Bellator Brings Stacked Event to California’s Pechanga Resort & Casino March 7th as Featherweight and Middleweight Tournament Semifinals Conclude
Newport Beach, CA. (February 19, 2013) – After an incredibly successful Southern California debut on January 17th, Bellator MMA will bring a stacked night of fights to Temecula’s Pechanga Resort and Casino on March 7th live on Spike TV. The night will showcase the Featherweight and Middleweight Tournament Semifinals as The Toughest Tournament in Sports continues, as well as a collection of Southern California’s best talent.
Tickets for the event start at just $40, and can be purchased by visiting Pechanga.com, Bellator.com, or by calling the Pechanga Box Office at 877-711-2946 or visiting between noon and 8pm daily. The event has an early start time as the first fight enters the cage at 5:00 p.m. with the LIVE worldwide television broadcast starting at 7 p.m. PST on Spike TV, as well as in Spanish language on mun2. The preliminary card will be streamed LIVE and FREE on Spike.com starting at 5 p.m. MST.
“Our sold out premiere event in Southern California last month showed that this market is a great one for Bellator LIVE on Spike,” said Bellator Chairman & CEO Bjorn Rebney. “To bring our second California event to the crown jewel of Southern California casinos, Pechanga is absolutely icing on the cake and to have such a loaded card just makes this that much better.”
The night will kick off with a Middleweight Tournament Semifinal as Southern California’s own Doug “The Rhino” Marshall returns to his roots as he looks to keep his knockout streak alive when he battles Sultan Aliev live on Spike. Known for pushing a frenetic pace and keeping his opponents on their heels, Marshall has his sights set on punching his ticket to the finals.
“Winning the tournament will validate me – again – and put me where I need to be, back at the top of the food chain, with a target on my back,” Marshall said. “Ain’t no more hunting – the game’s going to come to me. It’s going to be huge.”
After collecting a hard fought win over tournament and fan favorite Brian Rogers in the Bellator Middleweight Quarterfinals, Dan Cramer is set to face the heavy handed Brett “Fudoshin” Cooper, who has collected 11 knockouts in his 18 professional wins. Finally getting his chance to shine inside a Bellator Tournament, Cramer will look to keep the momentum going with a win on March 7th.
Featherweights collide as Mike “The Marine” Richman and Alexandre “PoPo” Bezerra are set to meet in a clash of two of the most explosive featherweights in the division. With a combined 29-2 record between the two, both veterans are looking to use their wealth of experience for a chance at the $100,000 Tournament prize.
Widely considered one of the best featherweights in the world, Marlon Sandro is ready to continue his quest towards a title shot as he takes on Russian submission artist Magomedrasul “Frodo” Khasbulaev live on Spike TV.
“I am so fortunate to have the chance to fight in the toughest tournament in the world,” Sandro said. “This is my opportunity to show the world what I can do and I am ready to finish at the top.”
The full card for Bellator’s March 7th event from Southern California’s Pechanga Resort & Casino can be found below:
MAIN CARD:
Middleweight Tournament Semifinal Fight: Sultan Aliev vs. Doug “Rhino” Marshall
Middleweight Tournament Semifinal Fight: Dan Cramer vs. Brett Cooper
Featherweight Tournament Semifinal Fight: Alexandre “Popo” Bezerra vs. Mike Richman
Featherweight Tournament Semifinal Fight: Frodo Khasbulaev vs. Marlon Sandro
PRELIMINARY CARD:
Light Heavyweight Feature Fight: Rocky Ramierz vs. Brandon Halsey
Featherweight Feature Fight: Shad Smith vs. Aaron Miller
Heavyweight Feature Fight: Maurice Jackson vs. Manny Lara
Middleweight Feature Fight: Willie Parks vs. Keith Berry
Welterweight Feature Fight: Sabah Homasi vs. Ricky Legere
Featherweight Feature Fight: Eric Uresk vs. Cleber Luciano
For more information, visit Bellator.com, follow Bellator on Twitter @BellatorMMA, follow Bellator Chairman & CEO Bjorn Rebney @BjornRebney and check out Bellator on Facebook at www.facebook.com/BellatorMMA
