Newport Beach, CA. (July 26, 2013) – The long awaited Bellator MMA Welterweight Tournament Final between Ben Saunders and Douglas Lima will take place live on Spike, Friday, September 20th from Phoenix’s Grand Canyon University Arena. The night will also feature the opening round of the Bellator’s highly anticipated Fall Welterweight Tournament.
Tickets for the event are on sale now and can be purchased by visiting the Grand Canyon University Arena Box Office or www.GCUArena.com,with tickets starting at just $25. The event will be broadcast live starting at 6 p.m. PST on Spike, as well as in Spanish language on mun2. The preliminary card will be streamed live and free on Spike.com starting at 4:30 p.m. PST.
With a combined record of 40-10, Bellator veterans Saunders and Lima will face off after a number of delays due to injury. A crowd favorite, Saunders cruised through the semifinal with a first round KO against Raul Amaya to punch his ticket to the tournament final.
“I can’t wait for this fight,” Lima said. “I have been injured back to back, but this time I’ll be 100% and we going to have one of the best fights of the year. I am ready to fight for the belt and I am coming hard!”
Having already climbed his way through a previous Welterweight Tournament, Lima knows what is takes to earn his title shot at the Bellator Welterweight World Championship and Saunders is the only obstacle standing in his way.
Crowd favorite and MMA veteran Matt Riddle will make his Bellator debut against Brazilian standout Sergio Junior. Known for his strong wrestling and Jiu-Jitsu background, Riddle joins Bellator after coming off four-straight victories with the UFC and is ready to face some of the best talent in the Bellator cage.
“This division is just so stacked, and I am so excited to be able to fight in this tournament,” Riddle said. “Bellator is doing a lot of great things right now, and I want to be a part of it.”
With a stacked Welterweight Tournament, former Bellator Tournament Finalist Brent Weedman looks to make his way through the tournament as he faces Justin Baesman, who steps into the Bellator cage for the first time in his professional career.
“My injury in the last tournament left me with unfinished business,” Weedman said. “I am glad that there is so much talent in this tournament, because nobody cares if you beat someone they’ve never heard of. I want tough competition to showcase my abilities.”
The Welterweight Tournament field is also rich with new blood as the always electrifying War Machine will battle Canadian Vaughn Anderson, who holds an impressive 16-1 professional record. After making his Bellator debut in June, War Machine is anxious to showcase to the nation the type of fighter he is.
“I am very excited to be a part of this tournament after my previous two attempts to be in a tournament fell through,” War Machine said. “As they say, the third time is the charm and this is my time. My opponent, Vaughn Anderson, has a very impressive record, but when I watched his fights all I could do was smile. For me, he is a match made in heaven and I am going to wreck him.”
The night will round out with new Bellator blood as England’s own Mark Scanlon will face knockout artist Herman Terrado. Scanlon will need to hold off Terrado’s heavy hand as he has won four of his last five fights via knockout.
“Phoenix is a location we’ve had on our radar for a long time and we wanted to deliver a stacked card for our first visit to Grand Canyon University,” Bellator Chairman & CEO Bjorn Rebney said. “We’ve got a lot of familiar faces to go along with some new Bellator arrivals, and like always, our welterweight field continues to be loaded with talent.”
Bellator MMA Main Card:
Bellator Welterweight Tournament Final: Ben Saunders (16-5) vs. Douglas Lima (24-5)
Bellator Welterweight Tournament Opening Round: Brent Weedman (21-8-1) vs. Justin Baesman (14-3)
Bellator Welterweight Tournament Opening Round: War Machine (13-4) vs. Vaughn Anderson (16-1-1)
Bellator Welterweight Tournament Opening Round: Matt Riddle (7-3) vs. Sergio Junior (29-11)
Bellator Welterweight Tournament Opening Round: Mark Scanlon (9-2) vs. Herman Terrado (11-2)
