Ken Shamrock, Kimbo Slice Test Positive for Banned Substances at Bellator 149
(sherdog.com)
Both Ken Shamrock and Kimbo Slice have failed drug tests ahead of their bouts at Bellator 149 in Houston on Feb. 19.
Sherdog.com learned of Shamrock’s positive test from a source close to the situation. MMAFighting.com reports that Slice also tested positive for a banned substance prior to the event. It is currently unknown for which substances the fighters tested positive.
Sherdog.com recently filed a records request with the Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation for drug tests results from the event. However, the results for Shamrock and Slice were redacted due to pending litigation. According to MMAFighting.com, both fighters have been received an administrative suspension from TDLR. Competitors on the card had their urine tested prior to the event.
With Bellator 152 card set, Derek Campos set to meet Patricky Freire in main event
(mmajunkie.com)The MMA portion of Bellator 152, a card which features both MMA and kickboxing action, is now finalized with a lightweight bout between Patricky Freire and Derek Campos lined up to serve as the night’s headliner.
The event takes place April 16 at Pala Alpitour in Turin, Italy. The main card airs on Spike following prelims on MMAjunkie. It marks the promotion’s first international event.
With the additions, the Bellator 152 card includes:
Derek Campos vs. Patricky Freire
Brian Rogers vs. Alessio Sakara
Danilo Belluardo vs. A.J. McKee
Anjela Pink vs. Anastasia Yankova
Daniele Miceli vs. Daniele Scatizzi
Severe heart condition scratches UFC vet Chris Leben’s Bellator comeback
(mmajunkie.com)Chris Leben is no longer coming out of retirement to fight for Bellator after doctors found a severe medical condition that left him with just 18 percent of normal blood flow to his heart.
MMAjunkie was today forwarded a statement from Leben’s management team. Swedish news site MMANytt first reported the news.
In a separate statement, Bellator President Scott Coker said, “We are saddened to hear of Chris Leben’s current health situation and would have loved to see him compete inside the Bellator cage.
“A fighter’s health and safety is of the utmost importance to us as an organization. We wish Chris the best in his future endeavors and we are happy to provide a platform for him to share his story with people around the world.”
'The Axe Murderer' comes out of retirement: Wanderlei Silva signs with Bellator
(mmajunkie.com)The next phase of the career of MMA legend Wanderlei Silva began today with the announcement that “The Axe Murderer” has signed with Bellator.
The 39-year-old Silva (35-12-1 MMA, 5-7 UFC), the promotion today announced, has signed an exclusive multi-fight, multi-year deal. The signing appeared to be an inevitability after Bellator President Scott Coker said recently that the promotion was having serious talks with the former UFC standout and PRIDE champion about coming out of retirement.
Several Fights Added to Bellator 153 in Support of Benson Henderson’s Promotional Debut
(mmaweekly.com)The co-main event for Bellator 153: Koreshkov vs. Henderson is set, with the news that Patricio “Pitbull” Freire (24-3) will compete against John “Macapa” Teixeira (19-1-2) in featherweight action on April 22 at Mohegan Sun Arena in Uncasville, Conn.
In addition, Connecticut’s own “Irish” Brennan Ward (13-3) returns to action in his home state fresh off an impressive victory in Japan, when he welcomes Evangelista “Cyborg” Santos (20-16) into the Bellator MMA fray at 170-pounds.
Bellator 153: Koreshkov vs. Henderson Updated Fight Card:
Main Card:
Welterweight World Title Bout: Andrey Koreshkov (18-1) vs. Benson Henderson (23-5)
Featherweight Co-Main Event: Patricio Freire (24-3) vs. John Teixeira (19-1-2)
Welterweight Feature Bout: Brennan Ward (13-3) vs. Evangelista Santos (20-16)
Preliminary Card:
Lightweight Preliminary Bout: Sam Watford (1-0) vs. Dean Hancock (2-0)
Featherweight Preliminary Bout: Chris Foster (8-4) vs. Felipe Lavandoski (5-0)
Lightweight Preliminary Bout: Jason Bakanowski (3-2) vs. T.J. Hepburn (4-2)
Featherweight Preliminary Bout: Pete Rogers (2-3) vs. Mike Mangan (0-3)
With free agency forthcoming, Kendall Grove heading into biggest fight of career
(mmafighting.com)Kendall Grove has been on the open market before. Except that time, he didn't expect it.
In 2011, Grove dropped a unanimous decision to Tim Boetsch at UFC 130 and he was released by the promotion. Yes, the Ultimate Fighter 3 winner had lost two in a row, but the first defeat came against Demian Maia and Boetsch is a perennial top-15 fighter at middleweight.
