While the MMA world was hoping for the announcement of a Gina Carano signing, the big announcement that Bellator hyped for Monday ended up just being the lineup for its next show.
Bellator 125 will take place on September 19 in Fresno, CA and features former kickboxing star Melvin Manhoef taking on former WEC light heavyweight champion Doug Marshall.
Manhoef, the 38-year-old Senegalese/Dutch fighter, is 28-11-1 (1 NC) in MMA and has competed all over the world. In his last fight, he knocked out Evangelista Santos in the first round.
Marshall is a 37-year-old from Visalia, Calif, with an 18-7 record. He’s 4-1 in Bellator and won the season eight middleweight tourney. He lost his last match to champion Alexander Shlemenko in November.
“This fight is like a dream come true,” Marshall said. “Two heavy hitters going for broke. It’s a classic don’t blink fight. Bet the house someone is going to sleep before the first round is over. And to be able to have this type of fight in front of all my friends and family that I grew up with makes it that much sweeter.”
The rest of the card shapes up as follows:
In a middleweight bout, UFC vet James Irvin (17-10) meets Brian Rogers (11-6); at featherweight, Martin Stapleton (13-3) takes on Goiti Yamauchi (17-2); and a heavyweight features Javy Ayala (7-3) vs. Raphael Butler (8-0-1).
