Tag: Bellator bookings

Bellator 123 Adds Cheick Kongo vs. Lavar Johnson, King Mo vs. Tom DeBlass, And the Debut of Bobby Lashley [#FridayNightWars]


(Disclaimer: Black guys not drawn to scale.)

On September 5th, Southeastern Connecticut is going to host way more top-notch MMA than it deserves, honestly. That’s the date of #FridayNightWars (hashtag patent-pending), the night when the UFC and Bellator put on simultaneous shows ten miles away from each other.

As we previously reported, UFC Fight Night 50 in Ledyard will feature a suspiciously-stacked lineup featuring Ronaldo Souza vs. Gegard Mousasi, Alistair Overeem vs. Ben Rothwell, Matt Mitrione vs. Derrick Lewis, and Joe Lauzon vs. Michael Chiesa. But Bellator isn’t going down quietly. The promotion has announced three more bouts for its Bellator 123: Curran vs. Pitbull 2 card in Uncasville, and they all feature guys you’ve heard of…

Cheick Kongo vs. Lavar Johnson: Kongo bounced back to the win column with a second-round TKO of Eric Smith at Bellator 120 in May, and has put together a 3-1 record under the Bellator banner. He’ll face fellow UFC veteran Lavar “Big” Johnson, who has struggled to find his footing in Bellator, dropping to 1-2 in the promotion after his April submission loss against Blagoy Ivanov. Johnson has lost four of his last five fights overall.


(Disclaimer: Black guys not drawn to scale.)

On September 5th, Southeastern Connecticut is going to host way more top-notch MMA than it deserves, honestly. That’s the date of #FridayNightWars (hashtag patent-pending), the night when the UFC and Bellator put on simultaneous shows ten miles away from each other.

As we previously reported, UFC Fight Night 50 in Ledyard will feature a suspiciously-stacked lineup featuring Ronaldo Souza vs. Gegard Mousasi, Alistair Overeem vs. Ben Rothwell, Matt Mitrione vs. Derrick Lewis, and Joe Lauzon vs. Michael Chiesa. But Bellator isn’t going down quietly. The promotion has announced three more bouts for its Bellator 123: Curran vs. Pitbull 2 card in Uncasville, and they all feature guys you’ve heard of…

Cheick Kongo vs. Lavar Johnson: Kongo bounced back to the win column with a second-round TKO of Eric Smith at Bellator 120 in May, and has put together a 3-1 record under the Bellator banner. He’ll face fellow UFC veteran Lavar “Big” Johnson, who has struggled to find his footing in Bellator, dropping to 1-2 in the promotion after his April submission loss against Blagoy Ivanov. Johnson has lost four of his last five fights overall.

Muhammad “King Mo” Lawal vs. Tom DeBlass: The last time we saw our hero King Mo, he was calling Bjorn Rebney a dick-rider on national television, following his screwjob loss to Quinton Jackson. He’ll return to the cage against UFC washout Tom DeBlass, who went 2-0 in Bellator last year, with both wins by KO/TKO.

Bobby Lashley vs. Josh Burns: The former WWE star quietly built up a three-fight win streak last year, and has been keeping busy in the wrestling world this year as the TNA World Heavyweight Champion. Now, he’ll look to reintroduce himself to MMA fans on a larger stage. Lashley will compete at Bellator 123 again Josh Burns, whose 8-7 record includes an 0-4 tally in Bellator (all losses by stoppage). Seems like Bellator is taking no chances here.

In a semi-related story, Bellator president Scott Coker has brought in his old Strikeforce homey Rich Chou to do matchmaking. Bellator is turning into Strikeforce 2.0, and we have absolutely no problem with that.

Bellator Signing of the Day: British Wheel-Kick Victim Terry Etim Added to Nov. 2 PPV


(The many faces of Terry Etim. / Photos via Getty)

There was a brief moment in time when Terry Etim was considered a future title contender in the UFC lightweight division. After a shaky 1-2 start in the Octagon, the Liverpool native went on a 4-0 run in 2008-2009 where he was just smoking people. Notably, Etim picked up back-to-back Submission of the Night bonuses for his choke-outs of Justin Buchholz and Shannon Gugerty, which led to horribly premature Anderson Silva comparisons being thrown around.

But these days, most UFC fans associate the name “Terry Etim” with one of the most incredible knockouts in UFC history — a KO that he was on the losing end of, unfortunately. His spectaular loss to Edson Barboza at UFC 142 defined him, and after a follow-up decision loss to Renee Forte in February, Etim was released from the UFC.

Luckily, There’s Always Bellator™. The talent-recyclers at Viacom have just signed Etim to make his Bellator debut at the promotion’s November 2nd “Rampage vs. Tito” pay-per-view event, where he’ll be facing 9-2-1 Floridian Patrick Cenoble. Eight of Cenoble’s nine wins have come by KO/TKO, although his Bellator debut in March resulted in a draw against Tony Fryklund.

Etim vs. Cenoble will be featured on the Spike TV prelims leading up to the 11/2 PPV card. The current lineup is after the jump…


(The many faces of Terry Etim. / Photos via Getty)

There was a brief moment in time when Terry Etim was considered a future title contender in the UFC lightweight division. After a shaky 1-2 start in the Octagon, the Liverpool native went on a 4-0 run in 2008-2009 where he was just smoking people. Notably, Etim picked up back-to-back Submission of the Night bonuses for his choke-outs of Justin Buchholz and Shannon Gugerty, which led to horribly premature Anderson Silva comparisons being thrown around.

But these days, most UFC fans associate the name “Terry Etim” with one of the most incredible knockouts in UFC history — a KO that he was on the losing end of, unfortunately. His spectaular loss to Edson Barboza at UFC 142 defined him, and after a follow-up decision loss to Renee Forte in February, Etim was released from the UFC.

