Click above for “What to Watch: Gavao vs. Dantas”
Raug Monica, California. (Lub ob hlis ntuj 22, 2015) - No hnub Friday, Bellator MMA brings a world championship matchup between two highly skilled mixed martial arts practitioners when bantamweight champion Marcos "Loro" Galvao (17-6-1) defends his strap against former champion and former friend and training partner, Eduardo "Dudu" Dantas (17-4) nyob rau hauv "Bellator 150: Galvao vs.. Dantas 2.
The event emanates from the Kansas Star Arena in Mulvane, Kansas this Friday, Lub ob hlis ntuj 26, and airs live on Spike at 9 p.m. THIAB/8 p.m. I, thaum ua ntej bouts yuav kwj nyob rau Bellator.com thiab Lub Bellator Mobile App. Daim pib rau "Bellator 150: Galvao vs.. Dantas 2 " uas pib ntawm cia li $27, are on sale now at KansasStarEventCenter.com or Ticketmaster.com, raws li tau zoo raws li lub Kansas Star Arena chaw ua hauj lwm.
In addition to the title fight, a heavyweight co-main event of Cheick Kongo (23-10-2) tiv thaiv Vinicius Queiroz (8-3) will anchor the number two spot. Tsis tas li ntawd nyob rau hauv daim ntawv, Kendall Grove (22-15) yuav siv sij hawm nyob rau hauv Francisco “Kiko” France (13-3-1), hometown nyiam David Rickels (16-4, 1 NC) will return to action against Bobby Cooper (12-5), plus the Bellator MMA debut of newly signed women’s flyweight Lena Ovchynnikova (10-3), uas yuav siv sij hawm nyob rau hauv Rebecca Ruth (5-1).
"Lawv,"Uas tau tiv thaiv rau lub ntiaj teb no-nrov npe promotions cov yam koj nyiam uas lub ntiaj teb no huab Cagefighting thiab Shooto txij li thaum 2003, yuav tsum sib tw rau lub 11th lub sij hawm nyob rau hauv lub Bellator MMA banner. Lub 34-xyoo-laus yog presently nyob rau hauv lub midst ntawm ib tug plaub-sib ntaus yeej streak thiab muaj emerged yeej nyob rau hauv xya ntawm nws lub xeem yim scraps. Nyob rau hauv nws cov nag mus ua si, Galvao tiav lawm Joe Warren ntawm "Bellator 135: Warren vs. Galvao " via submission to win his first-ever championship and fulfil a promise he made to his mother before her unfortunate passing.
Meanwhile, Dantas yuav tau nrhiav los theej tawm txoj kev vam meej nws muaj tiv thaiv nyob rau hauv lawv cov thawj Galvao lub rooj sib tham, which resulted in a second-round knockout at “Bellator 89.” Last May, the 27-year-old Nova Uniao product dispelled of Mike Richman ntawm unanimous kev txiav txim siab ntawm "Bellator 137: Halsey vs. Grove. " Lub Bellator caij 5 Bantamweight Tournament winner is looking to become a two-time bantamweight champion come Lub kaum hli ntuj 23.
Kongo will be making his eighth appearance under the Bellator MMA banner, looking to add to his impressive promotional mark of 5-2. The Parisian native has fought a who’s who in the mixed martial arts landscape, with notable wins against Mirko Cro Cop, Pat Barry, Matt Mitrione, and Alexander Volkov already on his record. In his last outing – which just so happened to be inside the Kansas Star Arena — Kongo impressively defeated Volkov via unanimous decision.
After nearly two years out of action, Queiroz returned to the Bellator MMA cage against Ewerton Teixeira ntawm "Bellator 139: Kongo vs. Volkov," defeating his fellow Brazilian opponent via second round arm-triangle choke. “Spartan” hopes to plant the seeds for a busy 2016 with the matchup against Kongo, where a win can undoubtedly place him in the midst of the heavyweight title picture.
