SANTA MONICA (פבואר 3, 2015) - סרגיי Kharitonov (23-5) is the newest free agent by Bellator MMA, with the news that the Russian heavyweight has been signed to an exclusive multi-year, חוזה רב-קרב. A veteran of both Strikeforce and Pride Fighting Championships, Kharitonov remains on active duty with the Russian Airborne Troops.

Doubling as a kickboxer at different points throughout his combat sports career, “The Paratrooper” has decided to parlay his recent five-fight winning streak and focus purely on mixed martial arts. Kharitonov’s resume is extensive, with the 35-year-old scoring wins against some of the sport’s most notable names including UFC Heavyweight Champion Fabricio Werdum, אנדריי Arlovski, פדרו ריזו, Murilo “Ninja” Rua, and Alistair Overeem.

“I have had the best seat in the house for some of Kharitonov’s heavyweight outings,"MMA הנשיא Bellator סקוט קוקר אמר, “and I know Sergei [Kharitonov] can come in and make an immediate impact on our heavyweight division. He is an extremely skilled and experienced fighter who can end a fight in the blink of an eye, and we look forward to having him do just that inside the Bellator cage. יותר, he’s already competed at one ‘Dynamite’ event before, maybe he could do so again in the future!"

Kharitonov joins a division that is currently championed by fellow Russian fighter ויטלי Minakov, other top names include בובי לאשלי, Cheick קונגו, Vinicius קיירוז, Kimbo Slice, טוני ג'ונסון, ג'סטין גדרון, דן צ'ארלס, ו ג'יימס תומפסון.