-promotion of sorts.
Per the ESPN report, if Horiguchi beats Caldwell in the rematch, he will be contractually obligated to defend the Bellator title at least once a year.
Bellator 222 will be headlined by a light heavyweight bout between Lyoto Machida and Chael Sonnen.