Bellator’s planned November 2 show in Rama, Ontario has lost two of its biggest names, as both welterweight slugger Paul Daley and bantamweight champion Eduardo Dantas have been ruled out of event.
A Bellator spokesman told MMA Fighting that Daley was scratched after visa issues complicated his travel from his home country England to Canada, and after immediate attempts at resolution were unsuccessful, it was decided to put him on the shelf until the promotion moves over to its new broadcast home on Spike in January 2013. At that time, Daley is expected to be part of a welterweight tournament.
Daley (30-12-2) last fought in July, when he knocked out Rudy Bears in his Bellator debut. For the November show, titled Bellator 79, he had been scheduled to meet Kyle Baker, who instead will face Ryan Ford in one of the main card bouts.
Meanwhile, Dantas (14-3) was pulled from the card to ensure him proper recovery time from his recent knockout loss to Tyson Nam. That fight took place on August 25, and Nam, who was fighting on a charity show with Bellator’s permission, was surprisingly KO’d in just 1:40. Dantas suffered a concussion in the loss, and the promotion ultimately decided to take a cautious approach to his return.
Dantas had been scheduled to defend his belt against Marcos Galvao, but that matchup will have to wait for a future date.
Aside from Baker-Ford, Bellator 79 will feature a main card of Thiago Santos vs. Richard Hale in a heavyweight tournament semifinal, Mike Richman vs. Shahbulat Shahmalaev in a featherweight tourney semifinal, and a welterweight fight pitting recent No. 1 contender Douglas Lima against Jacob Ortiz.