"The UFC didn't want me and I only lost two decisions to two tough guys and they let me go for some reason," Grove said. "But that's the business. I'm not mad over it. I'm a little disappointed, but it's their company."
Joe Schilling feels like the 'cards are stacked' against him as GLORY deal winds down
(mmafighting.com)Joe Schilling doesn't think he'll have many friends at the Sears Centre Arena this weekend.
It's not often that a fighter will compete for an organization when he is already set to bolt after his contract is up and everyone knows it. But that's exactly the case for Schilling when he meets Michael Lemaire at GLORY 27 on Friday night.
Schilling, the most well-known American kickboxer and fan favorite, has already inked a deal with Bellator Kickboxing and was introduced at the new promotion's introductory press conference last Friday in Houston. That contract just won't begin until he fulfills two more fights with GLORY. This particular one will come on the Superfight Series in Chicago and will air on UFC Fight Pass.
On eve of Bellator 150, Marcos Galvao vs. Eduardo Dantas title fight pulled from card
(mmajunkie.com)Here’s some bad news for those of you looking forward to Friday’s Bellator 150 championship headliner.
Officials today announced bantamweight champion Marcos Galvao (17-6-1 MMA, 7-3 BMMA) has been sidelined with an illness, and his headlining title fight and rematch against Eduardo Dantas (17-4 MMA, 7-2 BMMA) has been pulled from the card.
The full Bellator 150 card now includes:
MAIN CARD (Spike, 9 p.m. ET)
Cheick Kongo vs. Vinicius Queiroz
Bobby Cooper vs. David Rickels
Gaston Reyno vs. Chuka Willis
Francisco France vs. Kendall Grove
Lena Ovchynnikova vs. Rebecca Ruth
PRELIMINARY CARD (MMAjunkie, 7 p.m. ET)
Gregory Babene vs. Brandon Farran
David Hammons vs. Kyle Noblitt
Chris Harris vs. Julian Marquez
Henry Lindsay vs. Marcio Navarro
Thai Clark vs. Deron Carlis
Andre Fialho vs. Manuel Meraz
Jonathan Gary vs. Jason Witt
Justin Wren vs. Kimbo Slice next?
(mixedmartialarts.com)We all fight for a reason. But Bellator MMA heavyweight Justin Wren has a best one imaginable. His fights to promote his efforts to Fight for the Forgotten.
FFTF is a non-profit making life-altering impact in the remote parts of the Congo jungle. They are working to free the Mbuti Pygmy people from slavery, and then develop sustainability. Jesus said to love another. Wren really does that.
Dada 5000 suffers major medical scare after loss to Kimbo Slice
(mmafighting.com)The Harris Family would like to inform Dada's friends and fans that Dada is ok and resting comfortably in a Houston area Hospital under the care of an incredible staff of doctors and nurses.?The doctors have now informed us that Dada had accumulated extremely high levels of potassium in his blood which led to severe dehydration, fatigue and renal failure. The high potassium levels were likely caused by his 40lbs weight loss in preparation for the fight.?Thanks to the EMTs and doctors, Dada is now recovering nicely.
Dada showed the heart of a lion in the cage- not backing down throughout. He worked extremely hard preparing for the fight and stepped forward for 3 rounds against a tough veteran. He kept digging through the adversity- leaving it all in the cage for his fans and supporters. You can never take that away from him.?We'd like to thank all those who have supported Dada as well as express our sincere appreciation to Scott Coker, and the good people at BELLATOR and Spike who have been on-site to visit Dada and support the family.
Phil Davis vs. King Mo, Josh Thomson vs. Michael Chandler set for next Bellator tentpole event
(mmafighting.com)It'll be a battle of tournament winners headlining the next Bellator tentpole show.
Phil Davis will meet Muhammed Lawal in the main event of Bellator 154 on May 14 in San Jose, it was announced Friday during Bellator 149 in Houston. The two men were supposed to face each other in the finals of the Bellator MMA: Dynamite 1 light heavyweight one-night tournament back in September, but "King Mo" sustained a hip injury after winning in the first round.
Davis was lined up to challenge light heavyweight champion Liam McGeary, but McGeary is injured. The bout between Davis and "King Mo" will decide the No. 1 contender in the division.
In the co-main event, former Bellator lightweight champion Michael Chandler and former Strikeforce champion Josh Thomson will face off.
Scott Coker to launch Bellator Kickboxing in April on Spike
(mmajunkie.com)Bellator President Scott Coker and Spike executives today announced the upcoming launch of Bellator Kickboxing.