Luckily, There’s Always Bellator™. The talent-recyclers at Viacom have just signed Etim to make his Bellator debut at the promotion’s November 2nd “Rampage vs. Tito” pay-per-view event, where he’ll be facing 9-2-1 Floridian Patrick Cenoble. Eight of Cenoble’s nine wins have come by KO/TKO, although his Bellator debut in March resulted in a draw against Tony Fryklund.

Etim vs. Cenoble will be featured on the Spike TV prelims leading up to the 11/2 PPV card. The current lineup is after the jump…

Pay-Per-View Main Card
Light Heavyweight: Rampage Jackson (32-11) vs. Tito Ortiz (16-11-1)
Lightweight Title: Michael Chandler (12-0) vs. Eddie Alvarez (24-3)
Light Heavyweight Interim Title: King Mo Lawal (11-2) vs. Emanuel Newton (21-7-1)
Featherweight Title: Pat Curran (19-4) vs. Daniel Straus (21-4)

Spike TV Preliminary Fights
Fight Master Finals: Joe Riggs (39-14) vs. Mike Bronzoulis (15-5)
Lightweight: Terry Etim (15-5) vs. Patrick Cenoble (9-2)

Spike.com Preliminary Fights
Welterweight: Joe Williams (10-3) vs. Jesse Juarez (20-8)
Light Heavyweight: Brandon Halsey (4-0) vs. Hector Ramirez (9-5-1)
Lightweight: Mike Guymon (14-6-1) vs. Aaron Miller (14-8)
Featherweight: Joe Camacho (13-18-3) vs. Cleber Luciano (8-5)
Lightweight: Darren Smith (4-3) vs. Josh Smith (8-5)

Bellator Signing of the Day: British Wheel-Kick Victim Terry Etim Added to Nov. 2 PPV


(The many faces of Terry Etim. / Photos via Getty)

There was a brief moment in time when Terry Etim was considered a future title contender in the UFC lightweight division. After a shaky 1-2 start in the Octagon, the Liverpool native went on a 4-0 run in 2008-2009 where he was just smoking people. Notably, Etim picked up back-to-back Submission of the Night bonuses for his choke-outs of Justin Buchholz and Shannon Gugerty, which led to horribly premature Anderson Silva comparisons being thrown around.

But these days, most UFC fans associate the name “Terry Etim” with one of the most incredible knockouts in UFC history — a KO that he was on the losing end of, unfortunately. His spectaular loss to Edson Barboza at UFC 142 defined him, and after a follow-up decision loss to Renee Forte in February, Etim was released from the UFC.

Luckily, There’s Always Bellator™. The talent-recyclers at Viacom have just signed Etim to make his Bellator debut at the promotion’s November 2nd “Rampage vs. Tito” pay-per-view event, where he’ll be facing 9-2-1 Floridian Patrick Cenoble. Eight of Cenoble’s nine wins have come by KO/TKO, although his Bellator debut in March resulted in a draw against Tony Fryklund.

Etim vs. Cenoble will be featured on the Spike TV prelims leading up to the 11/2 PPV card. The current lineup is after the jump…


(The many faces of Terry Etim. / Photos via Getty)

There was a brief moment in time when Terry Etim was considered a future title contender in the UFC lightweight division. After a shaky 1-2 start in the Octagon, the Liverpool native went on a 4-0 run in 2008-2009 where he was just smoking people. Notably, Etim picked up back-to-back Submission of the Night bonuses for his choke-outs of Justin Buchholz and Shannon Gugerty, which led to horribly premature Anderson Silva comparisons being thrown around.

But these days, most UFC fans associate the name “Terry Etim” with one of the most incredible knockouts in UFC history — a KO that he was on the losing end of, unfortunately. His spectaular loss to Edson Barboza at UFC 142 defined him, and after a follow-up decision loss to Renee Forte in February, Etim was released from the UFC.

Luckily, There’s Always Bellator™. The talent-recyclers at Viacom have just signed Etim to make his Bellator debut at the promotion’s November 2nd “Rampage vs. Tito” pay-per-view event, where he’ll be facing 9-2-1 Floridian Patrick Cenoble. Eight of Cenoble’s nine wins have come by KO/TKO, although his Bellator debut in March resulted in a draw against Tony Fryklund.

Etim vs. Cenoble will be featured on the Spike TV prelims leading up to the 11/2 PPV card. The current lineup is after the jump…

Pay-Per-View Main Card
Light Heavyweight: Rampage Jackson (32-11) vs. Tito Ortiz (16-11-1)
Lightweight Title: Michael Chandler (12-0) vs. Eddie Alvarez (24-3)
Light Heavyweight Interim Title: King Mo Lawal (11-2) vs. Emanuel Newton (21-7-1)
Featherweight Title: Pat Curran (19-4) vs. Daniel Straus (21-4)

Spike TV Preliminary Fights
Fight Master Finals: Joe Riggs (39-14) vs. Mike Bronzoulis (15-5)
Lightweight: Terry Etim (15-5) vs. Patrick Cenoble (9-2)

Spike.com Preliminary Fights
Welterweight: Joe Williams (10-3) vs. Jesse Juarez (20-8)
Light Heavyweight: Brandon Halsey (4-0) vs. Hector Ramirez (9-5-1)
Lightweight: Mike Guymon (14-6-1) vs. Aaron Miller (14-8)
Featherweight: Joe Camacho (13-18-3) vs. Cleber Luciano (8-5)
Lightweight: Darren Smith (4-3) vs. Josh Smith (8-5)