Bellator MMA held a press conference on Saturday afternoon prior to Bellator 138: Shamrock vs. Slice, from the Scottrade Center in St. Louis, MO to reveal a brand new “three-tier” show taking place later this year.
Bellator MMA announces three-tier “Dynamite” show including McGeary-Ortiz title fight
Bellator 141: Dynamite was announced for the SAP Center in San Jose, CA on Sept. 19. The first-tier is a light heavyweight title fight between champ Liam McGeary and Tito Ortiz.
McGeary (10-0) gained the Bellator strap at Bellator 134 this past February when he defeated Emanuel Newton in a close decision. That put him at 7-0 in the promotion — his streak also includes a stoppage over Kelly Anundson.
Ortiz (18-11-1) is a former UFC 205-pound champion, but came to Bellator following a losing streak in the premier promotion. In his debut, he stopped then middleweight champ Alexander Shlemenko and is coming off a decision over Stephan Bonnar.
The second-tier is a hybrid show including Bellator’s MMA fights and GLORY’s kickboxing fights. The arena will include both a cage and a ring, for the two respective sports. Both Paul Daley and Joe Schilling will be competing in kickboxing matches.
The third and final tier is a four-man, one-night light heavyweight tournament to decide who will face the winner of McGeary vs. Ortiz. The four men competing in the tournament are: former champ Newton, former top UFC fighter Phil Davis, Muhammed ‘King Mo’ Lawal, and Linton Vassell.
The two opening bouts will feature two, five minute rounds. A fourth judge will be brought in, if after the 10 minutes the fight is scored as a draw by the three official judges. The finals will feature a regular three, five minute rounds. It has not been confirmed who will fight who in the opening two bouts.
Tickets for the event go on-sale next week.