The kickboxing organization, slated for an April launch, will air on Spike like its MMA counterpart. Bellator’s MMA staff will run the kickboxing promotion out of its current Santa Monica, Calif., offices, according to Coker.
The first event is slated for April 16 and will be co-promoted with Oktagon Kickboxing. Pala Alpitour in Turin, Italy, plays host. Spike will air a live Bellator MMA event as a lead-in
Kimbo Slice fight attracts unusual betting on underdog
(espn.go.com)Friday night's MMA bout in Houston between Kimbo Slice and relative unknown Dhafir "Dada 5000" Harris has attracted an unusual level of betting action on the underdog, causing the odds to shift dramatically and forcing multiple sportsbooks to take the fight off the board.
Slice opened as a -360 favorite before a flurry of action, including several large wagers, poured in on the underdog Harris, driving the price down to Slice -165 as of Friday morning.
"We took seven bets in the first two hours we had it up; all of them were to win four figures on the underdog," said Jason Simbal, vice president of race and sports at Las Vegas sportsbook operator CG Technology. "It was moving like crazy. We had to take it down."
Apparently lots of different bookies have removed the fight from their sites...
Wanderlei Silva’s Lifetime Ban and $70,000 Fine Lifted
(mmaweekly.com)Wanderlei Silva‘s longtime disciplinary case before the Nevada Athletic Commission came to a conclusion on Wednesday. The commission reduced Silva’s suspension to three years and erased the $70,000 fine levied against him.
Silva was initially handed a lifetime ban and a $70,000 fine by the commission for evading a random drug test prior to a planned bout with Chael Sonnen at UFC 175 in the summer of 2014.
Scott Coker: Bellator did talk with Alistair Overeem's reps, but 'we chose not to make an offer'
(mmafighting.com)During an appearance on Monday's The MMA Hour, Alistair Overeem said that he never engaged in talks with any other promotion during free agency before deciding to re-sign with the UFC.
Technically, that might be the case. Overeem himself didn't -- but, according to Bellator president Scott Coker -- his representatives did.
"I don't want to make a big deal out of it, but of course there were negotiations going on," Coker told MMA Fighting on Tuesday. "It's true that Alistair wasn't talking to me directly, because his agent or manager or lawyer was talking to me. I think that's kind of what the story is, and negotiations went back and forth, and at the end of the day we chose not to make an offer. And really what it came down to was a value proposition of what he wanted and what he thought was the market value for him.
Rampage Jackson returns to Bellator MMA following lawsuit settlement
(bloodyelbow.com)Quinton Jackson is back with Bellator MMA after more than a year-long lawsuit between the two parties over Rampage's contract. This news comes just two months shy of his UFC 186 co-main event vs. Fabio Maldonado. Here's today's press release in full:
Following an amicable agreement to settle the litigation between the two parties, the always entertaining and exciting Quinton "Rampage" Jackson is returning to Bellator.
Bellator MMA is thrilled to have "Rampage," one of the most recognizable fighters in the history of the sport, joining a very competitive light heavyweight division featuring champion Liam McGeary, Phil Davis, King Mo, Tito Ortiz, Emanuel Newton, Linton Vassell among others.
Tito Ortiz cited for misdemeanor battery after allegedly grabbing woman’s phone at club
(mmajunkie.com)UFC Hall of Famer and Bellator light heavyweight Tito Ortiz was cited for misdemeanor battery early this morning after an alleged struggle with a woman in a Las Vegas nightclub.
Police were called to the Cromwell Casino at 1:08 this morning and made contact with a woman who claimed Ortiz tried to take her phone as she was filming a video, Las Vegas police spokesperson Laura Meltzer today told MMAjunkie.
The woman told TMZ Sports Ortiz “whipped her around” at Drai’s nightclub, thinking she was taking pictures of him, and was “scared for her life” when he allegedly got physical.
Bellator planning heightened security measures before Kimbo Slice vs. Dada 5000 fight
(mmafighting.com)BEVERLY HILLS -- It's no surprise to anyone that Kimbo Slice and Dada 500 have disdain for each other. That's one of the reasons why Bellator MMA put the bout between the two streetfighting legends together.
With that knowledge, Bellator president Scott Coker told MMA Fighting that there will be heightened security during fight week before Bellator 149 on Feb. 19 in Houston.
Slice and Dada, whose real name is Dhafir Harris, are being put up in separate hotels and whenever precautions will be taken when they are in the same room at the same time for press conferences and workouts. Bellator staff and security will make sure the two fighters and their respective camps are far apart at all times.
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