Grove capped off 2015 with an emphatic knockout of Joey Beltran ntawm "Bellator 143: Warren vs. Davis," nyob rau hauv lub Cuaj Hli Ntuj. The winner of“The Ultimate Fighter: 3," has fought professionally since 2003 for promotions all around the world, notably ProElite and UFC. This will be “Da Spyder’s” sixth appearance under the Bellator MMA banner as he hopes to climb back towards a 185-pound title shot – he competed for the gold last year against Brandon Halsey.
A veteran of Strikeforce, “Kiko” France has strung together a five-fight winning streak as of late, most recently handing the formerly undefeated Ben Reiter the first loss of his young career at "Bellator 146: Kato vs. Manhoef. " It’s safe to classify the 33-year-old Arizona native as a “submission specialist,"Nrog 12 ntawm nws 13 wins as a professional coming by way of making his opponent tap.
A Bellator MMA event in Mulvane, Kansas just wouldn’t be the same without “The Caveman,” who will return to action for the first time since competing against Michael Chandler no yav dhau los Kaum ib hlis. Rickels always comes ready to put on a show, seb nws yog nyob rau nws txoj kev mus rau hauv lub tawb, los yog thaum nws noj rau ib tug uas yog leej twg Bellator MMA sib txuj ci. The 27-year-old will be making his 16thappearance under the promotional banner.
The last time Bobby Cooper fought inside the Kansas Star Arena, he took home a closely contested split decision victory over“Bellator 147” co-headliner Pablo Villaseca. Tam sim no, “Super Duper” will look to move to 3-0 under the Bellator MMA banner when he faces Rickels in hostile territory. It’s worth noting that the Missouri native has only lost twice in his last eight MMA appearances.
Hailing from Ukraine, Ovchynnikova will enter the fray fresh off a new exclusive, multi-fight contract with Bellator MMA. “Hunter” has previously fought the likes of Joanne Calderwood and at only 28-years-old has already competed professionally since 2006. Tam sim no, Ovchynnikova looks to solidify herself as a top contender in the budding women’s flyweight division on Lub ob hlis ntuj 26 against a tough foe in Ruth.
“Becky” Ruth was undefeated in 2015, winning all three of her matchups by technical knockout under the Shamrock Fighting Championships banner. The lone loss on the Missouri native’s record came against Resurrection Fighting Alliance champion Jocelyn Jones-Lybarger, via controversial split decision.
Sau kom tiav "Bellator 150: Galvao vs.. Dantas 2” Fight Card:
Bellator MMA Bantamweight Title Main Event: Marcos Galvao (17-6-1) vs. Eduardo Dantas (17-4)
Bellator MMA Heavyweight Co-Main Event: Cheick Kongo (23-10-2) vs. Vinicius Queiroz (8-3)
Bellator MMA Hnav Feature Bout: Dave Rickels (16-4, 1 NC) vs. Bobby Cooper (12-5)
Bellator MMA Middleweight Feature Bout: Kendall Grove (22-15) vs. Francisco Fabkis (13-3-1)
Bellator MMA Flyweight Feature Bout: Lena Ovchynnikova (10-3) vs. Rebecca Ruth (5-1)
Preliminary Card:
Bellator MMA Heavyweight Feature Bout: David Hammons (1-1) vs. Kyle Noblitt (1-0)
Bellator MMA Middleweight Feature Bout: Brandon Farran (12-10) vs. Gregory Babene (16-11)
Bellator MMA Welterweight Feature Bout: Manny Meraz (7-1) vs. Andre Fialho (5-0)
Bellator MMA Featherweight Feature Bout: Gaston Reyno (5-0) vs. Chuka Willis (6-2)
Bellator MMA Middleweight Feature Bout: Chris Harris (4-0) vs. Julian Marquez (2-0)
Bellator MMA Hnav Feature Bout: Marcio Navarro (14-11) vs. Henry Lindsay (4-5)
Bellator MMA Featherweight Feature Bout: Thai Clark (5-0) vs. Deron Carlis (4-1)
Bellator MMA Hnav Feature Bout: Jason Witt (7-2) vs. Jonathan Gary (11-6)