The third edition of Bellator’s World Grand Prix is set to launch with 16 featherweight athletes vying for the 145-pound championship and a one million dollar grand prize.
Streaming exclusively on DAZN, the world’s first truly dedicated live sports streaming service, the first round of pairings includes former champions, undefeated elite prospects, European standouts, athletes moving up a weight class and a fighter currently in the midst of the longest winning streak in company history. Fans can catch all the action, either live or on-demand, by downloading the DAZN app and watching on their connected device of choice.
It all begins with Bellator 226 on September 7 at SAP Center at San Jose, Calif., headlined by a heavyweight world title fight between Ryan Bader and Cheick Kongo, where four opening round bouts will take place:
- Daniel Straus (26-8) vs. Derek Campos (19-9)
- Pat Curran (23-8) vs. Adam Borics (13-0)
- Emmanuel Sanchez (18-4) vs. Tywan Claxton (5-0)
- Sam Sicilia (16-9) vs. Pedro Carvalho (10-3)
Bellator 228 on September 28 will showcase the remaining first-round matchups, featuring eight more of the world’s best 145-pounders, including an explosive featherweight world title fight pitting Patricio “Pitbull” (29-4) against Juan Archuleta (23-1). All of the action emanates from The Forum in Inglewood, Calif., including a middleweight co-main event between Lyoto Machida and Gegard Mousasi. The last three tournament bouts will see:
- Darrion Caldwell (13-3) vs. Henry Corrales (17-3)
- Daniel Weichel (39-11) vs. Saul Rogers (13-2)
- A.J. McKee (14-0) vs. Georgi Karakhanyan (28-9-1, 1 NC)
Excluding the world title bout between “Pitbull” and Archuleta, the seven other opening round contests will consist of three rounds. Every bout from the second round on will be five, five minute rounds.
Following the completion of the opening round, the competitors still remaining in the grand prix will be paired with opponents via random drawing.
Beginning with “Pitbull” versus Archuleta, each time an athlete enters a tournament bout as champion, the Bellator featherweight title will be on the line, culminating in the Featherweight World Grand Prix on DAZN winner becoming the undisputed Bellator featherweight champion.
In addition, a tournament alternate contest will be decided upon following the conclusion of the opening round, with the victor available to fill in due to any unforeseen circumstances where a prior winner is unable to compete. Dates and locations for the remainder of the tournament will be determined at a later date.
