A must-see welterweight rematch headlines Bellator MMA's return to the United Kingdom on Friday, Oct. 1.
Former three-time champion Douglas Lima (32-9) returns to the cage for the first time following a pair of title defeats at 185 and 170 pounds when he faces red-hot Michael "Venom" Page (19-1) at SSE Arena in London. The main card of the event, titled "Bellator London: Lima vs. MVP 2," will air live at 4 p.m. ET on Showtime.
Page, 34, will return to fight in his home city for the first time since 2019 when he looks to avenge the lone defeat of his professional career when he was knocked out by Lima in Round 2 of their Bellator Welterweight World Grand Prix semifinal bout two years ago. Page is 5-0 since the loss with four knockouts.
"The comeback is always bigger than the setback. It was always gonna happen, it's written in the stars," Page said in the release. "The one and only MVP is back, and I will have my redemption in front of my hometown the only way I know how -- in venomous style."
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The 33-year-old Lima defeated Rory MacDonald in their rematch at Bellator 232 to regain the welterweight title in the finals of the Grand Prix. But Lima hasn't won since that fight, losing a middleweight title bid to Gegard Mousasi by decision in 2020 before dropping his 170-pound crown in June to unbeaten Yaroslav Amosov by wide decision.
"MVP has put together an impressive string of wins together, but when he gets back in the cage with me, the end result is going to be the same as the first time," Lima said. "Right now, I'm on a mission to put the Bellator belt back around my waist. Anyone standing in my way will be dismantled."
Rounding out the main card of the event are featherweights Robert Whiteford (16-4) and Andrew Fisher (18-8-1) in the co-main event along with lightweights Yves Landu (16-8) and Tim Wilde (13-4) squaring off. Light heavyweights Luke Trainer (4-0) and Yannick Bahati (9-5) will also do battle.
