Bellator 300 is around the corner and the promotion is going all in on title fights. Bellator MMA will host four champions defending their crown at the Pechanga Arena in San Diego on Saturday, Oct. 7.
The main card will be structured from lowest weight class to heaviest. Ryan Bader will defend his heavyweight crown in the main event against Linton Vasell. Women's featherweight champion Cris Cyborg takes on Cat Zingano in their long-awaited showdown. Lightweight king Usman Nurmagomedov will battle Brent Primus in the semifinals of the Lightweight World Grand Prix. And women's flyweight champion Liz Carmouche takes on Ilima-Lei Macfarlane to open the event.
"When I first joined Bellator, we set out to sign and develop the best available talent in the world and produce events for massive audiences. Our first tentpole event was Bellator 131 in San Diego and we couldn't be more excited to return to that very same arena for this monumental Bellator 300 event," Bellator president Scott Coker said in a press release. "We wanted to give the fans and supporters an epic night of fights and there is no better way to do that than showcasing these four incredible champions all putting their belts on the line. I'm proud of the all the work we have done to grow this brand and its athletes sinceI came on board.I can't wait for Bellator 300, which is going to be the biggest event in the history of Bellator MMA."
Bader, a former simultaneous two-division titleholder, looks to make his fifth defense as heavyweight champ against a streaking contender. Vassell converted a career-worst three-fight losing streak into the best run of his decade-long Bellator tenure up a division. Vassell has stopped his last four opponents, including a KO over the only heavyweight to beat him, Valentin Moldavsky.
Cyborg won the women's featherweight debut upon her Bellator debut in January 2020. She is a perfect 5-0 in the promotion with four stoppage wins. Zingano earned her status as the No. 1 ranked contender in Bellator's official rankings after going a perfect 4-0 since debuting in September 2020.
Nurmagomedov, who earned the title with a win over Patricky Pitbull in October, opened the tournament with a first-round submission of former UFC lightweight champ Benson Henderson. Meanwhile, Primus outworked Mansour Barnaoui after entering the Grand Prix as a late replacement for Sidney Outlaw. The tournament winner will be the lightweight champion and $1 million richer.
Finally, Carmouche vs. Macfarlane pits two friends and primary training partners against each other. Carmouche and Macfarlane have long campaigned for a respectful and competitive clash between the teammates. Carmouche is a perfect 6-0 with five finishes since signing with the promotion three years ago. Carmouche defeated Juliana Velasquez for the title, the latter of whom took the belt from Macfarlane. Hawaii's Macfarlane worked her way back into contention with two straight wins.
